500 Ala Moana Blvd. Keith, part of short-term rental enforcement is obviously the Department of Planning and Permitting, which has been bogged down on both the planning and permitting sides for years. from the William S. Richardson School of Law. So I dont wanna speculate. There are many inspirational things happening in different parts of our community that can each help to build exciting opportunities for Hawaiis future. Who planned it badly? I dont think were gonna take away necessarily from any other department, Ive heard from the construction industry, and the development industry, theyre willing to help pay for increased pay for workers or whatever it takes to retain workers in DPP so that they dont leave after six months or a year and start the turnover churn over and over. Amemiya, 54, has made the story of his upbringing a central part of his campaign. And its more prevalent than people who think or want admit. Their oldest son, Chris, was my best friend. Contact & Personal Details. These days, Amemiya is working harder than ever, pushing himself as if the future of the city is at stake. Lack of political will. We need to restore trust in government. Where do the previous administrations fail, though cause everyone says, we need more affordable housing. This pandemic has been horrible for many, many reasons, but if theres any by-product of it, its proven we can communicate pretty effectively without being face-to-face. Thats not fair to people who follow the law. Thats why Im big on rail, thats why I wanna emphasize multi-modal transportation. Essentially, they told him that although they had welcomed him into their home and raised him since his early teenage years, he the childhood buddy of their son Christopher and someone whom Bert had frequently coached in youth sports leagues needed to learn to stand on his own. Keith Amemiya (born September 1, 1965)[2][3][4] is an American business executive and politician who ran in the 2020 Honolulu mayoral election,[5][6] and in 2022 for lieutenant governor of Hawaii. Chief Ballard said that HPD cant be compared to police departments on the mainland, that she doesnt believe theres a systemic problem particularly involving racism, perhaps violence and misconduct. Keith, you know, whenever we mention illegal vacation rentals, we always have people call us and say whether theyre illegal or not, they need that income from that house or from that room in their house to supplement their income because our cost of living is so bad. Im hoping theres another infusion, but in the interim, we need to use our resources in the non-profit industry. Amemiya is perhaps best known for his tenure as the HHSAAs Executive Director, during which the HHSAA doubled the number of state championships held annually, including introducing many new sports for female student-athletes, to the point that Hawaii now holds the most state championships in the country. I am running to change the status quo, end political corruption, and put our local families interests first. The green passport, I believe Ive heard that term used. We need to look at it top to bottom, we need to look at creative ways that have been done successfully on the mainland. 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. Thats the way I look, when you have a cold, you go to the doctor. The Amemiyas were not alone. We met, we first met when I was running high school sports, and weve kept in contact since. Everythings okay, weve heard you, youve had a chance to voice your concerns, but were moving ahead. Would you support that project? And people only started to protest when they actually saw the bulldozers come in, and at that time, the mayor, perhaps expressing some tone deafness on his part, did not want to stop the project. Would you be willing to freeze or reduce city worker salaries, for example? I am sure that you heard from those developers though, that, Yes, we were reaching out to neighborhood boards, we were following the process, we were communicating with communities. But all of a sudden the conflict rises. I have no opinion on that. It was rushed, it was ill-planned, and its been a source of frustration for everyone, but were almost done, as I said. In 2018, the ACLU had to sue the state of Hawaii to get equal treatment for women, for girl athletes. Access and information to ensure that peoples basic needs are met, such as food and housing. Join Facebook to connect with Keith Amemiya and others you may know. The mailer also claims Amemiya illegally purchased an apartment meant for low-income buyers at the 801 South Street condominiums. One of the things about working class people we hear, with the hotel workers, for example, one job should be enough, and calling for better wages. Check us out any time for great content and great community. You need to get input, and when you get input early on from everybody, you hear the different viewpoints, you modify the proposal. Many residents and business owners often and rightfully felt confused, fearful, and uncertain with restrictions and recovery plans. At 801 South Street, insiders exploited complex and shifting 'designed-to-fail' affordable housing rules to legally grab cheap units for themselves and . Keith, nobody puts no experience on their resume. He is the Chairman of the Board for two of the subsidiaries, Atlas Insurance Agency and Pacxa (IT company). Amemiya earned his BBA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and received his J.D. Industries such as agriculture, aquaculture and renewable energy should be further explored after having been neglected for far too long, he says. They should have more ability to investigate wrongdoing in city government. We also need to improve our resiliency as a community so we dont suffer the fallout from another economic shutdown. And I think the Galapagos Islands and other tourist locals (use them). Theyre part of the problem. It wont supersede the neighborhood boards, itll supplement the neighborhood boards. Fortunately for him, he isnt laboring alone. Finally passing into law a true living wage and paid family leave. What have they done wrong? 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. The lieutenant governors office is an office of opportunity. Or did you change anything? Its important for a mayor to lead by example, and right now the public has little trust in government and political leaders, says Amemiya. My plan to lower the cost of living consists of: Japanese in Hawaii are the state's second-largest ethnic group, and Amemiya would have been the first mayor of Honolulu of Japanese ancestry. Again, Im not saying nothing happened, but the meals and the cell block interactions, those happened before my tenure on the police commission. Keith, what would you propose to do about the homeless situation, specifically in Chinatown, because (the Institute for Human Services) tried to create a facility there that failed because of push back by the business community. Over the last ten years, the state legislature has failed on many of the issues that matter most to people in Hawaii affordable housing, homelessness, the cost of living, climate change, and protecting our environment. Keith, if you're augmenting one department, like the Planning Department, what department or other initiatives would you be willing to take away from to help balance the budget? Given that youre a first time candidate, have you read through it and familiarized yourself with city finances? What would you look at cutting, what city services? I know there are challenges. Now, criminality, I dont know, Im not willing to say that. I have the experience to bring solutions to problems. Keith Amemiya is on Facebook. Everywhere I go around this island, people tell me they want change. Well, its clear that the higher the wage for hotel workers and the like, the better their quality of life. Lack of collaboration, partisan divide, pettiness, you name it. I need to show voters that Im running to be mayor for the right reason, he continues. Utilizing creative tax credits to incentivize companies to relocate to Hawaii, we can generate much needed revenue. You know, not all residential areas that are on the seashore are high-end residential areas. How do you get a change in the economic type of person coming to Hawaii? Im sorry. [11][12][13] Blangiardi won the runoff with 58.2% of the vote. If your comments are inappropriate, you may be banned from posting. Other names that Keith uses includes Keith Y Amemiya. Well, to me, were at the point where we need to do what we can to finish the project. Sure, there were issues, there always are, but none to the magnitude that occurred during Chief Kealohas tenure. We can look at financing, interest rates are still relatively low, we can look at partnerships with the private sector. I mean, I cant blame it all on government. A clear, number one, we didnt flip it for a profit even though we could have done so. What did you do about that issue when you were actually there? Build water and infrastructure capacity, where appropriate, to incentivize development of housing local families can afford. Learn more here. Amemiya donated thousands to Mayor Kirk Caldwell's political campaigns. And the names you hear are Kirk Caldwell, the current mayor, or people with the last name Amemiya working for the administration, or former Attorney General, Colbert Matsumoto, Duane Kurisu. Good fruit always comes from good trees. What did that experience teach you about mental illness that other people could learn from, and how will it affect your ability to deal with the terrible mental illness problems we have in this city? I know his wife, Dawn Ige, because she was a former public school vice principal. Umm, there must be some issue I changed my mind on, and I need to think about it a little more. Its a important viable alternative means of transportation for us on this island. The city had approximately $200,000,000 in reserve in the prior fiscal year. It clearly is, and we need to take action now. I mean, it sounds like its been a chronic problem for many years. Especially during these difficult economic times, its critical that they have the resources needed to continue their important work in helping people get back on their feet.. Im the only candidate for lieutenant governor who is not a career politician or a lobbyist and who has executive leadership experience leading large statewide organizations. However, the Thirty Meter Telescope has seemingly become the tipping point for Native Hawaiian issues and concerns that have been ignored for far too long, and an example of how difficult it is to come back to the table once trust has been broken. How would that work? I had an office in the downtown area and it just wasnt a good environment for the homeless or the Chinatown merchants and shop-goers. If he fails to receive an outright majority of votes but still finishes among the top two candidates in the primary election, hell then have one more opportunity to sell the public on his message of change before the Nov. 3 general election runoff. Number one, the police chief is already doing it, looking into whether chokeholds should be altered or eliminated altogether. I will work with the governor to empower our office around affordable housing and dedicate staff and resources to work with statewide initiatives. It sounds a little bit like unicorns and rainbows to me, but what happens if that doesnt work? So I dont think we need to cut any other departments while were improving the quality of service at DPP. Like it or not, its almost finished. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I saw firsthand the food insecurity that was caused when the schools shut down, and many families went without meals. By participating in online discussions you acknowledge that you have agreed to the Terms of Service. Lowering the cost of housing for working families. I go back to just the federal subsidy, we received a loan thats $800,000,000. I strongly support diversifying our local economy, and driving tourism in a more regenerative direction. Beyond Leadership. They want someone different, and they want someone new. 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. This link will redirect you to a site that may have certain associated risks, including not being insured by federal deposit insurance. Im clearly my own man, and I do know all those people, but none of them asked me to run for office. 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 look at if we have to pay the workers in DPP more Ive been told that the turnover rate is high because the pay is low, and once they get the commensurate experience, they move on to the private sector. Its unfair for a mother of two who has a job to expect to be able to take four hours off from work, sit in the gallery at City Council, waiting to testify, not knowing if shes gonna be able to testify, being whether shes number two on the list or number 142 on the list. When they say he brings people together, its true.. As lieutenant governor, Senator Schatz built such a team, and we should reconstitute it. You know, you bringing up now, talking about tourism, a lot of people are coming off of our 10 million tourist year and then actually having a sort of vacation from the tourists right now. Its worked in other cities, and I can;t see why it wont work in urban Honolulu. Amemiya rallied many community groups, including his sons baseball teammates at Punahou School, to assist with the building of Kahauiki Village. 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. Why cant we have online submittal, or registering for testimony? Let me ask though, other candidates in the race have been making a lot of accusations about fraud, corruption, contractor, even theft from the system. 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. Waimanalo, were telling you, you you need to show up at Pope Elementary cafeteria this Thursday night. He was born and raised in Windward O'ahu, where his maternal grandparents Whitney and Hannie Anderson, and mother and stepfather Kim and John Puchalski, raised him . Are you gonna tell a hotel, Hey, you gotta move a mile inland, or 500 feet. What are you gonna do about that? Amemiya is the son of former Hawaii Attorney General Ronald Amemiya. We need to automate, first and foremost. Keith, I wanted to go back on the mental health issue. 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. Our neighborhoods were being altered, the character of them and the nature of them, and a lot of my friends who lived in areas from Kaimuki to Pearl City to Kailua complained about the proliferation of tourists living right next door to them in residential neighborhoods. They provided a lifeline to me, they provided love, compassion, they provided structure to me, they proved to me that all it takes is one family or one person or set of people to show they care and it can uplift you and change your life trajectory. 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. Shes engaged me to help run various projects, including increasing breakfast participation by low-income students in our public school state-wide. No, not the law, so much. And the police commission has less power, duties and responsibilities than one would think, and given all the attention on police reform nationwide and here locally, I think its a great time to revisit that situation and see if the Commission can have more oversight and authority. I care deeply about the community, and I want to create a better Hawaii and a better Oahu for all of us. Most importantly, we need to be pau with the reasons why no can and start getting it done. Weve gone too far. Perhaps Amemiya saw an opportunity when he switched law firms in the middle of the case and began representing Bonnys company. I will continue enforcement as long as we find more shelter beds. We plan on helping him merge morals and values. The same can be said for using the states commercial and industrial holdings as potential sites for technology companies in the biotechnology and innovative technology sectors. There were cell block beatings, the scandal where they were selling food out of the police stations kitchen that was meant for prisoners, things like that were happening. Theres only a few hundred shelter beds available at any one time, so in the meantime, when there is this immediate situation, would you continue enforcement? Together with families across the state, we have worked to solve chronic problems for the past few decades, including increasing funding in our rural communities and creating equal access to sports for women and girls. That is a big reason we have a higher cost of living. You need to surround yourself with honorable, decent people who always do the right thing. Many of them had to make hard choices, whether its to pay the rent or pay their car bill, whether its pay their medical bill or food on the table or even choose to stay here and struggle or move away from family and friends to the mainland to find lower cost of living. We dont have the money to pay that back. The current administration, the city is undergoing a climate action plan. Ive led large statewide organizations. And we exponentially increased the amount of college scholarship opportunities for girls. My understanding is that theyre nearly finished with it, and it is a road map, a guide map on how to address climate change in the next several decades. Copyright 2020 Hawaii News Now. Most people, most politicians are saying they want to bring back a lower level of tourism. And its something that never goes away. Our vision is to be a leader in shaping a more vital and thriving Hawaii as the foundation for future generations. In one of your flyers, you said: Political leaders have failed our people, that leadership of the past did not work. Youre talking about the failure to communicate with communities. 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. So the rail project right now, its a major step. One of the very first guests to their home was former Molokai High standout Kalei Adolpho, who wound up starring in basketball and volleyball at University of Hawaii at Mnoa. And I think you also need to have a zero tolerance for corruption. When I joined the HHSAA, I saw glaring inequity that our female student athletes were having less opportunities to compete in sports. Speaking of fairness, what about for the hotels that have been essentially not able to operate for months what about giving them a tax break on property taxes? Theres a case where that issue, the development put in the ball field and the parking lot and tear down all the trees had actually been in the works for years and years and years. Would that supersede the role of neighborhood boards, or whats the added value there? I created a separate girls golf as a sport. People need jobs, theyre gonna need money when the federal money starts running out. It was done under the Abercrombie administration. I just, I knew she wasnt acting like that on purpose, I knew something was wrong, so if anything, I felt compassion for her. Theres enough checks and balances in DPP and the permitting process, where if you approve a permit, as long as you have the enforcement and compliance mechanism after, I think well be okay, because there are professionals like architects and engineers looking at the plans as submitted. I think thats a great opportunity to look at retooling the jobs that they did, modernizing the jobs that they did and making it more efficient. Keith Amemiya, better known by her family name Keith Amemiya, is a popular American business executive and politician. And the general public as well. And I think with all the controversies that have gone on nationally and locally, and the uprisings, nationally and locally, this is the election, I hope, people speak up and vote. We need them to succeed. Would you require something like that as part of the permitting process, some kind of online forum for people that developers would have to go through, reach out to people really let people engage? As one of Amemiyas first actions as Executive Director, CPB Foundation awarded The Salvation Army's Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division a $100,000 grant to support their Addiction Treatment Services (ATS) program located in Nuuanu. Since then, the family has lived a rather ordinary life within the walls of their Pauoa home. I have a good relationship with Governor Ige. Remember, one-third of the people in this state actually voted for President Trump. Reviews. Keith Amemiya ( Democratic Party) ran for election for Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii. We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us. Keith Amemiya is an attorney and the Senior Vice-President of Island Holdings, Inc., the parent company of Island Insurance and four other local subsidiaries. Provide zero-interest down payment assistance to first time homebuyers. Keith calls Honolulu, HI, home. When you type Amemiya into an iPhone, it comes out, Mama Mia.. And Im in favor of that. Amemiya is a member of a number of boards, including the Aloha Stadium Authority, Marcus Mariotas Motiv8 Foundation, and Assets School. I would lose votes if I do that. Paid for by Amemiya for Mayor, P.O. Good environment for the homeless or the Chinatown merchants and shop-goers that can each help to build exciting for... T allow us economic type of person coming to Hawaii to create a better and! Also need to use our resources in the non-profit industry back to just the money! Local families can afford have certain associated risks, including not being by! 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