Inside Honolulu: August 23
There’s always something interesting going on at Honolulu Hale.
Civil Beat is reporting from the inside.
2:58 p.m. Sumitomo Won’t Appeal
Bombardier has already take its appeal of the city’s $1.4 billion core systems rail contract to court. Sumitomo won’t do the same.
The company put out a press release this afternoon announcing that it has decided against a lawsuit.
“As much as we still strongly disagree with the rulings that have been made so far, we felt it was time to step back and let the City go its course,” Sumitomo Vice President Gino Antoniello said in the release. “As we stated from the beginning of our protest, it has never been our intention to hurt this project or stand in the way of it being built.”
Last week at the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation committee meeting, Antoniello apologized in advance to the city if his company ended up suing. He also said Sumitomo would be available as a backup in case the deal with winning bidder Ansaldo falls apart.
Yesterday, Civil Beat reported that two subcontractors associated with Sumitomo have filed complaints with the state because Ansaldo didn’t have a contractor’s license when it first made its bid to complete the design-build-operate-maintain work. If that turns out to be true, Ansaldo could be fined millions of dollars or have its license suspended or revoked, leaving Sumitomo as the last man standing.
Read Sumitomo’s full press release here:
AUGUST 23, 2011—Honolulu, HI– Sumitomo Corporation of America (SCOA) has decided to not seek judicial review of the decision of the hearings officer of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA). After careful consideration, the company has concluded that an appeal will not be in the best interests of Honolulu, SCOA, or the project at this point.
鈥淎s much as we still strongly disagree with the rulings that have been made so far, we felt it was time to step back and let the City go its course, said Gino Antoniello, Vice President, Sumitomo Corporation of America, Transportation Systems and Equipment Unit. 鈥淎s we stated from the beginning of our protest, it has never been our intention to hurt this project or stand in the way of it being built,鈥 he added.
As the only qualified offeror, SCOA鈥檚 decision not to appeal should in no way be interpreted as loss of interest. To the contrary, SCOA will remain ready to fulfill its commitments should the City not be able to proceed with Ansaldo due to any problems that might prevent them from fulfilling their offer.
鈥淪COA has a heritage that spans over 400 years. Longevity of this magnitude means that we do not make impulse decisions or engage in prolonged legal battles 鈥 even where we believe we are correct and, for this reason, we have decided not to appeal. Hopefully our challenge has helped raise awareness and ensure success as it relates to this very important project so that the taxpayers of Honolulu will not have buyer鈥檚 remorse down the road鈥, said Antoniello.
SCOA presented its case that an award to Ansaldo does not represent the best value to the City. Even though the hearings officer dismissed SCOA鈥檚 appeal he acknowledged but did not address the merits of a number of concerns that were raised.
鈥淲e believe that these concerns, now well-known, should have continued scrutiny and would be best deliberated and considered by HART through its board and executive director, states Antoniello. SCOA stands ready to proceed with the project and reaffirms its commitment to bring its experience, technology solution, and extensive proven track record for this project.鈥
2:47 p.m. Honolulu’s Newest Apps
If you’re reading Inside Honolulu, you’re probably pretty hip when it comes to technology. So you might be the target audience for the 11 Web and mobile apps developed by city employees and private citizens available to download from the .
Here’s the list of titles:
- CrimeMapping
- Disaster Alert
- Festivals of Hawaii
- Honolulu Map and Walking Tours
- Honolulu Tsunami Evacuation Zones
- Kokua Traffic
- MapMyRide
- Oahu Landmarks
- TheBusHEA
- TripIt
- Waikiki Island Guide
“These new applications will help people access city information quickly and efficiently,” Mayor Peter Carlisle said in a press release today. “I appreciate the employees and members of the public who made this possible.”
“The City will introduce more ‘apps’ in the near future to help people with their daily lives,” said Department of Information Technology Director Gordon Bruce. “The public is invited to submit or recommend applications for inclusion on the site.”
2:17 p.m. Three Added to Cabinet
And it’s official. The city press release:
Mayor Peter Carlisle today announced three appointments to Cabinet-level positions in the departments of Enterprise Services and Facility Maintenance.
Carlisle nominated George 鈥淜eoki鈥 Miyamoto to head Enterprise Services, which oversees the Honolulu Zoo, Neal S. Blaisdell Center, Waikiki Shell and six municipal golf courses.
Miyamoto has served as deputy director of Facility Maintenance since 2005, and served as acting director from October 2010 to February 2011. He served as director of Transportation Services in 2004 and 2005, and as deputy director of Transportation Services from 2001 to 2004. He has also worked as a civil engineer for the State of Hawaii. The nomination is subject to City Council confirmation.
Carlisle named Kenneth Shimizu as deputy director of Facility Maintenance. Shimizu is president and CEO of Retail Solutions, Inc., and served as deputy director of Environmental Services from 2005 to 2008.
Carlisle also named Randy Leong as deputy director of Enterprise Services. Leong has worked in the department as a procurement and specification specialist, and has extensive private sector experience as a director of retail operations, regional manager and market development manager.
1:23 p.m. Next Enterprise Services Director: Keoki Miyamoto
Mayor Peter Carlisle will announce this afternoon that George “Keoki” Miyamoto is to become the director of the Department of Enterprise Services.
Carlisle sent Miyamoto’s name to the Honolulu City Council last week in . Miyamoto has most recently been deputy director of the Department of Facility Maintenance under Westley Chun. He’s been a Cabinet-level appointee before, as Transportation Services Director under Mayor Jeremy Harris.
Miyamoto will serve as acting director until he’s confirmed by the Council. Former Enterprise Services Director Sidney Quintal retired and moved to New Zealand 鈥 quietly.
8:03 a.m. Search and Rescue
The city is set to announce an agreement with the U.S. Coast Guard this morning regarding search-and-rescue operations.
The 9 a.m. press conference will be at the mayor’s office, and will include Mayor Peter Carlisle, Coast Guard Rear Admiral Charles W. Ray, Fire Chief Kenneth Silva and Emergency Services Director Dr. James Ireland.
More coming after the presser.
Queen of Waikiki Turns 110
The Moana Surfrider hotel in Waikiki celebrates its 110th birthday this year, and readers across the country are getting a history lesson.
A profile of the historic property was penned by a reporter for the Orange County Register, and today is published on the website of the Miami Herald.
Today, what鈥檚 called the Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort, sits surrounded by tall concrete-and-glass towers that put it in shadow, but never eclipsed its cultural cachet.
Read the full hotel review .
Where’s Carlisle?
Mayor Peter Carlisle has no events on his public schedule today.
Read Previous Editions of Inside Honolulu
August 22: Anti-Rail Op-Ed, or Editorial?; Water Board Public Hearing Today; HUD Secretary Hawaii-Bound; Where’s Carlisle?
August 18: Carlisle’s Public Sked; Statehood Day; No Car, No Problem; HART ‘Comforted’ By Sumitomo Ruling; HART Meets Today; Pay Your Taxes; Where’s Carlisle?
August 17: Council Advances Campaign Sign Rules; $1 Million Settlement Approved; Mililani Senior Development Gets OK; Laie Hotel Deferred One Month; ‘You Got Shafted, I Got Shafted’; Council To Defer Laie Hotel Vote; HART to Ansaldo: Prove You Can Handle It; Council Sends Ag Property Tax Bill To Mayor; Godbey Confirmed As Corp Counsel; The ‘Million-Dollar Baby Toe’; Police Commission Agenda; HUD Not Happy With City’s ORI Report; Council Meeting Today; Sewage Trucking Begins; Where’s Carlisle?
August 16: Corp Counsel on Bombardier Suit; Bombardier’s Lawsuit; Tam Sentencing Delayed Again; Feds To Pay For Kolekole Pass Repair; Ethics Panel Waits on Travel Gift Policy; Rod Tam Sentencing; Newsmaker Interview Today; Where’s Carlisle?
August 15: Missouri Company Gets Sewer Contracts; Landfill Selection Meetings Postponed; Bombardier Appeals to FTA, Court; Busy Weekend for Rail; Questions for Yoshioka; Ethics Commission Today; Where’s Carlisle?
August 12: Feds’ Rail Lawsuit Response; Carlisle’s Public Sked; Council Agenda Published; Cabinet Gathers; Moku on HUD Meeting; Transportation Newsmaker; Where’s Carlisle?
August 11: Horner Lays It Down; Mayor’s Math Problem; Capitol Moat Sewage; Council Chair on Commissioner’s Ethics Violation; HART Finance Committee to Meet; Where’s Carlisle?
August 10: Vacation Rentals Argument Not Over Yet; Quintal Retires, Quietly; Packed Auditorium; Beat the School Jam; Vacation Rentals on Planning Commission Agenda; Morning Reading; Where’s Carlisle?
August 9: Ethics Agenda Out; EPA Fines Pest Control Co.; Regulating B&Bs Not So Easy; Where’s Carlisle?
August 8: Bombardier on Appeal; Carlisle In Da Hale; Where’s City Oversight?; Police Department Names Names; Carlisle on Japan, in Video; Where’s Carlisle?
August 5: 6:51 p.m. Carlisle in Japan, in Photos; Bombardier Officially Rejected; Ansaldo Enlisted to Fix San Fran’s Light Rail Cars; Traffic Ticket Quota; Carlisle’s Public Sked; Ansaldo Honolulu “Pleased” With Finmeccanica Restructuring; Waianae’s Clean Water Award; Chair Garcia’s Checklist; Where’s Carlisle?
August 4: Congestion Tolls in Honolulu … Someday; HART Here, HART There; Zoning Appeals Board Appointments Advance; Committee Moves Sign Bill Forward; Moratorium Lifted on New Sewer Connections in Waimanalo; Free Speech vs. Open Space; Today’s Committees; Where’s Carlisle?
August 3: Board Defends Rate Hike; Appointee Asked About Water Rates; Tow Trucking Debated; Seniors, Disabled Ask for Help; ORI Discussion Coming Soon; Today’s Committees; Fewer Golfers, More Money; Chang’s Public Service; Where’s Carlisle?
August 2: Case Closed, Not Decided; City Rests, Ansaldo Satisfied; City Witness Rebuts Sumitomo; Ireland, Silva Like Merger; Talking Merger; No Competition for Carlisle; Berg: GOP “Party of the Skin Heads”; Today’s Committees; Want Train? Get Brains; Where’s Carlisle?
August 1: Across the Street?; Waipahu Board Backs Hoopili; Executive Session?; Ansaldo Responds; Rail Appeal Continues, With Questions Churning About Ansaldo; Sewage Spill in Kailua; Where’s Carlisle?
