by: Erin Higa and Ryan Masuda On Friday morning, HHF Planners’ staff took part in the fun of Bike to Work Day 2014. The nation-wide event is part of National Bike Month, which was started by the League of American Bicyclists in 1956. Here in Hawai‘i, the Hawai‘i Bicycling League is the organization responsible for putting together […]
By: Tomoko Naka Ever since I encountered a roof top garden covered with a variety of native plants in the early 1990s in Japan, it has always been my interest and dream to help create a “green roof” which is a building roof covered with vegetation. I felt very fortunate that I was included in […]
By: Aydee Zielke Many great cities across the U.S. and around the world are incorporating bikeshare programs into their portfolio of alternative transportation options for dense urban cores. Bikeshares operate as a network of bicycles for rent by the day or hour with many pick-up/drop-off docking stations located throughout a town or city, often within […]
By: Robyn Sweesy It was a dark and stormy morning. . . Team HHF Planners love to volunteer. On the dark and stormy morning of March 1, 2014, we headed to Kailua for the monthly Volunteer Day at the 40-acre Kawainui Restoration Ponds. Outfitted in rain boots, reef walkers, and sneakers, we gathered at the […]
By: Aydee Zielke Parklets are popping up all over different cities across the U.S. Parklets often include a place for the public to sit, relax, interact, and perhaps enjoy art and landscaping. They are basically the size of a parallel parking stall (or sometimes multiple stalls). Parklets are designed to expand the sidewalk realm and […]
By: Chris Chavez Spray paint on highway signs and city walls is often unsightly, illegal, and considered defacing of property. There are times, though, when you come across a piece that strikes you as more than vandalism; something that makes you stop and gaze. You are suddenly taken in by the artistry, technique, color and […]
Kudos to HHF Planners’ Rick Quinn on a recent mention in the Star Advertiser. Manoa homeowner, Nancy Walden, hired Rick a little over a decade ago to guide her on creating a beautiful backyard oasis. Since then, Nancy has worked avidly on the garden, transforming it into an explosion of tropical color. According to Nancy, […]
Photo collage courtesy of the following brands: NorthFace, Apple, Canon, Belkin, and Lego. Pictures above from Australia and the Demilitarization Zone (DMZ) from previous business trips. By Benjamin Warsinske As planners, we are often tasked with traveling to remote sites to understand the topography, landscape, the social and economic impact new development may have on […]
By: Tara DePonte While Hawai‘i is all about beautiful beaches and breathtaking mountains, it’s also about traffic. Lots of it. And in our growing metropolis of Honolulu, it’s just getting worse. When the Star Advertiser ran an article in April 2013 noting Honolulu as having the second-worst traffic in 2012 (Los Angeles was ranked #1), you could […]
By John Hagihara DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR FIRST BIKE? Mine was a tiny, red Huffy with training wheels. It was a hand-me-down from my brothers, and my ticket to explore our neighborhood. I enjoy asking people that question, because almost immediately a smile comes to their face as they recall the joy and freedom that […]