• Don’t blame Kusaka; give her credit for her accomplishments Don’t blame Kusaka; give her credit for her accomplishments By DAVID SEIELSTAD Shame on TGI for giving prominence to such a poorly written tirade on former Mayor Maryanne Kusaka. Mr.
• Don’t blame Kusaka; give her credit for her accomplishments
Don’t blame Kusaka; give her credit for her accomplishments
By DAVID SEIELSTAD
Shame on TGI for giving prominence to such a poorly written tirade on former Mayor Maryanne Kusaka. Mr. Mickens throws around terms such as “illegally” and “illegal” implying that laws were broken, trials were held and convictions were obtained. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. Mickens now attempts to revive baseless 10-year-old allegations. Isn’t it time to move on? Kaua’i still faces numerous problems that will take effective leadership to solve.
As a result of her leadership, Kaua’i got on the road to recovery during the very difficult times after Hurricane ‘Iniki and 9/11. I do not think that any individual could have done any better under the circumstances.
Let’s look at the facts:
Lest Mr. Mickens forget Kaua’i was, as far as the travel industry was concerned, wiped off the face of the earth on September 11, 1992. Under Mayor Kusaka’s administration debris was cleared, reconstruction begun, shops and hotels repaired. Businesses were awaiting the return of tourists and unemployment was running at 15%. Mayor Kusaka flew to Europe, Japan and the Mainland to attend tour industry conventions to personally attest to the fact that Kaua’i was not only still here, but was ready for business. Without those personal appearances travel agents probably never would have believed that Kaua’i was back on its feet. HTA, unfortunately promotes travel to Hawai’i; it does not make the extra effort on the part of the individual islands. Some of that travel was first class, but at airline upgrades which resulted in costs no higher than economy. Public monies were not “squandered.” The trips generated much more then their costs in tourist spending.
Mayor Kusaka began a difficult first term with budget shortfalls of over 7 million dollars. Adding to the deficit challenge were mountains of un-cleared hurricane debris, yet, she was able to restore the island on a drastically streamlined budget without laying off any County employees.
To bring flexibility in funding operational expenditures and to ensure accountability in government spending, Mayor Kusaka led the way to replace traditional line-item budgeting with a budget system that measures results and funds programs based on their ability to successfully reach goals. The County Council approved the use of this budgeting methodology. Under Performance Based Budgeting she negotiated a car lease which actually saved the county money over the mileage allowance previously in force. Councilman Hooser attempted to make a “federal case” out of the car lease, but his hectoring was not embraced by the remainder of the County Council. The other members wisely decided it would be a bigger waste of money to investigate what was ruled legal by the County Attorney and was moot in any case, because the lease was cancelled.
Another of her successful initiatives involves the Ho’olokahi Program, a partnership of volunteerism among community, government, and business, which has garnered over 10,000 volunteers to restore, enhance and rebuild community. The Gateway Project was 100% federally funded with national fuel tax enhancement funds. This was a pilot project for the nation which has won acclaim in Washington. Kaua’i Nursery worked the first year, not 6 months, as contracted and did a good job. I am surprised that Mr. Mickens advocates spending tax dollars to maintain the landscaping. If he is so concerned about the appearance of the plantings then he ought to get out there himself on a regular basis as a volunteer.
Public safety is also a high priority for Maryanne Kusaka. As Mayor she supported construction of a new $16 million police station, established a police bicycle patrol, mini-police substations, provided modern updated safety equipment for our officers and initiated many other programs to ensure public safety and well-being. In point of fact, Mayor Kusaka did not hire George Freitas. The Police Commission hires and fires the chief; former Mayor JoAnn Yukimura’s appointees did the hiring. Maryanne Kusaka had nothing to do with the selection. Chief Freitas did not resign, period. One year after Mayor Kusaka left office the Police Commission and the Chief reached an agreement and he retired.
Some of the problems like waste management, shoreline and environmental projects are long range problems. Rules and regulations and interference from unforeseen areas hamper solutions. Under Mayor Kusaka’s leadership the county secured two million dollars in federal money to build the Recycle Center. She found another million dollars to build a metal recyclery for junk cars when the former company went bankrupt. Kaua’i is no longer called the Garbage Island as the Wall Street Journal wrote, due, in large part to Mayor Kusaka’s efforts. The problem continues and the search proceeds. After seven different landfill sites were identified and rejected, Maryanne Kusaka worked hard to get a contract with companies who would use new technology to incinerate or eliminate the need for landfills. Waste management is one of our biggest liabilities. Mayor Yukimura was not able to do anything about it. Mayor Kusaka did a lot. Our County Council continues to stymie all efforts to resolve this problem. Let’s put the blame where it lies.
Kaua’i and Hawai’i still face numerous problems. Maryanne Kusaka is running for State Senate. I support her wholeheartedly. I urge others to do so also.
David Seielstad is a Princeville resident.
