“For all intents and purposes, construction of the project has been halted”
Last week's decision in the iwi lawsuit has stopped construction on rail, according to the plaintiff's attorney.
The Hawaii Independent received the following email from David Kimo Frankel, the attorney representing Paulette Kaleikini in the rail archeology lawsuit.
It is our understanding that the City has halted construction of the rail project. The City would like to: (1) complete a few short-term tasks for public safety (e.g., backfilling a trench) (2) continue longer-term maintenance activities (e.g., erosion control measures) (3) complete the archaeological inventory survey and (4) miscellaneous activities. The City is currently working on a list that would describe these activities with specificity. Attorneys for Paulette Kaleikini and the City are in discussions regarding whether any of these activities should be allowed to proceed.
For all intents and purposes, construction of the project has been halted although there may be some narrowly tailored, low-impact exceptions.
Update 3:00 pm
HART officials are drafting a statement, which we’ll publish as soon as it’s available.