John Rose’s Off The Mark Letter In Support Of Sandwich Isles Communications July 4, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Technology.add a comment
John N. Rose president of OPASTCO wrote this letter to the editor in support of Sandwich Isles Communications.I completely disagree with his assertion that Hawaiian Telcom’s claims that SIC is incapable of running a advanced telecommunications company serving all of Hawaii are wrong.
For starters, SIC is simply a niche telecommunications company whose primary focus is serving DHHL lands. Thus there is huge difference between serving only 3,500 customers and 500,000 + customers. On top of that, I seriously question their financing,business model, and their ability to obtain the needed regulatory clearances to serve the entire State of Hawaii.
However the latter issues are minuscule compared to SIC’s secretive business practices.They don’t have a website, their corporate leadership is largely unknown along with their compensation, and their financial information is sealed under protected order.
The Final Environmental Assessment for the Honotua fiber-optic cable project was released on July 1st 2009.
Lastly, Oceanic Time Warner has notified the DCCA-CATV division that they intend to renew their soon to be expiring East/West Hawaii franchise agreements with the State of Hawaii.Also I noticed the DCCA-CATV has granted another time extension regarding Hawaiian Telcom’s cable tv franchise application. This latest extension expires on December 31, 2009.
Do Charles And Joan Coupe Care That They Are Making The Kona Community Suffer,Hawaiian Dredging Needs To Drop Their Bid Protests July 4, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Transportation.add a comment
I’ve been a strong advocate to get the Hokulia bypass completed. However that won’t happen until the Coupes stop filing appeals blocking the condemnation their land for this road. Hokulia has stated that they won’t commence construction until the Coupes exhaust all their appellate options.
On top of that, Hokulia’s financial condition, and acquiring the last parcel needed for this road are other the significant hurdles that need to be jumped before construction can commence on completing the last 2.07 miles of this roadway.
This is all utterly frustrating. Do Charles & Joan Coupe care that they are making a lot of people suffer in a traffic nightmare that could be resolved if they allowed their land to be condemned ? Their actions thus far show that they don’t. They seem to be content to hold the Kona community hostage.
The Queen Kaahumanu highway Phase II widening project is another frustrating debacle. As it stands now,the DCCA Office of Administrative Hearings is in the process of adjudicating Hawaiian Dredging latest bid protest. The pleadings for the latter were completed on June 12th.Thus it is hopeful that the OAH will issue a ruling in the next couple weeks.
However the legal wrangling is far from over. If the DCCA-OAH denies HDCC’s latest protest the HDOT can use this decision as evidence during the HDOT’s appeal of the OAH’s first ruling.But it is very likely the HDCC will likely appeal in that scenario. The same goes for Goodfellow Brothers if the OAH rules in favor of HDCC and awards them the contract to build Phase II.
I personally hope Goodfellow Brothers is ultimately awarded the contract to widen Queen Kaahumanu highway between Kealakehe Parkway and Kona Int’l Airport. Goodfellow Brothers seems to be a more competent contractor who gets projects done on time unlike HDCC.
Hawaii Superferry Opponents And Supporters Were Both Hypocrites, Government Worker Union Leaders Need To Step Up To The Plate To Prevent A Catastrophe From Happening July 3, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Economy, Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Transportation.3 comments
I’ve reflected a little about my Hawaii Superferry rant from yesterday.I think both the supporters and the opponents of the HSF have acted like hypocrites during this debacle. The opponents went after the HSF with such a strong tenacity that I’ve never seen in all my life living here. But these same folks have ignored, cruise ships, Matson, and Young Brothers. Whom have done far more environmental damage than the HSF would ever do.
On the other hand, the supporters of the HSF in a way unfairly blame the opponents for the demise of this revolutionary transportation service. However if the State of Hawaii didn’t cut corners (State of Hawaii Auditor’s reports here and here) it is possible the Hawaii Superferry would be still operating today (although I figure the HSF would’ve still faced strong opposition even if they followed the law from the get go).
Governor Lingle is going to be facing some tough decisions since her furlough proposal was declared illegal by the courts.I really don’t see there is much options remaining for the governor to bridge the state’s projected budget shortfall aside a mass layoff of employees.Especially if there is no 11th hour agreement reached with the unions. Thus I would urge the leaders of the HGEA, UPW, etc to step up to plate to prevent a catastrophe from happening.
Lastly, I hope the supporters of splitting Hawaii County into two counties read this letter to the editor.Richard Swann does a pretty good job explaining the very difficult steps it would take to create a new county.
Hawaii Superferry Opponents Are A Bunch Of Hypocrites,Sandwich Isles Communications Should Be Forced To Reveal More About Their Operations July 2, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Development, Hawaii Economy, Hawaii Planning, Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Technology, Hawaii Transportation.5 comments
The Hawaii Superferry is officially never returning to Hawaii since they are essentially abandoning their two ships during their current bankruptcy proceedings. This is a really tragic turn of events. It is also very frustrating as the opponents of the HSF never truly allowed this revolutionary service to prove itself.
Thus as result of this decision Hawaii taxpayers and harbor users will be taking a hit even though the HDOT holds a lien on the boats. I figure that the first two lien holders will recoup most of their investment leaving the HDOT (and Hawaii’s taxpayers/harbor users) holding the bag.
On a related note,I would bet Young Brothers, Matson, and all the cruise ships have done far more environmental damage than the HSF would ever do. However none of the latter services has received such a negative backlash as the HSF did. This shows that all the HSF opponents are bunch of hypocrites. If MauiBrad or Joan Conrow really cared about the environment they would be going after Matson,Young Brothers with the same tenacity as they did against the Hawaii Superferry.
Sandwich Isles Communications has complained that they’ve been denied access to Hawaiian Telcom’s financial data. However their financial information is sealed under protected order.This is an absolutely travesty as they are receiving taxpayer funding for their operations.I hope Sandwich Isles is forced by the bankruptcy court judge to reveal about their operations if their proposal to buy Hawaiian Telcom moves forward.
Hat tip to Kohala News for interviewing councilman Dominic Yagong about the recent Hawaii County Council coup.
Lastly, it seems the worst case scenario has unfolded regarding the State of Hawaii furloughing workers.
Sandwich Isles Communications Proposal To Buy Hawaiian Telcom Lives Another Day July 1, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Technology.add a comment
Howard Dicus reports that the bankruptcy judge handling Hawaiian Telcom’s case has allowed Sandwich Isles Communications proposal to be considered. This is absolutely bad news for Hawaii’s key telecommunications company. It will ultimately mean that Hawaiian Telcom will probably not be able to exit bankruptcy later this year.On top of that, SIC’s proposal raises serious concerns about their business plan,financing and regulatory issues
SIC plans on applying for USDA RUS loans to upgrade telephone service in Hawaii’s rural areas. However 90% of Hawaiian Telcom’s customers don’t live in rural areas (e.g a population less than 5,000). Thus it is likely they wouldn’t be able to fulfill their grandiose plans to use federal gravy train money to significantly improve Hawaiian Telcom’s infrastructure.
However these issues are minuscule compared to the SIC’s secretive business practices. They don’t have a website, their corporate leadership is largely unknown along with their compensation, and their financial information is sealed under a protected order.
Thirty Meter Telescope Article Roundup By Andrew Cooper July 1, 2009
Posted by Aaron Stene in Hawaii Economy, Hawaii Politics, Hawaii Technology.1 comment so far
Andrew Cooper has blogged a lot about the Thirty Meter Telescope proposed for Mauna Kea. He has compiled a list of these articles here.Andrew has been very vocal in his support of this project and clearing up misinformation stated by anti-astronomy activists. Thus whatever side of the fence you are on regarding this project his writings are interesting read.
