Summer Fun Students Tour The State Capitol

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State Sen. Will Espero

“Did you ever ride the mono-rail at Pearlridge? How would you like to ride the monorail from Ewa all the way to downtown?” I asked the Ewa and Kapolei YMCA Summer Fun students who responded with oohs and aahs. The four dozen or so students were on an hour-long field trip to the state Capitol. “The new rail system that the city is building will make it possible for you to go to town without a car,” I explained. “It costs $120 million. That’s a lot of zeroes,” I said.

“Will it be an underground train?” a boy in the back inquired.

“No, it’ll be an elevated train, above ground. It will be ready in about 11 years.” Their eyes grew big and they shook their heads in disbelief.

“If I’m still alive!”

“I’ll be so old I’ll be dead!” came all the groans, sending the undeniably older chaperones into knee-slapping laughter.

Eleven years is a lifetime if you’re 8 to 13 years old, and the youngest children, the 5- to 7-year-olds, only knew that 11 years is really long. Talking to school groups on field trips to the state Capitol is one of the nicest things about being a legislator. The students have lively questions.

“Why does it take so long?” one boy asked.

“Planning, and we have to raise the money,” I responded. “The state spends a lot of money every year to build and repair things that people need, but we take turns where it gets spent. Maui asks for money, Kauai asks for money, and my job as the senator for Ewa Beach is try to get money for what we need in our district. This year the state Legislature gave money for only three new schools to be built, and Ewa will be getting one of them - a new middle school.”

I explained the legislative process, that the House and the Senate engage in dialogue, negotiation and compromise to decide what laws should be made, then send the bills we agree on to the governor. If she likes it, she signs it, if she doesn’t like it, she vetoes it. “What if she doesn’t like it but thinks it should be a law anyway?” a girl in the middle asked.

“Then she lets it become law without her signature,” I explained.

State Sen. Will Espero treats Ewa and Kapolei YMCA Summer Fun students to a rare exploration of the Senate Floor. Photo courtesy of Espero’s office.

Many school groups come for their field trip during the session, when all the senators’ schedules are packed full of hearings, informational briefings and appointments with people who want to tell us about bills. Pressing demands make those visits short. Since this was during the interim, we had the luxury of time. It also meant I could take the group onto the Senate floor, which is usually off limits, to see what it’s like from our perspective.

The design of the Hawaii State Capitol is magnificent - unique among the 50 capitols in the country for its open style and rich cultural symbolism. I explained the motifs in the design - the blue carpet and white globe of light in the Senate represent the ocean and the moon; the brown carpet and golden globe in the House represent the Earth and the sun. The pillars represent the palm trees; the chambers and pool represent the volcanoes and ocean, and the white slopes of the Executive Level represent the clouds going up into the heavens.

How old is the Capitol?” a boy asked. Queenie, the governor’s Capitol tours coordinator, told the students the Capitol was built in 1969.

Whipping out my maps of the Ewa plain, the group learned of all of the coming exciting changes in the landscape for the EwaKapolei area. The new North-South Road will relieve traffic. Kapolei Parkway, when finished, will connect Ewa Beach with Kapolei at Papipi Road, enabling residents to bypass Fort Weaver Road. The new University of Hawaii-West Oahu campus will be there in time for them to go to college. “Your parents want you to go to college,” I said, “so you can get a good job.”

The new Hoakalei Marina: “Marina - you know the Ala Wai Marina?” Blank stares. “Magic Island - you’ve been to Magic Island?”

Yes, they nodded. “OK, you know the boats down by Magic Island? The new Hoakalei Marina will be even bigger than the Ala Wai.

State Sen. Will Espero uses a map of the Ewa region to introduce West Oahu summer fun students to various large-scale projects under way or planned for the region. Photo courtesy of Espero’s office.

“How many of you have eaten at McDonald’s? The original owners of McDonald’s - Ray Kroc, he’s dead now, but his wife is still alive - they made so much money from people eating at McDonald’s that they said they’d build six community centers around the country. And every state and every city said, build it in my state, build it in my city. And Ewa was chosen as one of the six lucky cities to have a new community center. It’s going to be about 10 times larger than the Leeward YMCA, and it will have swimming pools - that’s pools with an ‘s.’

“You know where the pumpkin patch is? That area is going to have a hotel, a shopping center, a movie theatre and a film studio.

“And do you know what all this development means?” I asked them.“Jobs. Lots of jobs for people.”

With all the talk of a new train, new schools, new roads and highways, and a new marina, a girl in the front asked, “How are we going to pay for all of this?”

“Taxes,” I answered. “Some people think taxes are bad, but taxes are good because they pay for the things we need like schools and roads.”

They won’t be able to ride the new rail until 2018, but they can start riding the Superferry next month between Oahu and Maui, I informed them. The ride will be fun, and there will be lots to do. They can roam the spacious cabin, look at the scenery, play in the kids’ place, eat at the restaurants, and shop. “How big is it?” a few asked. About as big as the tapestry wall up to the gallery banister, I guessed. They were impressed and excited.

Contact state Sen. Will Espero, D, (Ewa Beach, Waipahu), by calling 586-6360 or by email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)