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Maybe Mufi Hannemann was just doing his job. Or maybe all the criticism that he is leaving his job as mayor prematurely to run for governor was getting to him.

But Hannemann, who officially steps down today (as required by law) to file his election papers for the governor’s race, sure was busy during his last days in office.

All told, the mayor issued 16 press releases over four consecutive days last week, from July 13-16. (They did not include the city’s weekly road repair report.)

That’s equal to the total number of press releases generated by the administration from June 21 through July 12 (not including routine releases on road and sewer work, siren tests and holiday schedules).

Hannemann will lose the power of government-issued PR today, of course, and have to rely solely on the paid flacks at McNeil-Wilson Communications to get the word out on his comings and goings.

Civil Beat takes a look at Mayor Hannemann’s executive actions during his last days in office, as chronicled by official press release.

They show the mayor taking the lead on sewers, roads, rail and garbage.

“You ask why such a flurry of press releases,” mayoral spokesman Bill Brennan said. “And the answer is, ‘We have a wonderful story to tell.’ The Mayor closed the loop on many of the initiatives he’s been working on during his years in office.”

Tuesday, July 13

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann and City officials broke ground this morning for the Alapai Transit Center and the first phase of the Joint Traffic Management Center. Mayor , “The City has completed transit centers at Waianae and Mililani Town Center, with similar centers at Wahiawa and Middle Street now under construction. Our work reflects our commitment to maintaining our nationally ranked bus system and supporting expanded bus ridership.”

Wednesday, July 14

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann he is very pleased that Congressman Jim Oberstar, chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, yesterday publicly referred to Honolulu’s rail project as “the premier transit project in the entire country.” The mayor said, “We have worked tirelessly in Honolulu and in Washington DC to ensure this project’s success.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that the City will begin construction of ADA improvements to driveways and curbs affected by the sewer rehabilitation work in the Kalihi/Nuuanu area. “We are fulfilling our promise to repair our long-neglected sewer system and waste water treatment plants with these major capital investments,” Hannemann said. “The money we collect in sewer fees goes exclusively to these projects, and we will continue to devote our resources to improving our infrastructure.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that the City has awarded the contract for the second phase of the Waimalu Sewer Rehabilitation/Reconstruction project. “We are fulfilling our promise to repair our long-neglected sewer system and waste water treatment plants with these major capital investments,” Hannemann said. “The money we collect in sewer fees goes exclusively to these projects, and we will continue to devote our resources to improving our infrastructure.”

Note to Civil Beaters: Yes, those last two press releases both used the same quote. Turns out that the quote and near-identital variations of it have been deployed by the mayor at others times as well when talking about sewers. Two examples:

“We are fulfilling our promise to repair our long-neglected sewer system and wastewater treatment plants with these major capital investments,” , according to The Honolulu Advertiser, May 30, 2009.

“We’re fulfilling our promise to repair our long-neglected sewer system and waste-water treatment plants with these major capital investments,” Mayor , according to MidWeek, June 2, 2010. “These projects are constructed with the money that is collected in sewer fees. We will continue to devote our resources to improving our overall island infrastructure with projects like this.”

Now, back to that busy Wednesday:

• The City & County of Honolulu’s Department of Parks and Recreation is advising that the parking lot for Halona Lookout and access to the lookout and cove will be closed on Thursday, July 15, 2010 through Friday July 16, 2010 out of concern for public safety while a film crew works with large pieces of equipment in the area, and to keep a portion of the area clear for ‘picture,’ what is seen from the camera’s vantage point. “We want to continue to encourage the growth of the film industry in Hawaii,” . “At the same time, we appreciate the production company’s offer to cover the cost of opening the rifle range on two future dates. We’ll likely use the funds to keep open the range on tow [sic] of the furlough days when it would normally have been closed.”

Thursday, July 15

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann the City has awarded two more sewer projects — manhole rehabilitation on Nimitz and Iwilei along with sewer work in Foster Village. “We continue to invest heavily in repairing our sewer collection system and wastewater treatment plants in keeping with our capital improvement priorities,” Hannemann said. “The money we collect in sewer fees goes exclusively to these projects. Moreover, the work we do today will ensure that future generations will not have to face the same problems as we have.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann the Honolulu City Council for unanimously approving a consent decree requiring upgrades to Oahu’s wastewater collection system and two largest treatment plants. “This settlement was possible because the other parties agreed to meet our terms for a reasonable and extended timetable that was in the best interest of the city,” Hannemann said.

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that the company seeking to ship Honolulu’s garbage to a mainland disposal facility must present operational documents to the city by tomorrow or risk termination of its contract. “We’ve been patient, trying to help and support them,” Hannemann said. “But this project has been fraught with problems from the get-go.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that a new recycling effort will soon increase the amount of material that is reused rather than deposited in the city’s landfill. “We’re firmly committed to using green solutions to address our waste disposal needs, and this new effort will bolster the steady progress we have already made,” Hannemann said.

Friday, July 16

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann a new road repaving technique that will be faster to apply, durable, improve driving conditions, and reduce the use of heavy equipment for paving. “We’ve spent tens of millions of dollars to rehabilitate and repave roads across the island, including budgeting $77 million for repaving the last two fiscal years and again this year. We’ve paved over 800 lane miles of streets the past five years.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann today released the regarding reports about the potential use of federal transit formula funds — which have historically helped finance Honolulu’s bus system — for Honolulu’s rail transit project: “Let’s set the record straight. Bus service will not be compromised. As I have said many times, the federal government requires us to explore all funding scenarios, and use of transit formula funds for the rail project is a worst-case scenario.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that the City and County of Honolulu has donated to Maui County an asphalt spreading vehicle that is no longer needed on Oahu. “In these tough economic times, there is a real need to work together and share resources when possible,” Hannemann said. “This equipment is an older, retired paver that is no longer needed on Oahu, and it just makes good sense to let our neighbors make good use of it rather than let it rust away in a storage yard here.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann the company that is seeking to ship some of Honolulu’s municipal solid waste to a mainland disposal facility has provided to the city all operational documents, as required. Hannemann had indicated yesterday that the company, Hawaiian Waste Systems, must provide the information by today or risk cancellation of its contract with the city.

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann that a Request for Proposals (RFP) was released to procure new advanced parking devices for the City and County of Honolulu. “One of the duties of a mayor is to identify best practices that have been implemented in other cities,” the mayor said. “I’ve personally seen parking systems in other parts of the United States that are more customer-friendly, and I’d like to see something similar here in Honolulu.”

• Mayor Mufi Hannemann the City has awarded two more sewer project contracts – Lualualei Force Main and Beachwalk Pump Station. “We continue to invest heavily in repairing our sewer collection system and wastewater treatment plants in keeping with our capital improvement priorities,” Hannemann said.

On Saturday, it appears, the mayor rested, with no further press releases issued until late Monday. It was then that the city announced the awarding of — surprise! — yet another sewer contract, this one for the Ala Moana trunk sewage project.

Incidentally, Hannemann’s Democratic opponent, Neil Abercrombie, lost his free PR privileges when he stepped down from Congress in late February. But Republican candidate James “Duke” Aiona will continue to enjoy the “free” communications tool (albeit for government purposes only) until his lieutenant governor term expires in early December.