Hawaii’s legislature does the unthinkable, for a blue state: Slashing taxes
BLNR Gives Maui County Control of EMI Water
Hawaii Family Forum General Election Voter Guide
Boondoggle Deflates UH Football: “Without a stadium, we’re not even in the conversation”
KHON: … “It’s all about money,” Miano said. “I’ve heard from many sources close to the Mountain West Conference and the Pac-12 that without a stadium, we’re not even in the conversation because the revenue potential to generate is lost.”…
(IDEA: Reopen Aloha Stadium. There’s nothing wrong with it.)
… The Rainbow Warrior football team hasn’t played in Aloha Stadium for four years. If all goes well, it will still be three years before they return to Halawa.
“We, as taxpayers, citizens, and fans, deserve it in this great state that we live in,” said Rich Miano, former UH player and current broadcaster. “So it’s disappointing that there’s not more of a sense of urgency to do this right, to do it on budget, and to do it for the people of Hawaii.”
The Stadium Authority had no update on the project during its monthly meeting. One reason is the scope of the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District.
“They’re looking at all parameters,” said Ryan Andrews, stadium manager. “Everything from the technical proposal, which is not just the stadium—what everyone keeps focusing on. They also have to master plan this entire district for the next two decades, maybe more.”
The developer must consider factors such as stadium capacity, the number of locker rooms, and other requirements. It also has to integrate the stadium with entertainment space and future housing. And, of course, there’s the financing needed to make all that happen….
read … Some frustrated with new stadium progress, but it’s still scheduled to open as planned
Total Fail: Hawaii not offered Pac 12 Berth
KHON: … On Thursday, Hawaii athletics director Craig Angelos confirmed that the school met with Pac-12 officials and its consulting firm, Navigate. After answering a bevy of questions, Hawaii was not extended an offer. Angelos said were there an offer made to UH, the school would have owed the Mountain West around a total of $30 million after exit and poaching fees.
“There’s been a lot of movement over this last week or two,” Angelos said on Thursday. “We’ve been anxiously engaged in talking with various people to see what our position is and what kind of value we bring to the table.”
Meanwhile, Angelos denied that Hawaii was in talks with Conference USA, despite a report from Reddit on Monday.
Despite its standing in the Mountain West, Hawaii has yet to renegotiate the travel subsidies it must pay visiting teams, one of the conditions it agreed upon in joining the conference….
Retention bonuses will be given to the seven remaining teams. As the only partial member, Hawaii will receive the smallest cut at 5%. By comparison, Air Force and UNLV will receive 24.5%, while Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State and Wyoming will receive 11.5%.
Despite the small piece of the pie compared to the other teams in the conference, Hawaii’s share is an estimated $5 to 6 million. It would be one of the biggest lump sums the UH athletics department has ever received, surpassing the $4.4 million it received as a Sugar Bowl participant in 2008….
KITV: University of Hawaii commits to Mountain West Conference through 2032 | Video | kitv.com
read … After latest realignment drama, UH gains clarity | KHON2
Without Laughing, Board projects new Aloha Stadium’s completion for 2028 season
SA: … The state will likely miss a self-imposed deadline Monday, but Stadium Authority board members said at Thursday’s monthly meeting they don’t see it affecting the overall timeline that still has a new Aloha Stadium in Halawa built in time for the 2028 football season.
A state committee is in weekly meetings with Aloha Halawa District Partners, a conglomerate that is the lone preferred offeror for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District project, which also covers 78 acres around the 20 covered by the stadium.
After a second contender pulled out in July, some state officials said this phase might be completed ahead of schedule in mid-September since only one group needed to be evaluated.
But the five-member committee appointed by the state comptroller has made a request for clarifications to AHDP’s proposal, which includes master-planning the entire district for 20 years.
“So it’s going through that detailed response, (and) that process still continues,” Aloha Stadium deputy manager Chris Sadeyasu said at Thursday’s meeting.
Once an agreement is reached, the companies comprising AHDP would receive $450 million authorized by the state Legislature to build and run the stadium, and in exchange can profit from other NASED development. If the public-private partnership works as planned, taxpayers incur no additional stadium costs, and housing and other real estate gets built in the area.
After AHDP meets the state committee requirements, there are another nine months of negotiations before the old stadium is demolished so work can start on the new one.
Stadium Authority Chair Brennon Morioka said Thursday he still foresees groundbreaking in 2025, and 2028 for completion of stadium construction ….
read … Board projects new Aloha Stadium’s completion for 2028 season
Navy seeks to substantially increase training, testing at Barking Sands missile range
SAS: … The Navy intends to significantly increase the level of training on Kauai and an uninhabited island that would exponentially step up the tempo of missile and rocket launches, amphibious and drone operations and airport use by helicopters by the joint force.
The Navy laid out its plans for the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai in a draft environmental assessment issued in August.
The plan would increase the frequency of 13 types of training and testing activities that take place on the Barking Sands installation on Kauai and on Kaula, an uninhabited Hawaiian island to the southwest….
The draft assessment is posted at www.pmrf-kpgo-eis.com/media/2lspojsq/pmrflbtdraftenvironmentalassessmentaugust2024.pdf
A final environmental impact statement is expected to be released next year for public review and comment….
read … Navy seeks to substantially increase training, testing at Hawaii missile range
Hawaiian Electric loses ‘virtual power plants’ –but they didn’t amount to much, anyways
SA: … Three “virtual power plants” in Hawaii are out of commission due to the recent demise of an energy management company, but the losses are small, according to Hawaiian Electric.
Los Angeles-based Swell Energy Inc. recently ceased operations that included operating what it called virtual power plants on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island.
The company helped homeowners add or expand rooftop solar systems with battery storage that could be accessed by Hawaiian Electric if needed to provide more electricity to the grid or mitigate potential grid imbalances.
Homeowners were offered financial incentives to participate in Swell’s Home Rewards Battery Program, which was approved by the state Public Utilities Commission and began in 2021.
Swell recently shut down, leaving Hawaiian Electric without access to the program participant batteries. The shutdown also left some customers with unfulfilled upfront incentive payments, while all customers will no longer receive future monthly bill credits.
Hawaiian Electric said it will pay any upfront incentives owed by Swell. The regulated utility also said the amount of energy and battery storage that it could potentially use from the system previously operated by Swell was relatively little.
“The closure of Swell Energy will have minimal impact on the grid in terms of capacity,” Alan Yonan, a Hawaiian Electric spokesperson, said in a statement….
read … Hawaiian Electric loses ‘virtual power plants’
State receives six bids for Falls of Clyde removal from Honolulu Harbor
KHON: … The state has received six proposals for the removal of the historic vessel, which has been drydocked for several years.
A selection committee is scheduled to meet next week to review the bids, with the goal of awarding the contract to the chosen company by the first week of November….
read … State receives six bids for Falls of Clyde removal from Honolulu Harbor
Honolulu Bank Proxy War Heats Up On Bishop Street
CB: … The former chairman and chief executive of Bank of Hawaii is stepping up a bid for Honolulu’s Territorial Savings Bank, seeking to upend a pending merger with Los Angeles-based Hope Bancorp Inc. by convincing shareholders to vote against the deal next month.
Territorial management is holding firm, meanwhile, saying the proposal by Allan Landon’s Blue Hill Advisers is not as good as it seems.
Landon, who was Bank of Hawaii’s chief executive from 2004 to 2010, is promising a premium over the deal proposed by Hope. On Thursday, Landon’s Blue Hill upped its cash bid to $12.50 per share from $12, and calculated it represented a 27% premium over the value of the stock swap offered by Hope, which amounts to $9.87 per share. Territorial shares closed Thursday at $10.36 ….
read … Honolulu Bank Proxy War Heats Up On Bishop Street
Volunteers To Help Waianae Traffic Scofflaws Clear Up Legal Woes 'Without Fear Of Arrest'
CB: … The state Public Defender’s Office and the Judiciary will team up this weekend for a first-of-its-kind event in Waianae to provide free legal assistance for people who have had trouble with the law and need a fresh start.
The clinic Saturday at the Waianae Public Library will be staffed by volunteer lawyers and at least one judge who will help residents cope with District Court bench warrants or move to have their arrest records expunged.
The Legislature has moved cautiously in recent years on more ambitious proposals to expunge convictions for marijuana possession and other offenses, and organizers see the clinic as a modest way to help some people in the meantime.
The bench warrant portion of the clinic is aimed at people who failed to show up in court for traffic violations or missed other mandatory District Court dates, Deputy Public Defender Edward Aquino said.
People who ignore those warrants may later be surprised and arrested during a traffic stop or some other encounter with police, Aquino said….
read … Volunteers To Help People Clear Up Minor Legal Woes 'Without Fear Of Arrest'
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