Bayfront Motors, a pre-owned car dealership located on Kamehameha Avenue in Hilo, plans to relocate after losing about half its inventory this week because of flooding.
Bayfront Motors, a pre-owned car dealership located on Kamehameha Avenue in Hilo, plans to relocate after losing about half its inventory this week because of flooding.
“It was the final straw,” said general manager Patrick Ehrenlechner. “It’s been too much too often.”
Flooding was triggered by unusually heavy showers Tuesday night that quickly soaked much of East Hawaii with several inches of rain. By Wednesday morning, more than 2 feet of water covered the Bayfront soccer fields, a portion of Kamehameha Avenue and a nearby commuter parking lot filled with about 15 cars. Bayfront Highway and Kamehameha Avenue remained closed most of Wednesday, causing long traffic backups on neighboring streets.
Ehrenlechner, along with the Chevron station located across Pauahi Street, says it’s happened before. Bayfront Motors has occupied its current location for about five years and been flooded at least three times since.
“It’s definitely not pleasant,” Ehrenlechner said.
Kent Inouye, who has operated the Chevron for more than two decades with his wife, Cynthia, said flooding occurs about once a year.
The Inouyes learned to prepare ahead of time and as a result, damage this week was minimal. But each episode requires extensive cleanup afterward, they said, and with the additional road closure, the station loses business — sometimes for multiple days.
“We lost one whole day of business (this week),” Cynthia Inouye said. “That’s the main thing.”
The Inouyes say they raised the issue to the county, but nothing has been done.
County Department of Public Works spokesman Barett Otani said in an email that the area is part of the Alenaio Stream floodplain and is considered “susceptible to flooding.” The area also is designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as flood zones, he said.
Since 1997, the area has been used to detain floodwater as part of the Alenaio Stream Flood Control System, which is designed to protect “the upper reaches of Hilo and the downtown Hilo area,” Otani said. About 20 years ago, the county decided to re-purpose the area as recreation fields in addition to its “designed purpose and function as a detention for drainage.”
Otani said flooding occurred this week because of “a high amount of rain in a short amount of time” combined with a “high tide of 2.3 feet that affected the water table level.”
“Whenever there is a heavy storm event, there is a high probability of flooding,” Otani said. “A majority of the calendar year, the fields are available for recreational use.”
When asked if any additional steps are being considered to prevent heavy flooding from happening again, Otani said the county is considering options.
“Although the area is part of the Alenaio Stream floodplain, the county is presently looking into possible alternatives, taking into account the present-day uses,” Otani said.
Ehrenlechner said Wednesday’s flood soaked about 20 cars, none of which will be sold to the public. The business plans to move to 1260 Kilauea Ave., formerly Reynolds Recycling, hopefully within about a month, he said. The company also plans to operate under a new name yet to be determined, he said.
Email Kirsten Johnson at kjohnson@hawaiitribune-herald.com