Why is Kihei so run-down? (Kailua, Wailea-Makena: transplants, appliances, homes)

[nemrut]

Even though Wailea-Makena is officially part of Kihei, referring to everything north of it which sometimes feels like a 3rd world country with abandoned cars/appliances in the streets and just general lack of cleanliness.

Am i being to critical and just need to get used to it or has it always been this way?

[whtviper1]

You are experiencing our unique Hawaii culture and need to embrace it. Even in Kailua on Oahu where the average home price runs about 2.5 million and a 900K median has this odd fascination of clutter in carports and yards and just makes you say, what the....

[nemrut]

Kailua seems more ordered and better maintained than Kihei imo. Granted there are numerous homes with open garages showing a lot of clutter but in general the streets seem cleaner and there arent abandoned cars and appliances on the side of the road.

[Jungjohann]

Yea, sure, there's abandoned cars and appliances ALL over the place in Kihei. It's almost impossible to drive around town without either running into a Maytag or a Datsun lurking menacingly on the side of the road. Between that, and the ever present cannibals and their handfuls of half empty A1 sauce bottles, it's a real eha i ka okole.

Just the,, uuuurrrrppp, scuze me, facts

[KauaiHiker]

I'm with Jungjohann, it looked pretty normal to me. I never drove the side-streets there, but looking at a random neighborhood on streetview, it looks better than most parts of Kapa'a on Kaua'i:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Kihei...84.19,,0,-2.22

They even have sidewalks.

[winkosmosis]

Blight tends to spread... Hey maybe it will lower the rents eventually

[winkosmosis]

Originally Posted by KauaiHiker

I'm with Jungjohann, it looked pretty normal to me. I never drove the side-streets there, but looking at a random neighborhood on streetview, it looks better than most parts of Kapa'a on Kaua'i:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Kihei...84.19,,0,-2.22

They even have sidewalks.

Try looking up above the Piilani highway. There are some properties along the major arteries within Kihei that look like junkyards. Look closely and you might even find a meth lab or two. Across the street from my office there's a big sign that says if you trespass you'll go missing.

[TwoByFour]

Of course you can always flip the question around and ask, "why is Kula so sterile looking? Is everyone up there so anal-retentive they feel a compulsion to get rid of something you might need some day?"

And I am not sure the 3rd world analogy is all that valid - truly poor countries do not discard old washers and cars to the front yard, they have an uncanny ability to make things continue to work and when even that is no longer possible they milk it for all its worth by recycling every last part for money. It is our culture that is the throw-away culture, except in Kihei where it is the stop-using-but-don't-throw-it-away culture.

[winkosmosis]

It's not Hawaiian culture. It's Filipino culture. They have a different sense of what a nice neighborhood looks like. If you see those grey cinderblock fences, that's how you know it's a Filipino neighborhood. They're poorer than the general population so you'll see more cars parked on the street (big families living together), older cars, low rider pickups, etc. That's what creates the run down look you're talking about-- it literally is a little piece of the third world. Some of those neighborhoods really remind me of ones back in Trinidad. They're not considered run down there, they're just normal.

You also have the lower middle class California white transplants who tend to like old beat up cars that they "are gonna fix up someday". They seem to also like creepy "pedophile vans" which I don't really understand. They sometimes even have trailers and RVs even though there is no such thing as a trailer park on Maui and nowhere to legally use one.

[Koale]

Originally Posted by nemrut

Even though Wailea-Makena is officially part of Kihei, referring to everything north of it which sometimes feels like a 3rd world country with abandoned cars/appliances in the streets and just general lack of cleanliness.

Am i being to critical and just need to get used to it or has it always been this way?

no, Nemrut, you are not being to critical and since you have noticed it, it will only appear to get worse as time goes on. Now, try not to notice the inability to have an educated conversation with any 'local' because that will never happen. Enjoy your stay. Maui is a pig sty and it's only getting worse.
Koale