Moniz to run for council

Ernest Moniz Jr., a Kaua’i County Fire Department battalion chief, is running for a Kaua’i County Council seat this election year.

Moniz, a 32-year veteran of the fire department, filed nomination papers Thursday, marking his run for public office.

If he is elected, Moniz said he wants to tackle issues he feels are top priorities with residents, including affordable housing, meaningful jobs to encourage Kaua’i’s youth to return to Kaua’i after college; performance audit of government departments and anti-drug and alcohol programs for youths.

Four of seven Council seats could become vacant should councilmembers Ron Kouchi, Bryan Baptiste and Randal Valenciano – potential mayoral candidates – and councilman Gary Hooser – a potential candidate for Senatorial District 7 – follow through on their election plans.

Moniz, a non-partisian candidate, said he decided to run for the Council after community members and firefighters approached him, citing his public service record and involvement with community projects.

“They felt I had a lot to offer…Making budgets (as part of the fire department’s management team) and management of emergencies and other areas that would be part of the progression for getting onto the Council,” Moniz said.

Moniz is not entirely new to election campaigning on Kaua’i. He served as a West Kaua’i coordinator for the late Jimmy Tehada, a longtime council member who ran unsuccessfully for mayor in the mid-1990s.

Should he be elected, Moniz said he wants to bring the same type of dedication to his new job as he brought to his job as a firefighter.

“In the fire department, we put the public first, and I want to do this on the Council,” Moniz said.

Moniz said he believes he is qualified to sit on the Council, on the strength of more than 30 years of experience working for Kaua’i County.

“I have worked on budgets as an administrator and have served for seven years as chairman for the Hawai’i Firefighters Association,” he said. “I have been on both sides of government and I feel my knowledge will be an asset to the people.”

If elected, Moniz said he would stress the use of performance audits of government agencies so “that people can be, as close as possible, guaranteed the services they are paying for through their taxes.”

The audits, Moniz said, will empower the Council to work in a way to ensure “government is running smoothly and efficiently.”

“I have seen areas get slowed downed because of paperwork. With performance audits, you can get ideas from people and speed up the service, and workers can accomplish more during a work shift,” Moniz said.

Moniz said creating affordable housing also is top priority, To help young, struggling families, for instance, he proposed small homes that could be expanded – provided prior government approvals were given – expediently in the future.

Moniz also said meaningful jobs have to created to stem the loss of future generations of Kauaians to other communities in Hawai’i and the mainland for better opportunities.

“I am proud that our high school youths are graduating and gong to the mainland, but what saddens me is that they don’t come back,” Moniz said.

He suggested the assembling of a committee to look at the creation of such jobs. The group of residents, government and business leaders could discuss what types of businesses “we want on this island and what direction we can go in,” Moniz said.

Moniz said he supports Kapalawai Resort’s plans for a 160-acre resort in Makaweli because the developer has agreed to create more than 200 jobs that would go mostly to qualified West Kaua’i residents.

“It will help bring a better quality of life for Kaua’i families,” Moniz said.

Developers, of course, are committed to making infrastructural improvements in areas where their projects are to be developed, Moniz said.

But they can become a bigger part of any island community by building community halls and recreational areas for the benefit of residents, Moniz said.

Moniz said he supports the development of resorts and hotels, but notes “we don’t want so many that we disrupt what is here for local people.”

Moniz said he also would like to see the county support or fund anti-drug and anti-alcohol programs for youths, helping to give them some direction as they become adults.

“In my many years with the fire department, I have gone to many accidents involving drugs and alcohol and young and older people. It is not a pretty sight.” he said.

Moniz said his penchant for public service is rooted in his upbringing. His father Casey Moniz, a retired Kaua’i police officer with 30 years of law enforcement experience, was his role model. He will be Moniz’s campaign manager for this year’s election.

But early on in his life, Moniz said he knew he would be a firefighter.

Moniz, who grew up in a home that looks out on the old and new Kalaheo fire station on Kaumuali’i Highway, said he “liked the idea that firefighters help people,” sometime during dire situations.

His career as a firefighter almost came about by chance.

A 1966 graduate of Waimea High School, he spent the next four years in the Air Force.

After being honorably discharged in 1970, Moniz filled out on application papers to become a firefighter on the last day the county was taking them that year.

Related to community service, Moniz said he has been “involved in a lot of different organizations from “Bobby Sox to YMCA, community basketball, to little league and coaching.”

Moniz, a life-long Kalaheo resident, 53, is married to the former JoAnne Takashige.

He is the father of two children, Desmond, an employee at the Sheraton Po’ipu, and Jennifer, a Kaua’i High school senior who plans to attend Northeastern University in Boston, majoring in communication.

A fundraiser for Moniz is planned at Holy Cross Church in Kalaheo on June 23. Those seeking more information about Moniz’s candidacy can contact him at 332-9252.