You know, I never held it against her. Well, I take that back, its homelessness and the high cost of living, high-cost housing. Everyone on Oahu thinks they need their own car, and that everyone else should ride the bus or walk, and we need to all do our part. And if the developer pays for it, it gets passed on to the buyer of the house, and it wont be as affordable. Young people are leaving our state in alarming numbers, and we cant attract and retain essential workers because Hawaii is simply not affordable. We have talented local producers and compelling stories to tell that can be part of a regenerative economy. So the rail project right now, its a major step. If anything, people on the community level, in the working class level, theyve asked me to run up for office for years and years, and I resisted for various reasons. Amemiya's campaign web site says he and his wife purchased a. Are you the candidate thats going to end homelessness on Oahu once and for all? I wonder, What got them to that point. I think of my own mom, who has mental illness and was on the brink of homelessness many times, if not for her family and friends. Born on September 1, 1965 in United States, Keith Amemiya started his career as business executive and politician . We also need to dedicate a team to pursue ongoing federal funding, as we know that we are leaving billions of dollars on the table every year. Yeah, maybe because of COVID and less revenue and so forth, but they havent even found that (public-private partnership), that P3 person to take on or company to take on those last couple of miles to Ala Moana, as well as the 30-year operating. The stories found here discuss the Financial issues and challenges unique to our island home. Reviews. He lost in the Democratic primary on August 13, 2022. He prefers to tout his accomplishments as a statewide leader, which includes years of public service as executive director of Hawaii High School Athletic Association and executive administrator to the Board of Regents at University of Hawaii. This advertisement is published with the approval and authority of the candidate. What happens with someone like that, whos got a residential property on the makai side of Kam Highway on the windward side or down in Ewa Beach, right up against, you know, near Hau Bush and stuff. We need to have someone who will bring people together to find solutions to it and just build more affordable housing. They had four children of their own, and I was a fifth child, so to speak to them, and I learned a lot about giving back, compassion, selflessness, and just doing good when you dont expect anything in return. The city had approximately $200,000,000 in reserve in the prior fiscal year. We have limited resources, so its imperative that the next mayor have a good relationship with our federal delegation, our state delegation and the City Council, and I intend to have a good relationship with all three. Thats what mayors do, thats what leaders do, is find solutions to very difficult situations. Amemiya testified before a federal grand jury Thursday. I want change, and the people want change. We need to restore trust in government. [7] Before running for elected office, he was the senior vice president of Island Holdings, Inc., starting in 2012, and executive director of the Hawaii High School Athletic Association from 1998 to 2010. Beyond Leadership. Did you see all that, and did you try and take action on it? "Keith brings a wealth of knowledge, relationships and experience to CPB Foundation," said Catherine Ngo, Chair, CPB Foundation. Keith Amemiya has a new round of television commercials out this month for his Honolulu mayoral campaign and, in addition to being effective, they each close by declaring on screen that the. And I think you also need to have a zero tolerance for corruption. We can do other things, and maybe were gonna talk about Sunshine Law before this hour is over, but we need to get more meaningful engagement from the community, not just neighborhood board commission meetings. Keith Amemiya, an Oahu businessman, attorney and former director of the Hawaii High School Athletic Association, announced on Tuesday that he is running for mayor of Honolulu. Now, criminality, I dont know, Im not willing to say that. Its not good to have a homeless person living on the sidewalk, but the solution to that is more affordable housing, more mental health treatment, more drug abuse treatment. I felt it was important to take a stand to show what party I belong to. So Ill do what I can. I mean, it sounds like its been a chronic problem for many years. Do you have that same confidence? Thats the way I look, when you have a cold, you go to the doctor. He also intends to push for more affordable housing projects around Oahu, and lobby the private sector to develop additional residences within the urban core. As a state, we have only scratched the surface in terms of our potential as a hub for media production. In 2018, the ACLU had to sue the state of Hawaii to get equal treatment for women, for girl athletes. Theyre experienced in being involved in politics their whole career, theyre experienced in running for different offices every election cycle. So I dont wanna speculate. Personal Banking Beyond the Basics is a blog dedicated to financial literacy in Hawaii. And as the mayor, you can control a couple of things in that regard. Well, again, I stand by my party affiliation, but I wanna assure everyone I'll work across the aisle, I'll work with everyone, but my foundation is Democratic Party base. Theres no road map or playbook as to how to deal with this, so Im open to any and all ideas, and I dont wanna be so steadfast to say that we absolutely wont work with the hotels. [19], Amemiya met his wife, Bonny (ne Suzui), in 1995 when she was the CFO of a local fast food chain. Well, to be blunt, we need to do what we can to get money into their hands, whether its federal money, state money, or county money, CARES Act money, in particular. More so when she was living on her own, and thats another thing people dont realize, theres different levels of mental illness. Waimanalo, were telling you, you you need to show up at Pope Elementary cafeteria this Thursday night. They tout the wrong kind of experience. When you type Amemiya into an iPhone, it comes out, Mama Mia.. I mean, theyre all lumped together and its huge, huge concerns, and theyre lumped together and they both have the same solution. The next mayor needs to work with the state, the City Council, the legislature, the federal government to attack climate change. What do you for them? They married in 1996 and have a son. We have to wait and see. He defeated Keith Amemiya, 58.2% to 38.8%, in the November general election, and was sworn into office on January 2, 2021. And its something that never goes away. After graduating from Punahou in 1983, Amemiya studied finance and law at the University of Hawaii at Mnoa, where he earned his degrees. Do you think that it was incompetence or criminality that got us where we are? Keith, when was the last time you changed your mind about something important? Clearly that wasn't enough, and that's an ongoing issue, and I'm glad that steps are being finally made to level the playing field for girls in terms of the sports facilities that they need and deserve. I got to meet a lot of working-class people, and I got to learn about their issues and their challenges first-hand. There were no sparks during their initial encounter, in which they initially found themselves working on opposite sides of a lawsuit. Whose failure is that? Well, Plan A is what I hope happens, that we have a viable option that works out for the city. I would need to think about it through, but Im inclined to say yes. Our vision is to be a leader in shaping a more vital and thriving Hawaii as the foundation for future generations. But in regular neighborhoods, quote unquote, clearly Im against them. The prices of housing, gas, food, and other essentials are skyrocketing. Below is the full transcript of Keith Amemiyas discussion with Mahealani Richardson, Daryl Huff, Colin Moore, Chad Blair, Christina Jedra and Stewart Yerton. In television ads, he talks about how his mother suffered from mental illness and was on the brink of. For example, two industries have demonstrated potential in Hawaii, but have not been fully leveraged: 1) film and media production and 2) technology and innovation. I think hes very gifted in that way. But I also think we can do things like focusing on higher end tourists, higher quality tourists, tourists that spend more money, as opposed to the bargain basement tourists that weve had that havent really added to our bottom line, so to speak, in terms of quality of life and revenue to our hotel workers. I have the experience to bring solutions to problems. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. Little wonder why so many of his supporters believe that in a city ripe for a leader who can galvanize the masses, Amemiya represents their best hope. Yes, I did, and thats one of my proudest achievements. Would you continue that practice. Most people, most politicians are saying they want to bring back a lower level of tourism. [18], Amemiya's biological parents divorced when he was 10 years old, and he was raised afterward by a friend's family. Amemiya rallied many community groups, including his sons baseball teammates at Punahou School, to assist with the building of Kahauiki Village. We need to automate, first and foremost. Were on an island. Collin Moore, Hawaii News Now Political Analyst: Is there one or two big ideas that voters should connect with your candidacy? In addition to creating long-term housing that our families can actually afford, the state has neglected supporting the mental health needs of our community. Well, we need to do what we can to find them alternative places to live. Everythings okay, weve heard you, youve had a chance to voice your concerns, but were moving ahead. Would you support that project? Remember, one-third of the people in this state actually voted for President Trump. I know the Hawaii Community Foundation has been helping a lot, Aloha United Way has helped a lot, the Hawaii Foodbank, and just us as a citizenry, we always come through for each other. Its doable, but let me add that another area where we can greatly increase housing inventory is through public-private partnerships. Former Lieutenant Governor Brian Schatz developed a team to pursue federal funding, something we should reconstitute to secure the billions needed for our state. Require legislators to follow sunshine laws. Why did you do that, when the office of mayor is non-partisan? I had to work multiple jobs bussing tables, working as a legal messenger and unloading shipping containers for a trucking company. thats the closest I can get. To his credit, he didnt buckle under pressure. I strongly support diversifying our local economy, and driving tourism in a more regenerative direction. These strategies can be implemented at the State level to create more housing: I just, I knew she wasnt acting like that on purpose, I knew something was wrong, so if anything, I felt compassion for her. We have heard in the middle of this pandemic from behavioral health specialists that they are deeply concerned that depression will get worse, domestic violence, all of these other issues will get worse because of the pandemic. Lack of collaboration, partisan divide, pettiness, you name it. They might, but we dont know. Too many of our candidates, too many of our politicians have been entrenched. 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