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Wednesday, February 27, 2013
February 27, 2013 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 4:26 PM :: 9895 Views

 

Hawaii Welfare Recipients 2nd Healthiest in US: 75% Not Disabled

Hawaii Nursing Homes Ranked by US News

AECOM Scores $43.9M Rail Contract

Politico: Is President Obama Telling the Truth about Sequestration?

Omidyar Plan to Develop Hanalei Advances on Kauai

KGI: …not everyone was happy at the meeting. North Shore residents Carl Imparato and Maka‘aloa Ka‘aumoana testified against the consolidation.

Ka‘aumoana said the application for the land consolidation was incomplete and inaccurate, and therefore the request should be denied.

“We believe this consolidation will increase the value of this developer’s property (and) may limit some of the county’s options to address some of the serious issues that development of this land includes,” said Ka‘aumoana, adding that the commission should ask ‘Ohana Hanalei to resubmit the application.

The two parcels include the ridge alongside Hanalei River, on the hillside leading from Princeville to Hanalei, and the land immediately north of the ridge, encompassing a sloped area leading to the ocean, including an ancient Hawaiian fishpond now covered by a marsh. The two parcels are now one lot measuring roughly 63 acres.

“The county should be using every means at its disposal to protect this land, as inappropriate development would destroy one of Kaua‘i’s most critical viewplanes,” Imparato said of the Hanalei River Ridge.

The ridge development is the project’s first phase, to be followed by the development of the resort and the fishpond….

The proposed development on the ridge has faced much criticism from the Hanalei community, out of concerns that the ridge will resemble the bluff overlooking Nawiliwili Bay in Lihu‘e. A petition at www.hanaleiridge.com to stop the ridge development had 4,286 signatures as of Tuesday evening.

Background: Pierre Omidyar: The Secret Empire of a Resort Developer

read … Omidyar Greenwash Not Thick Enough?

Legislative Crossover Next Week

SBH News: The first major legislative event, the crossover of Senate and House bills, takes place next Tuesday and Thursday. Many tax, fee and mandate bills up for grabs. One of the best bills: a House bill to make it an offense to feed the birds who then poop on your neighbor's lanai. Now that's worthy of legislative bird brains.

read … Sen Sam Slom

PLDC Redux: DelaCruz, Solomon Playing Same Legislative Games

Shapiro: Unfortunately, Dela Cruz and Solo­mon are playing the same legislative games with repeal that caused so much alarm about PLDC's birth, leading to worries that the repeal is a sham to keep the PLDC alive in another form.

First Solomon said she wouldn't hear a repeal bill. Then she and Dela Cruz did a gut-and-replace on the bill to punish other state agencies for the PLDC's demise. Finally, another gut-and-replace produced an actual repeal bill that passed the Senate unanimously.

But unlike the clean repeal passed by the House, the Senate bill would keep PLDC staff on the state payroll in another department, breeding suspicion that a resurrection is planned.

A separate bill by Dela Cruz would create a Public-Private Partnership Authority with similar powers as the PLDC, and another Senate bill would give the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands the right to enter into private development deals that could include casino gambling.

Abercrombie is pushing bills to allow development around schools and park lands separate from the PLDC.

Whether or not the PLDC was a good idea, its execution has been so clumsy that public trust is irrevocably lost.

The only workable path forward is complete repeal of the PLDC and its staff and an end to current maneuvers to perpetuate the agency under a different name.

Revisiting the concept should wait for the next Legislature, when we can truly start fresh with full transparency and open discussion of the options.

Dela Cruz and Solo­mon buried themselves in their own shibai and can't dig out with more of the same.

read … More Shibai

Abercrombie: “Will Continue to Impose Contract”, Claims Teachers Agreed to Last Best Final Offer

CB: Gov. Neil Abercrombie said over the weekend that the state and teachers union have reached an agreement on a new contract at the negotiating level, but the union’s board of directors hasn’t taken it to members for their approval.

But it turns out the governor, who isn’t a member of the current negotiating team, was just referring to the current “last, best, final offer” he imposed in July 2011.

If a new contract agreement can’t be reached with HSTA soon, it looks like teachers can expect to continue working under an imposed contract.

“A statewide contract has not been able to be achieved. We achieved it at the negotiating level, but we have not been able to get the board of the union to get it out to their membership,” Abercrombie said last week at the National Governors Association winter meeting in Washington, D.C. “If push comes to shove, then we’ll have to continue to impose the contract and take it up at that point.”

Abercrombie said the teachers and students have bought into the new policies being implemented throughout the state, including the teacher evaluation system tied to student growth that’s being piloted in dozens of schools. But he said the union leadership has fought everything “tooth and nail.”….

A bill moving through the Legislature seeks to impose a limit on how long the labor board can take to rule on a case. The House Finance Committee will hear House Bill 151 Wednesday.

Watch Abercrombie discuss education during the NGA meeting here ….

SA: Abercrombie's contract quips steam teachers

Meanwhile: Two Students in Hilo Ace HSA Test

read … Governor’s Comments on Contract Negotiations Rile Teachers

Kipapa Elementary faces more abuse claims

HNN: For half a dozen former Kipapa Elementary School students, room P-10 was a little class of horrors.

Hawaii New Now has learned that the families of six disabled students have now come forward with allegations of abuse by staffers at this Mililani School.

The latest allegations come from the parents of an autistic girl who say school staffers force fed their daughter, often to the point of vomiting.

Court documents filed in U.S. District Court also say the girl -- who often had trouble eating -- was forced to eat her own throw-up in some cases. People familiar with the case say the girl also was pressured to eat food that was thrown in the trash.

Sources say staffers punished another student -- one who suffered from seizures and is blind in one eye -- by placing a large plastic clamp on her nose for several minutes. 

read … Kipapa

 

UHPA Quits NEA

 

SA: Of 1,199 members who participated in a straw poll before the vote, 49.4 percent said UHPA should continue its NEA affiliation, 35.4 percent approved of disaffiliation and 15.3 were indifferent.

Catherine Sophian, a UH professor of psychology, said cutting off ties with NEA went against the will of members.

"How is the union being run, and is it being run for the best interests of the UH faculty or is it serving the leadership?" she said.

In an email to members, UHPA President Adri­enne Valdez said 13 of the 26 people on UHPA's board of directors voted in favor of disaffiliation, 10 voted against the issue and one abstained.

Musto, who supported disaffiliation, has said that NEA is not providing anything to the union that it couldn't do on its own.

Link: UHPA Board of Directors Takes Straw-Poll of Members Concerning NEA Affiliation

read … Connected to UHPA-HSTA Dispute

Price: Awarding Contracts to Friends is No Big Deal

MW: It’s going to take a couple of years for the advanced scrutiny of everything the UH executives suggest to subside. Then things will return to normal and it will be business as usual at UH. A couple of high-ranking employees will be thrown under the bus, and there will be a lot of unconfirmed rumors flying around town.

People who are aware of how the University of Hawaii works can probably give you a long list of “favors” that were bestowed on “friends” over the years. Let’s face it, this is a small island and everyone knows everyone’s business. If they don’t, they will make it up so it sounds like they do.

Example: The university says it will investigate allegations that a top UH executive has wasted state money by mismanaging construction projects and steering contracts to firms operated by friends or relatives of friends. It’s one of the most popular charges leveled at those who are in a position to award contracts. Many of the rumors are started by those who were not awarded contracts, though that was not the case here….

Hawaii is a small state. To think for a minute that our executives don’t reward their friends with choice positions or rich contracts is absurd. As long as they are qualified, why should anyone be shocked?

I think it’s a good idea the Legislature is taking a closer look at UH, but they need to be reasonable. There’s evidence that being awarded a contract by the state government is not always a financial bonanza.

read … Accept Corruption

City DPP Claims No Favoritism for Jeff Stone Hao Street Project

SA: In July 2000, the city acquired the 85.2-acre portion that was zoned preservation, but did not buy the remaining 9.53 acres that were — and still are — zoned for residential use. The owner of the smaller parcel retained the right to build up to eight single-family homes on the land. By purchasing the larger parcel, however, the city ensured that no large-scale development could be built.

In January 2013, the city Department of Planning and Permitting (DPP) issued building and grading permits for two homes on a 14,540-square-foot portion of the 9.53-acre residential parcel. We did not approve a permit to develop the entire lot.

Building and grading permits are ministerial, meaning the city cannot lawfully deny them if the plans meet applicable codes.

Related: Former DPP Head Running Controversial Wailupe Valley Project, Residences at Aina Haina: Jeff Stone's Plans in Wailupe Valley Opposed

read … City followed law in issuing Hao Street development permit

HREA: No Solar Scammers Interested in HECO Offer

SA: Warren Bollmeier, who heads the Hawaii Renewable Energy Alliance, said he was not aware of any developers who were interested in pursuing HECO's offer. He added the HECO proposal does not guarantee that any projects will be completed any more quickly than under the RFP.

"There is a lot to be learned from this, not the least of which is that HECO will find out what developers think they can actually do. The problem is that even if they pick one developer, it may take another two or three years to find out whether they really can deliver," Bollmeier said.

(This is a set-up to make the case for ‘Big Cable’.)

read … HECO offers to waive rules for renewable-energy projects

Now That Rail is Approved, Repairing Roads is Suddenly Worth the Cost

SA: In previous years, city departments had trouble spending $77 million during a single year and even lobbied against the current increase to $100 million, said Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi, chairwoman of the Budget Committee.

"How are they going to do $150 million?" she asked….

Kobayashi noted that the city Department of Design and Construction was hindered last year when it was obligated to choose a contractor who submitted the lowest bid on multiple repaving jobs, even though the firm lacked enough staff to complete all the work at once.

That prevented the department from spending its full annual budget — so there might be cause for the city to review procurement rules, to retain bidding fairness but also to allow more-expeditious work.

Nearly 28 percent of the 3,517 miles of roadways for which the city is responsible range from poor to "failed," according to the city's Department of Facility Maintenance. Its report says the city "should be able to run multiple scenarios based on budget and time with some certainty."

Star-Adv Editorial: Repairing roads worth the cost

$1000 Marijuana Fine to be Money-Spinner

SA: State senators are drafting a bill that would decriminalize the possession of up to one ounce of marijuana but would impose a stiff fine on those caught with the drug.

The civil fine for possession of an ounce or less of marijuana would be $1,000, the same maximum penalty as under existing criminal law, but offenders would not face the prospect of 30 days in jail. Senators had initially wanted to set the civil fine at $100, the penalty courts typically impose, but senators upped the fine in the hopes of attracting support for the bill in the House.

The Senate has approved legislation to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana in the past, but the proposal has been rejected in the House.

"We're going to change it up a little bit with the idea maybe the House might reconsider its position," said Sen. Clayton Hee (D, Heeia-Laie-Waia­lua), chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, which advanced Senate Bill 472 on Tuesday.

Hee said the motivation behind the bill is to help reduce a backlog in the courts caused by marijuana possession cases, which because of the time and effort involved in prosecution — and the fact that most cases related to small amounts of the drug produce only $100 fines each — are a "burden on taxpayers."….

Honolulu police Capt. Jason Kawa­bata also said that civil violations for marijuana possession would be difficult to enforce because, unlike criminal offenses or traffic violations, police would not be able to compel identification from suspects.

"Because it's a violation only, you can't force any offender to produce proof of identification," he told senators.

Hee said Senate staff would attempt to deal with police concerns about identification as the bill moves to the full Senate.

Totally Unrelated Story: Council advances ban on smoking at beaches

Boylan: Saying No To A 15-percent Pot Tax

read … Collect Some Real Money from These Dopers

1994: Hawaii Police Union 'Outguns' Students

CB: Even before Hawaii Circuit Court Judge John Lim unequivocally championed the public interest in police disciplinary actions and ruled against the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers, SHOPO had a Plan B — get the Legislature to do what the courts would not.

SHOPO had reason to believe this would work — and it did. Hawaii is a union-friendly state, and the police had recently convinced lawmakers to narrow public disclosure of misconduct to officers whose transgressions occurred while they were on-duty.

Cops are different from other people, the union argued. Stress and high-pressure situations force snap decisions that sometimes result in a mistake, and officers and their families shouldn’t be publicly humiliated in addition to whatever discipline the department hands down, SHOPO said.

In 1995, the Legislature voted overwhelmingly in SHOPO's favor. Police disciplinary records would be off limits to the public, but the county police agencies would have to file annual summaries with the Legislature so lawmakers could be assured serious misconduct was being dealt with effectively….

Support for the bill was overwhelming. The law passed the Senate 24-1. It cleared the House with just seven of the 51 members opposing, including former Congressman Ed Case, who said he refused to “feel guilty” or be “painted as a bad guy” for going against the officers and their union.

Matthew Matsunaga, son of famed Hawaii politician, the late U.S. Sen. Spark Matsunaga, was the lone opposition vote in the Senate. He said the records should be kept available because of the public’s right to know about how their tax dollars are being spent.

“I think the argument about embarrassment to the family is not a real issue. I think it’s a red herring,” Matsunaga said then. “I think if that were truly an important factor, then we would prohibit disclosure of any public employer’s wrongdoing because of potential embarrassment to our families. We all have families.”….

Cayetano allowed the bill to go into law without his signature. It took effect July 6, 1995…..

SHOPO produced an 8-minute “training video” in 1995 to convince its membership that keeping disciplinary records secret was a good thing for the police force.

VIDEO: Opposing Forces: Portnoy vs. Green

read … More on this 19-year-old story

HB321: Same Day Voter Registration

SA: At present, prospective voters must submit registration papers 30 days before Election Day in order to cast ballots.

House Bill 321 would leave in place the 30-day cutoff for administrative purposes but allow walk-in voters to register on Election Day at polling places if they pre­sent valid identification and other documents….

All four county clerk offices submitted written testimony stating concerns about the bill and how the change would affect their workload.

The Maui County Clerk's office estimated it would be required to recruit, train and pay roughly 40 more volunteers to implement the measure, yet the bill includes no appropriation of state or county money. The county also suggested that each voting site should be electronically linked to a real-time statewide registration system to help prevent fraud.

Scott Nago, state chief election officer, said the bill includes the same safeguards that are in effect under current law, such as the right of registered voters to challenge another voter's registration.

Nago told committee members he is aware of the counties' concerns but that his office supports the measure because of the effect it could have on participation.

"Our job is to get people to vote, so we're not going to oppose this," he said. "I know it's going to be more of a workload for them, but I don't think that's something they can't handle."….

The bill now heads to a vote before the full House. If approved, it will be sent to the Senate for consideration.

2010: Hawaii Chief Elections Officer: “Is it my job to get people to turn out and vote?”

read … Fraud Facilitated

HB1481 Public Funding for Political Campaigns

CB: House Bill 1481 would set up a comprehensive public funding program of candidates for state senator and state representative. Money would be appropriated to fund the program beginning in the 2016 elections…..

As HB 1481 is currently drafted, candidates who wish to qualify for public financing would have to collect signatures from registered voters in their district.

House candidates would need 250 signatures and Senate candidates 350 signatures, along with a $5 contribution from each.

The qualifying candidates would then receive matching funds for their 2016 election based on a formula that averages expenditures in the most recent election after removing the top three and bottom three spenders.

The public finance program is voluntary, and it's not clear whether lawmakers who have received and spent large sums of contributions would opt out of that system.

Spending on House races last year totalled $2.9 million while Senate expenditures totaled $2.5 million.

Candidates who continue to run for office do not have to spend all of the money they raise. As a result, a number of veteran senators and reps have six-figure war chests.

Still, a public funding pilot project for Hawaii County Council candidates last year suggests the idea has appeal. Five out of nine councilors won their races using the program, a group that included incumbents and challengers.

House Bill 360 and Senate Bill 381 change funding formulas for the county project and limit the number of candidates. The bills' chief sponsors include newly elected Big Island lawmakers Rep. Nicole Lowen and Sen. Russell Ruderman.

read … Candidates on Welfare

House to Consider “Romy Cachola Bill’

AP: House lawmakers will consider prohibiting Hawaii employers, unions and candidates from helping voters complete their ballots after a committee approved a bill aimed at preventing voter fraud.

The House Committee on Finance approved a proposal that would also require people who send in absentee ballots to pledge that they did so in secret.

The bill approved Monday would also and require ballots to include information about voter fraud and its consequences.

Supporters say the bill is necessary because of past problems with voter intimidation.

read … Intimidation

Bill to Alter Hawaii's School Bus Contracting Process Advances

AP: After gaining approval by the Senate Ways and Means Committee last week, a bill by the Hawaii Department of Education to increase its control over school bus contracts appears likely to gain the legislature's support. SB 1082 would restructure contracting policies and procedures to bring down student transportation costs among the highest in the nation.

This change is one of the many recommendations contained in the Student Bus Transportation Study Final Report the DOE presented to the Board of Education in December. According to the report, bus contractor costs skyrocketed from FY2006 to FY2010, while service levels dropped, largely because of contractors' rate increases.

DOE officials said the new measure would stimulate competition among the dozen or so bus companies operating in the island state.

read …  SB1082

New House Leadership Knocks Calvin Say Appointee off Water Commission

CB: In the weeks before Rep. Calvin Say was replaced as speaker of the House of Representatives, he named at least five people to state boards and commissions. Three of them were made in his last week.

Now, those eleventh hour appointments are drawing criticism from the new House leadership which says those selections should have been left up to incoming Speaker Joe Souki….

But Say says he was merely exercising his prerogative as House speaker. And a recent opinion from the attorney general's office concerning one of the appointments hasn't found anything wrong with his actions….

The spat over the appointments began a few weeks ago when the new House leadership found out that Say had chosen Gary Caulfield, vice chairman and chief information officer for First Hawaiian Bank, to serve on the nominating committee for the Commission on Water Resource Management….

“The problem is that there is no notification,” said Saiki of the appointment. “He didn’t announce who he appointed. So we learned of the water commission appointment by accident.”

Souki, who couldn't be reached for comment, subsequently chose his own appointee — Denise Antolini, an associate dean at the William S. Richardson School of Law, where she previously served as director of its Environmental Law Program.

The dispute over who would get to serve — Antolini or Caulfield — was turned over to the attorney general’s office, which recently determined that it would be Antolini. But only because of a technicality….

Letter: Saiki to Say

Full Text: AG Finding

Related: Antolini vs Callies: Moon Court Favored Public Participation, not Environmentalists

read … Power Grab

HI jail officers shift duties during escape probe

AP: Director Ted Sakai of the Department of Public Safety said Tuesday the corrections officers are not suspected of purposely allowing Teddy Munet to escape.

But Sakai says the department is reviewing whether the circumstances that allowed Munet to escape last week are a one-time incident or signs of ongoing issues.

Sakai says he has asked the National Institute for Corrections to review Hawaii's practices ….

read … Investigation

Backlash for Red-Light Cameras Hasn’t Slowed Spread

SL: Despite the backlash, traffic cameras keep spreading. As recently as 2000, only 25 communities had red-light cameras, compared to more than 500 now.

Hawaii state Senator Will Espero, a Democrat, hopes to start a pilot program for red-light cameras on his home island of Oahu. He thinks red-light cameras would improve public safety. Espero says he sees cars running red lights all the time, but if there were cameras, he says, motorists would recognize “yellow doesn’t mean speed up, it means slow down.”

Anne McCartt, the senior vice president for research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, says that in debates over red-light cameras, not enough attention is focused on the dangers that they address.

read …  Stateline

University of Hawaii criticized for spending money to study itself

HNN: The University of Hawaii Board of Regents just approved a plan that would spend up to $260,000 to among other things review the University's organizational chart, interview various officials, and identify gaps and overlaps.  Some lawmakers say the study is a complete waste of taxpayer money.

"The University is out of control in terms of the finances and the public is really getting exercised about this. This would be yet another reason to raise student tuition to cover costs of this study. Totally unnecessary," said State Senator Sam Slom, (R) Minority Leader. "It's a waste of more taxpayer dollars."

"We need to cut the losses. We should have cut it awhile ago. But the other problem is I know we want to prevent things from happening again but they already have things in place. We don't need to hire someone for $260,000 to tell us and review what's already on the books what are already our policies," said Senator Donna Mercado Kim, (D) State Senate President.

Other questions come to mind like why spend the money when there is already a plan to audit the University?  And if UH really wants to study itself, couldn't it do that itself?

"People are being paid $225,000 on the payroll consistently and what are we paying them for if we have to go hire and pay another $260,000 every time there is a blunder," said Senator Mercado Kim.  "The problem we had with the Stevie Wonder, is that they didn't follow the procedures so why are we spending another $260,000 on top of the $1.2 million we already spent? And I'm not sure what we're going to get from this study."

State Representative Isaac Choy, who represents Manoa where the University, is also an accountant. He believes money could be saved by picking up a copy of the American Institute of CPA's, Audit Committee Toolkit.  Rep. Choy says the book would tell you the same thing and a copy only costs $32.  He believes the accountants already on the University's staff could handle study.

(Hint for MRC: This UH contract is modeled on the behavior of which State department?) 

read … More Revelations?

Tougher sidewalk bill clears first hurdle

SA: A bill making it harder for people to keep tents and other items on Oahu sidewalks was given preliminary approval Tuesday by the City Council's Public Safety and Economic Development Committee.

Bill 7 (2013) has won the support of residents living near the (de)Occupy Hono­lulu encampment along the mauka edge of Thomas Square, as well as others who feel tents on sidewalks create an impediment and are unsanitary and unsightly. But (de)Occupy Hono­lulu supporters object to the bill and think it criminalizes homelessness and stifles free speech.

The city currently has in place a "stored property" ordinance where items placed on city sidewalks are "tagged" by city officials for a 24-hour period before authorities return the next day and seize them. Bill 7 differs in that there would be no need for a 24-hour notice before removal if they are identified as nuisances. As with the stored-property ordinance, property owners would have 30 days to retrieve their items for a fee, though the fee could be waived if contested successfully.

Staffers from the Institute for Human Services said they support the bill, as did the directors of the city Facility Maintenance and Community Services departments, which work with Hono­lulu police in enforcing a controversial stored-objects law.

Pam Witty-Oakland, Community Services director-designate, said the city keeps in constant contact with service providers to find suitable housing for those in need.

read … Force them into Shelters

Church will employ homeless on a farm, in Kim Chee factory

SA: The Korean church behind an ambitious plan to launch a farm and kim chee factory in Wai­anae that will be largely staffed by homeless people has lots of obstacles yet to overcome but is kicking off a fundraising effort to help push things along.

Hawaii Cedar Church in Kalihi has already purchased a 4-acre lot on Wai­anae Valley Road, where it is now growing test batches of cabbage and sweet potato, and is looking for homeless people willing to work on the farm or in the yet-to-be-built factory.

The church hopes to raise about $50,000 with donations from the community and food sales….

And they think they could have the first homeless people working the farm as early as April.

The homeless, they say, will earn $8 an hour and have profit-sharing opportunities.

As many as 17 could live and work on the farm at one time, and an additional five could hold jobs in the factory, they say.

read … Church

Ian Lind: Hawaii Media Doesn’t Attack Military Enough

ILind: We’re left with a laundry list of questions unasked and problems ignored. There are national budget issues, such as whether it really made sense to launch a huge, long-term increase in construction of military housing units here in Honolulu, one of the highest cost cities in the country. How about the impact on local residents of housing competition with military personnel receiving housing allowances. There are social issues, such the impact of military gang activities on the civilian community. There are opportunity costs of the military’s presence, things that we can’t do because our resources, including large chunks of real estate, are controlled by the DOD. Are these managed well? Poorly? What difference does it make?….

One very positive step would be to encourage the media to cover the local military pro-surrender activists like we cover local schools. Look past what they say to find what they actually do. Disclose the problems that are well known to insiders but invisible to the rest of us. Pick apart the fraud, waste, and abuse. Challenge military activists’ secrecy. Cover all sides of the policy debates. Recognize legitimate dissent against dissent. Connect local discussions to national debates. Identify the special interests and their influence. Press politicians for more than canned answers to serious questions.

read … No Agenda Here, eh?

New York investors want to acquire Hawaii landowner CommonWealth REIT

PBN: …The Boston Business Journal reports shares in CommonWealth REIT (NYSE: CWH), which owns more than 400 acres of industrial land on Oahu, surged 48 percent on Tuesday after New York investors Corvex Management, which is run by former Carl Icahn apprentice Keith Meiser, and the real estate firm The Related Cos., ordered the Newton, Mass.-based REIT to cancel plans for a stock sale.

CommonWealth REIT responded Wednesday by saying "its board of trustees has determined that the best interests of CommonWealth will be served by CommonWealth continuing the common share offering and debt tender offer previously announced" on Monday, and said the company doesn't endorse or confirm the documents filed by Corvex and Related with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday seeking to acquire CommonWealth's shares.

CommonWealth REIT, then known as HRPT Properties Trust, bought 220 acres of commercial and industrial land in Mapunapuna, Kalihi and Sand Island for $480 million from the Estate of Samuel Mills Damon in December 2003, and acquired some 200 acres in Campbell Industrial Park in mid-2005 for $115 million from the former Estate of James Campbell.

PBN: Keith Meister, Related Cos. file lawsuit against CommonWealth REIT

Related: Musubi-Gate Scandal

read … Buyout

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