Liliha-Alewa

Liliha-Alewa is a close-in, older Honolulu area on the hillside neighborhoods north of downtown, including Liliha, Puʻunui, ʻĀlewa Heights, Kapalāma, Kamehameha Heights, Lanakila, and Kuakini. Daily life here feels very local and practical: residents talk about crosswalks, bus and Handi-Van access, street parking, parks, libraries, senior programs, and the condition of long-standing neighborhood buildings.

What stands out is how tightly the hillside residential streets, older urban corridors, medical and senior services, and small public spaces fit together. A single neighborhood-board agenda can move from speeding on Nuuanu Avenue and Judd Street, to homelessness near Kuakini Hospital, to the Alewa Neighborhood Park retaining wall, to programs at Lanakila Multi-Purpose Senior Center.

Residents also regularly raise homelessness, flooding, infrastructure, and maintenance concerns. The board has discussed homeless individuals and encampments near Kuakini Hospital, Liliha Street, School Street, Liliha Library, and private properties, with city outreach and HPD coordination still ongoing. Flooding and overgrown streams or canals have been reported around Kapalama, Hillcrest Street, and Punui Avenue, and water main breaks appear often enough that Board of Water Supply reports are a standing part of meetings. Other issues include graffiti, abandoned vehicles, vacant or changing commercial buildings, “monster house” concerns, late-night activity at Alewa Park, the long-delayed Alewa park retaining wall work, and continuing complaints about military flyovers over residential areas.