Episode 41: Kapolei City Lights
This week, Nate Serota, the Public Information Officer for the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR), joins host Brandi Higa on the One O’ahu Podcast to discuss Kapolei City Lights 2023 and what folks can expect. Plus, a new timed, low-flow shower opened for public use last month following completion of an improvement project at Kaimana Beach in Kapi‘olani Regional Park. Nate Serota explains the design and function of this new shower. He also talks about the public reopening of the trap and skeet ranges at the Koko Head Shooting Complex.
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Kapolei City Lights
We are gearing up for the return of Kapolei City Lights on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023! The block party near Kapolei Hale is scheduled from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. The parade is set to begin at 6 p.m. from Kapolei High School, before proceeding down Kapolei Parkway to Kapolei Hale.
This year’s Holiday Tree for Kapolei City Lights was harvested from Makaʻunulau Community Park in Mililani. The full tree was about 80’ tall, but the top 50’ was harvested for the Kapolei City Lights celebration. The rest of the tree is mulched.
“You’ll see a lot of decorations inside and outside the Hale representing a lot of things “Westside,” added Nate Serota, Public Information Officer for the Department of Parks and Recreation. This year’s theme of “A Westside Wonderland” will feature decorations inspired by historic, cultural, and recreational aspects of our Leeward communities, from Waipahū to Kaʻena Point, to showcase pride in the westside.
The decorations of Kapolei City Lights 2023 will be open to the public from the evening of Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 until Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024.
Timed, low-flow showers at Kaimana Beach
A new timed, low-flow shower, improved walkway, and drinking fountain are now open for public use following completion of an improvement project at Kaimana Beach in Kapi‘olani Regional Park.
The upgraded shower includes three timed shower heads & one foot wash station (which run for approximately 45 seconds), a new concrete pad, pervious pavers around the shower, piping, fittings, and a sediment catch basin.
“What a lot of people may not understand is they are timed and they are low-flow, so they are designed to have that low water pressure,” explained Serota. “You can activate it as many times as you want but (by) messing with the handle or trying to get inside, you won’t actually be able to adjust the pressure. It’s just a set amount of water that’s going to come out.”
Along with conserving water, this new shower assists the City in remaining compliant with national storm water run-off permitting requirements (referred to as National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems or NPDES) by having the water drain into an appropriate catch basin instead of the ocean.
Koko Head Shooting Complex
Earlier this month, the Department of Parks and Recreation announced the public reopening of the trap and skeet ranges at the Koko Head Shooting Complex. The extended closure of the trap and skeet ranges was required to conduct ballistic testing of projectiles discharged at the southern-end of the shooting complex.
Operated by Koko Head Skeet Club, the Skeet Range reopened on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023, and will be available on weekends (Saturday and Sunday) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Trap Range, operated by Honolulu Trap Club, reopened on Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, and will be available Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Hours of operation for both of these ranges are subject to change based on the discretion of the Range Safety Officer.
