Danny De Gracia: Oahu Looks Like A Dump. Clean It Up Now - Honolulu Civil Beat

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About the Author

Danny de Gracia

Danny de Gracia is a resident of Waipahu, a political scientist and an ordained minister.

Danny holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and minor in Public Administration from UT San Antonio, 2001; a Master of Arts in  Political Science (concentration International Organizations) and minor in Humanities from Texas State University, 2002.

He received his Doctor of Theology from Andersonville Theological Seminary in 2013 and Doctor of Ministry in 2014.

Danny received his Ordination from United Fellowship of Christ Ministries International, (Non-Denominational Christian), in 2002.


Before politicians tackle lofty projects, they should take care of the basics, like keeping the streets clean and cutting the grass.

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Sit in on any Ivy League university lecture on what constitutes ideal government, and you’ll likely hear lofty talk about “government of the people,” “climate protection,” or “universal human rights.”

If you ask me, however, this political scientist believes very strongly that the ideal government consistently collects the trash, keeps the streets clean and cuts the grass in public spaces before it tries to do anything else.

How many times do we have to say it? Oahu looks like a dump. We said this years ago under Hawaii Gov. David Ige and Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell, and we have to keep saying it in 2023 under Gov. Josh Green and Mayor Rick Blangiardi.

This situation is unacceptable and action needs to be taken, now.

When, for example, grass in medians is allowed to grow to jungle-like proportions as it has along some of the center medians on Vineyard Street in Honolulu, it is not only unsightly to look at, but it presents a public safety hazard because it limits the ability to see pedestrians in a crosswalk.

Ideally, grass near roads should be kept tightly cropped at all times, so that both drivers and pedestrians can have wide fields of visibility and clear situational awareness. What happens if people are illegally crossing or driving through a crosswalk and can’t see someone approaching because they are obscured by grass? Combine this environmental hazard with human stress, fatigue, drugs, alcohol, bad weather – or all of the above – and you’re asking for trouble.

As I have argued before, when things are confusing or distracting, deadly accidents can happen. We want to always be sure our public spaces are aesthetically pleasing and free from unnecessary safety risks. This is not just common sense, it’s a reflection of a bigger issue — the degree to which our government pays attention to detail.

If government can’t be counted on to do something as simple as consistently cutting the grass, it can’t be trusted with the infinitely bigger tasks of “cutting” corruption, inequality or carbon emissions.

Overgrown grass, Honolulu streets, cleanup Danny de Gracia column
Overgrown grass and streets in disrepair, like Vineyard Street in Honolulu, are not only unsightly, but represent a public safety risk. (Danny de Gracia/Civil Beat/2023)

Attention to detail and leadership go hand-in-hand. People cannot say that they are leaders if they don’t pay attention to detail; and they cannot say that they have ever truly led if there are no consequences for failure.

I like how the late Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, father of the modern nuclear Navy, explained it to cadets: “Responsibility is a unique concept … you may share it with others, but your portion is not diminished. You may delegate it, but it is still with you … If responsibility is rightfully yours, no evasion, or ignorance, or passing the blame can shift the burden to someone else.”

So how exactly do we break this cycle of Oahu looking shabby, trashy and hazardous?

Do we form a blue-ribbon committee? 

Shall we ask the Senate Ways and Means Committee while it still has a chance to chop up a bill and drop in language that creates and funds an Office of Grass Cutting and Trash Clean-Up for six months?

Should we hold a march that starts at Keehi Lagoon and ends in front of Honolulu Hale with 300 or more concerned citizens holding “Clean Up Oahu Now” signs?

Do we approach this the way we approach any other issue on Oahu, with maximum virtue signaling, politician pageantry and talk — and minimum action?

I have a much better and much simpler idea.

Green for sure must have a cell phone, and he can, after reading this article, give Blangiardi a call and ask, “Mayor, are you doing anything tomorrow? I was thinking the two of us could take a drive around Oahu with our staffs, and we can see firsthand and identify everything that needs to be cleaned up, tidied up or fixed up. Once that’s done, we can task appropriate agencies or work together to get it done. What do you think?”

Overgrown grass, Honolulu streets cleanup
Mayor Rick Blangiardi and Gov. Josh Green should take a drive around Oahu and get things fixed now. (Danny de Gracia/Civil Beat/2023)

It could even work the other way around, where Blangiardi asks Green that question. The crucial thing however is that the leaders go out and see for themselves what’s wrong so they can be outraged like the rest of us and send a snowflake – that is, a brief action memo directed to the government entity tasked with regulating that matter – and get it done, right now.

“Danny, we don’t have the money to do that.” Wait, what? We don’t have the money for an agency to perform its existing mission? People who are paid to cut the grass with taxpayer dollars can’t cut the grass when asked? People who are supposed to clean up trash or maintain public spaces can’t do that?

“Danny, the bureaucracies will complain and push back.” So let them complain and push back, their job is to do what they’re told, the governor and the mayor’s job is to find a way to get things done. When you want something, and I mean really want something, you find a way to make it happen, without excuses.

If this means political appointees and other people under the governor or mayor need to be “voluntold” under the auspices of the nebulous “additional duties as required” line in their job description, then so be it. The point is we take initiative, we show attention to detail, and we act like Oahu is a place to be reverently maintained, not a dump that languishes to the point of decay.

You know your government is actually doing a good job when Oahu starts looking good again. Let’s stop making excuses and just get it done. 


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About the Author

Danny de Gracia

Danny de Gracia is a resident of Waipahu, a political scientist and an ordained minister.

Danny holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and minor in Public Administration from UT San Antonio, 2001; a Master of Arts in  Political Science (concentration International Organizations) and minor in Humanities from Texas State University, 2002.

He received his Doctor of Theology from Andersonville Theological Seminary in 2013 and Doctor of Ministry in 2014.

Danny received his Ordination from United Fellowship of Christ Ministries International, (Non-Denominational Christian), in 2002.


Latest Comments (0)

I can remember when the grass and vegetation along the streets and highways were kept trimmed and neat. The State and City would put out contracts for areas when the state employees were stretched thin. For the most part these contracts were not long-term but they were effective to temporarily alleviate problem areas. Then HGEA sues to end these contracts saying that, in effect, the work is covered by their labor agreements and if the State or City don't have the forces necessary to handle the work load they need to hire more workers.Of course more workers mean new union workers. The positions become permanent and a lifetime of additional labor expense is added to the taxpayer's burden. Good luck negotiating with HGEA.

Roxie · 7 months ago

I guess rain in Hawaii is a double-edge sword. Makes the island green and lush (yay!), but makes the island green and lush (aww!)!! Maybe they need a law that increases funding on a sliding scale according to rainfall. And then hire as temp jobs? Or even not temp since there always so much!

KaneoheMom · 7 months ago

Mahalo for pointing out the obvious (again). We can all agree that the city and state, simply will not maintain anything, be it parks, roads, medians, or buildings. These items are left to rot, until falling down, enough people complain, or an article is printed pointing them out and then magically city crews get off their butts and out of the base yard to actually do what they are paid to do. I wonder how a city with a $2B plus per year budget is not able to adequately schedule maintenance? How can you ethically run a city without guidelines for services that are consider basic? As tax paying citizens we have put up with the low bar for too long, at least the past 4-5 mayors and they continue to disappoint. It's not right and we should demand more, particularly when you are raising property taxes into the double digits. In addition to having department heads out in the field, leading by example, maybe we tax payers need to get light on paying property taxes until things shape up because we are not getting close to what we are paying for. A run down dump is too kind a term for Honolulu.

wailani1961 · 7 months ago

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