• Did commentary adhere to KIUC board policy? • KIUC board needs new faces • Rezoning is key Did commentary adhere to KIUC board policy? I was quite surprised to see the extended commentary allotted to a KIUC board member
• Did commentary adhere to KIUC board policy?
• KIUC board needs new faces
• Rezoning is key
Did commentary adhere to KIUC board policy?
I was quite surprised to see the extended commentary allotted to a KIUC board member by the The Garden Island who championed the reelection of the three incumbent board members (“Let’s re-elect KIUC incumbents,” Guest Viewpoint, Feb. 25).
As forceful as this essay appears on the surface it poses major problems for the existing KIUC board.
Recent board policy states that only one designated board member and the public relations officer will be allowed to discuss any KIUC issue with the public and that the opinion put forth represents the position of the board. This so-called gag policy for board members was put into place because last year the community elected a board member, Carol Bain, who campaigned specifically on the platform of transparency and increased communications with the cooperative members. Such a revolutionary approach of free speech and presentation of diverse ideas to the public was unacceptable to the remaining board members and thus the “one voice rule” was instituted.
If Derek Kawakami, the author of the commentary, is following board policy and represents this “one voice rule,” then he is speaking for the board majority who apparently has endorsed this editorial. This implies that the incumbents have written or at least preapproved the article. If this is the case, then KIUC is guilty of collusion to reinstate only incumbent board members. This reeks of cronyism and appears to be an undemocratic, self-serving and a somewhat conspiratorial effort in the face of the supposed upcoming “open election.” It raises issues such as what KIUC resources are being used to elect the incumbent slate and whether the vote count will be made by impartial neutral individuals or by a biased KIUC staff.
If Kawakami is speaking for himself, then he has violated board policy. Other newer board members have been reprimanded for open communication with the community. If this is Kawakami’s personal opinion then he should likewise be reprimanded and/or censored by the KIUC board for not abiding with board policy. Failure to act by the board will only reinforce the widely held opinion that this body is self-serving and follows appropriate policies only when convenient.
Three independent candidates are running for the board. Members of this group possess the technical knowledge necessary to create increased energy independence for the island and several of these individuals have unselfishly given of their time to the community to enhance cost-effective electricity and minimize environmental risks. These individuals participate in, and the organizations they represented, sponsored community activities bringing in outside experts to educate the people of Kaua‘i about energy alternatives and enhance sustainability. They are far more active in this area than many other KIUC board members.
With the highest electrical cost in the nation, energy matters are exceedingly important to all citizens on Kaua‘i. In order to facilitate a sustainable cost-effective energy future for our island, the cooperative needs board members with specific interests and knowledge in these areas, such as Ben Sullivan and Ken Stokes.
Douglas Wilmore
Kilauea
KIUC board needs new faces
On March 22, KIUC will hold an election for three of its nine directors. The Garden Island is sponsoring a forum for the six candidates on Feb. 28 and is supposed to act as a neutral observer.
However, in back-to-back editions on Feb. 24 and Feb. 25, TGI published commentaries from the KIUC board of directors designed to portray its board as actively addressing the utility’s problems and an article by an incumbent director blatantly supporting the re-election of the three incumbent candidates who were nominated by the KIUC nominating committee.
It is time to level the playing field. The article for the re-election of the incumbents says KIUC needs their experience and continuity. Let’s see about that. They are part of a crew that overpaid Citizens Communications when they bought its Kaua‘i utility business and saddled us with a huge debt that is a major factor in the high rates we are paying. They lacked the foresight to recognize the explosion in fuel costs that has occurred during their direction of KIUC that has resulted in power costs now more than 40 cents per kilowatt hour. Anyone with business acumen would have seen this coming. They continue to talk about reaching out for alternative fuel sources, but KIUC still uses fossil fuel for all of its power production. They have suppressed the information flow from KIUC to its members who want to find out about its financial and operating conditions. They say they have adopted a 15-year plan to increase use of sustainable energy, but we will most likely have to wait for most or all of that time to see its benefits.
KIUC does not need this kind of continuity on its board. What KIUC should have is thoughtful innovation that can be brought by the three persons who became candidates by member petition nomination. Let’s get a better direction for KIUC and do something about its rates that vastly exceed those elsewhere in Hawai‘i. We should elect Tom Ellis, Ken Stokes and Ben Sullivan as KIUC’s new directors.
Glenn Mickens
Kapa‘a
Rezoning is key
Thank you for this opportunity to respond to your Guest Viewpoint provided on Tuesday by our newest council member Tim Bynum (“Moratorium proposal deserves serious consideration,” Guest Viewpoint, Feb. 26).
I would like to thank Bynum for his enthusiasm for protecting the rural look and feel of Kaua‘i, despite his out-right admission that he purchased a home on ag land and since he got his, no one else should be able to explore that option. By stating that ag lots are not available for the working class is an ignorant statement. You have no idea who can buy these lots. I am a working-class citizen, and yet through my hard efforts and investments I hope that I can move my family onto an ag lot. What about the hundreds of families that own ag lands that benefited from the real estate growth of the island? They aren’t allowed to subdivide and provide for their families? The problem, Bynum, is the antiquated zoning of this island. We are no longer a sugar plantation. The soils that designate the agricultural lands are mostly terrible and farming them is a huge challenge. Take depleted soil, add monstrous fuel prices and astronomical hourly wages and then tell the people they can’t sell the land and that they have to farm. That is a brilliant business strategy, Bynum. Please don’t volunteer for the finance committee.
Lastly and probably the most important, please do us all a huge favor and do a little research before you publish any more remarks. A simple phone call down to the Planning Department would have educated you tremendously. Your entire last paragraph is absolutely wrong. Agricultural subdivisions do not bypass the normal planning process in any capacity and the public does have input. In addition, the Planning Commission levies conditions on agricultural subdivisions just as frequently, if not more, due to the sensitivity, as residential subdivisions. You clearly are writing about something you don’t have all the information on and I suggest you do a bit more homework. In closing, Kaua‘i does need to protect its land and try and maintain its garden image, that is vital and we all know it’s important. How we get there is the big question. We need to put our energy into rezoning our lands. Designate a rural classification that is based on poor soil and location. We need to make some big changes and it will take leadership to get us there. Not a bunch of lazy whiners who think moratoriums are the answer. How easy is that?
Brian Flournoy
Kapa‘a
