Exodus at OHA
OHA Chair’s Charter School Gets Seven Times More Than All Other Charters Combined
No, the Bee-Pocalypse Isn’t Here Yet
Can a feasibility study make or break the inter-island ferry?
Today is Deadline to Mail-In Voter Registration
SA: Voter-registration procrastinators are just about out of time. Monday at 4:30 p.m. is the deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 8 general election, your chance as a U.S. citizen to cast a ballot in the presidential race, as well as for local races such as for Honolulu mayor.
Registration can be done online — see www.elections.hawaii.gov — or via mail-in application. If you do opt for snail mail, though, today is your deadline: the mailing must be postmarked by Oct. 8 since the U.S. Postal Service will be closed Monday for Columbus Day.
SA: Some Hawaii voters might be unable to vote
read … Don’t miss chance to register to vote
Djou Happy to Debate Again
CB: …Djou said he would be happy to debate Caldwell.
He also said he was disappointed the mayor did not participate in a forum on Olelo Community Media….
read … Debate
Kaneshiro Going Down With Kealoha in Ticket fixing scandal?
HNN: Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Keith Kaneshiro is offering yet another explanation in a ticket fixing scandal hat has his deputy under federal investigation.
Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha, head of his career criminal unit, is accused of lying in court to fix a speeding ticket for her electrician.
The electrician, who we have always referred to by his initials, A.W., got the speeding ticket in 2014. Kealoha went to his court hearing and in audio recordings only Hawaii News Now has obtained, she tells the judge that an imposter was driving A.W.'s truck. That imposter, she claims, is a career criminal and that they are filing other charges against the imposter. The judge accepts her explanation and gets the ticket for A.W. thrown out. We never found another charge connected to this ticket, no imposter in any of the court records.
A second theory from sources, emerged recently. Three high ranking, Honolulu Police officers were called in to meet with Kealoha and Kaneshiro because the prosecutors accused police officers of writing ghost or fake tickets. Source say, they specifically told the HPD brass, that officer Ty Ah Nee, never wrote the speeding ticket to A.W. and that A.W. never received the ticket. But the ghost ticket theory was shot down by HPD's Internal Affairs division. Thursday, we saw those three high ranking HPD officers walk into federal court to testify before the grand jury which will decide if Katherine Kealoha and her husband, police chief Louis Kealoha will face public corruption charges.
A third explanation for the ticket fixing scandal also emerged this week. This time, from Kaneshiro himself which seems to conflict with the other theories.
"Well... let me put it this way," Kaneshiro told Hawaii News Now, "The ticket that was dismissed on that particular person was pursuant to a plea agreement with our office," he continues, "It was a plea agreement signed by me."
But there is no such agreement in court records and the plea agreement statement contradicts with what Kealoha said in court about an imposter. We asked to see the plea agreement but Kaneshiro's office never got back to us Friday.
read … Ticket Fixing
City, veterans group launch $2M-plus Housing First program
KHON: …the city and the United States Veterans Initiative (U.S.VETS) are launching a $2.2 million Housing First program that will provide permanent supportive housing to 100 households experiencing chronic homelessness on Oahu.
“The Hawaii homeless problem is a community problem with community solutions,” U.S.VETS chief operating officer Darryl Vincent said, “and this is a unique opportunity for us to partner with the city and county, the state, homeless service providers, our landlords and, most importantly, our clients themselves.”
U.S.VETS has more than 20 years of expertise helping veterans and families experiencing homelessness nationwide, including 13 years in Hawaii. The agency currently operates 21 residential facilities, nine service centers in 13 different cities nationwide, including two sites on Oahu.
U.S.VETS also administers the state Housing First program on Oahu, where it provides permanent supportive housing to 86 households.
In its new initiative with the city, U.S.VETS has leveraged an additional $600,000 in outside resources on top of the $2.2 million provided by the city for a total operating budget of $2.8 million. U.S.VETS is partnering with agencies and providers, including Kalihi-Palama Health Center, Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, Helping Hands Hawaii, and the University of Hawaii, to offer a comprehensive array of services and programming to help house and heal its clients….
NR: U.S.VETS launches Housing First partnership
read … Housing First
UH--Next Golden Parachute Packed & Ready to Deploy
HNN: …Originally a three-year contract, Ganot's base salary will increase to $300,000 in year four and $330,000 in year five. The second-year head coach was to make $232,500 this season and $240,000 next season, but those numbers were increased to $270,000 in year two and $285,000 in year three to account for bonuses missed due to NCAA sanctions.
Ganot earned $75,000 in bonuses last season after winning the Big West regular season and tournament championship, and winning the conference coach of the year and a national coach of the year award.
The salary range for the University of Hawaii men's head basketball coach is $185,000 to $400,000.
Ganot has a buyout of 50 percent of his annual base salary if he chooses to break the contract early….
read … Next Golden Parachute
Maui Council Ideas for Affordable Housing
MN: A Maui County Council investigative group has recommended action, including the possibility of allowing “tiny houses,” to increase the islands’ inventory of affordable housing….
The other four of the group’s top-five recommendations include:
* Permitting accessory or affordable accessory dwellings on smaller lots.
* Launching comprehensive rezoning by the County Council.
* Expediting the building plan review process by developing a catalog of preapproved plans.
* Identifying underdeveloped properties with multifamily and industrial designations that could be targeted for redevelopment as multifamily housing.
read … Affordable
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