Flashback to 2012...

Does this area look familiar to you?  Go ahead, We'll give you a minute to think.  Got it?  That is Ka'elepulu Stream along Popoi'a Street near Buzz's Steak House and is used as part of the Kailua Beach Park complex parking lot.  This crushed coral stream bank was home to hundreds of cars per day but every time it rained, there was only one place for the polluted parking area runoff to go, straight into the stream.  Until the Fall of 2012, and many years before, each rain storm would discharge a milky plume of sediment, trash, oils and hydrocarbons directly into the stream.

 
Working with residents and businesses along the road, Hui o Ko'olaupoko was able to develop a design to retrofit the 12,000 square foot parking lot to capture/infiltrate storm water runoff and reduce the amount of pollution reaching the stream.  Brick pavers were installed to help water infiltrate and 360 feet of stream bank was improved with native vegetation which also captures water and traps floating/blowing trash.  Interpretative signage for the project was designed by the 2010 Lanikai Elementary Public Charter School First Grade Class.

---

Today, nearly five years after installation, the site functions as it was designed to and is maintained by various community partners and HOK volunteers at quarterly workdays.  Join us for the next workday, Saturday June 10th 9AM-11AM.

Many thanks to our project partners and funders from the Environmental Protection Agency, Hawaii Department of Health, City & County of  Honolulu, The Hawaii Tourism Authority, Buzz's Original Steak House, LaniKailua Outdoor Circle, Long House Development, Hughes & Hughes Landscape Architecture, Futura Stone, and residents along Popoi'a Street.

​Read more & watch a video 
about this unique project on our website.