The reshuffled Hawaii County Council hopes to improve its relationships with the new county administration to get things done faster.
Kona-Kohala Councilman Holeka Goro Inaba became council chair last month, and newly elected Hilo Councilman Dennis “Fresh” Onishi will serve as vice chairman.
With one other new face on the council — Kohala Councilman James Hustace — Inaba said he has high hopes for the new council and plans for upcoming projects.
“I don’t think it’s that different for me as chair,” Inaba said. “But I want to try to work more collaboratively with the rest of the council and the administration.”
Inaba predicted that many of the issues the council has focused on throughout the previous two-year term likely will stay relevant throughout the new one. In particular, he said, affordable housing will remain a hot-button issue for the next several years, and the council will continue its work to overhaul chapter 11 of the County Code, which addresses housing.
But Inaba mentioned other issues he wants the new council to address.
“We need our county employees to feel supported so we can fill our job openings,” Inaba said, explaining that he is working on developing more competitive county employment packages so understaffed county departments can work at full capacity.
He added that newly inaugurated Mayor Kimo Alameda is meeting directly with each council member and has indicated his desire to work closely with the body throughout his term. Inaba said he hopes to streamline that relationship so that county government can work more efficiently and effectively.
For example, Inaba pointed to the county’s failure to properly fill seats on various boards and commissions, leading to persistent cancellations and delays when a commission can’t muster enough members to make quorum.
He said some nominees to fill those seats have been woefully unprepared for their roles — “some of them didn’t even know what the board they were nominated for did,” he said.
Inaba said he hopes to work with Hilo Councilwoman Jenn Kagiwada — chair of the council’s Committee on Government Operations and External Affairs — to properly prepare nominees so that they know before they are appointed what is expected of them.
Onishi, meanwhile, said he believes the council should have an easy working relationship with the new administration. Formerly a councilman between 2008 and 2016, Onishi said he has a “gift” to be able to develop a rapport with nearly anyone.
“This job is all about building relationships,” Onishi said. “With (former mayor) Billy Kenoi, I was able to build a great relationship with him, and I think I can do the same with Mayor Alameda.”
Onishi said has his own hopes for the council, and wondered if individual committee chairs might be given more power to better review proposed legislation and have a firmer grasp on how it develops. He highlighted the multitude of vacation rental-related bills introduced over the last year which have undergone numerous amendments but have not passed.
“It’s a waste of time and a waste of our taxpayer’s money,” Onishi said.
Onishi added that he wants to improve the county’s transparency and its availability for the average citizen, saying that it is frustrating for members of the public to be unable to get an official response when they call a county office.
Other improvements to council operations could come through more efficient use of resources. Kagiwada said she wants to restart an effort to take the council paper-free, eliminating the substantial waste generated by large paper packets distributed among council members for every committee and council meeting.
“I’m excited about (the new term),” Kagiwada said. “It’s an opportunity to start fresh. … But people should see we’re still going forward, we’re not going back.”
Meanwhile, in their own districts, council members have specific projects they hope to address.
Inaba said he wants to secure state funding to fill vacancies at West Hawaii fire stations, which has left firefighters at Kailua Fire Station the sole responders to calls between Kua Bay near Kukio and Seaview Circle near Holualoa.
“It’s not really fair, considering how much real property tax is coming from West Hawaii,” Inaba said.
For his part, Onishi said he has a number of improvements he wants to make around Keaukaha and east Hilo, including sorely needed renovations at the Keaukaha gym, consistent Department of Health monitoring of Puhi Bay’s water quality, the relocation of Hawaii Fire Department facilities outside of the tsunami evacuation zone and more.
Onishi also said the county needs to make progress on planned improvements to the Four Mile Creek Bridge on the south end of Kilauea Avenue, saying funds allocated to the project by his brother, former state Rep. Richard Onishi, need to be spent before they lapse.
And Kagiwada said she wants to not only continue the council’s housing initiatives, but improve real property tax policies to help people keep their homes, while developing more long-term housing projects to help people escape homelessness.
She added that some parks in her district, such as the Hilo Skate Park and Mohouli Park, need renovations, while perennial Big Island issues — such as connecting homes to wastewater systems and closing cesspools — will remain issues in the years to come.
The new County Council’s first regular meeting is scheduled for today.
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.