Members of the Koolau Loa Neighborhood Board could not reach an agreement over who should fill a vacancy for Hauula District at last month’s meeting. Board member Creighton Mattoon nominated Barbara Kahana, a business owner, former director of Hawaii Health Systems Corporation (HHSC) and, currently, the president of the board of directors for the Kahuku Medical Center to fill the vacancy.

The board minutes show no discussion over her nomination. Chair Verla Moore called for a vote but the nomination for Kahana failed to pass. The vote was split evenly 5-5-0. Members Kent Fonoimoana, Burton Greene, Dee Dee Letts, Mattoon and Kerry Moea’i voted yes, while Michael Foley, Gaylene Lolofie, Kela Miller, Norman Thompson and the chair, Moore, voted no.

Thompson then nominated Louis Prescott, another business owner, to fill the vacancy. Again, the minutes show no discussion. Chair Moore called for the vote and, once again, the nomination failed to pass. The vote was once again split, 5-5-0, with Foley, Lolofie, Miller, Moore and Thompson voting yes and Fonoimoana, Greene, Letts, Mattoon and Moea’i voting no.

The fifth vote for Prescott and against Kahana came from Michael Foley, who had, himself, just been appointed to the board to fill another vacancy (this one from Laie) mere minutes before the Hauula seat votes. Granted, he was appointed with a vote of 6-3-0 (AYE: Lolofie, Mattoon, Miller, Moea’i, Moore and Thompson. NAY: Fonoimoana, Greene and Letts), but the minutes show that, before the board members voted on Foley’s appointment, members Lolofie and Thompson moved to close the nominations for the Laie district. Once again, the minutes show no discussion.

If the Laie seat had been second on the agenda (and the Hauula vote had split the same way), Kahana would have been appointed to the Hauula seat by a 5-4-0 vote. Instead, the board has deferred the Hauula seat vacancy until the March meeting.

Five companies submitted bids this week to build the three rail stations in the Farrington Highway Station Group, which consists of the West Loch Station, the Waipahu Transit Center Station and the station at Leeward Community College.

Hawaiian Dredging Company’s bid was $78,999,000.  Nan, Inc. submitted a bid of $85,074,478.  Hensel Phelps’ bid was $88,016,525.  Watts Constructors’ submitted a bid of $88,803,553, and Ralph S. Inouye Company’s bid was $117,515,520.

“While we are about where we thought we would be, these costs confirm what we’ve been saying the past few months, and that is we are in an aggressive construction market,” said HART Executive Director and CEO Dan Grabauskas.  “Industry experts forecast those costs will rise even higher in the future, so waiting is not an option.”

HART staff will now carefully examine all of the bids submitted this week to ensure that the bidders were both responsive and responsible.

HART plans to request bids for the next set of three west side stations next month.

At the February 10, 2015 Waikiki Neighborhood Board meeting, the board members present voted unanimously (14-0-0) to oppose House Bill 1322 (relating to a homeless person’s bill of rights). The bill has since crossed over to the Senate side.

Board Members Present: Jo-Ann Adams, Jeff Apaka, Helen Carroll, John Dew, Louis Erteschik, Robert Finley, Walt Flood, Janet Grace, William ‘Bill’ Lofquist, Jeff Merz, John Nigro, Mary Simpson, Mark Smith and Larry Williams.

Board Members Absent: John Moore, Kuuipo Kumukahi, and Jim Poole

Adams moved and Flood seconded the motion to oppose House Bill 1322. Discussion followed: Bill of Rights: Erteschik stated that it was an unnecessary bill as it “conflicts” with civil rights.