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Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Ka`u News Briefs July 17, 2012


Ka`u Agricultural Water Cooperative, restoring water sources used during sugar plantation days, meets Thursday at
4 p.m. at ML Macadamia offices in Pahala. Photo from Olson Trust collection.
KA`U COUNTY COUNCIL CANDIDATES have the most money on hand to spend in the campaign for the election coming up on Aug. 11 because contenders Maile David, Brenda Ford and Bradley Westervelt qualified for $41,000 each in public financing. The amount provided is based on the total spent by candidates in prior elections, and Ka`u is where the most money poured into coffers when Guy Enriques was running for Council, once successfully against Bob Jacobson and the second time drawing a loss to current County Council member Brittany Smart.
Bradley Westervelt
Photo by William Neal
      Public financing is available to those who can raise 200 signatures of registered voters in their district with each of them giving a $5 donation to the campaign. Candidates who do not receive public funding, by choice or through such snafus as a supporter failing to write down a correct address and other information on the candidate petition, have to raise their own money. In a number of nine Council districts, candidates have run virtually unopposed in the past and in little need of funding, which translates into only small amounts of money being provided through the public funding experiments. The public funding trial run, which is being tested in this county to see if it would work for the entire state, ends with the 2014 election unless the state Legislature decides to renew the program.
      Bradley Westervelt, who is the former County Council aide to Guy Enriques and owned the now shuttered PT Café - formerly Tex Drive in Pahala, reports spending of $19,384.24. Expenditures included $5,598.92 with Ina Custom Signs in Hilo; $2,732.60 for tote bags from Discount Mugs in Miami, Florida; $1,760 for advertising on KAHU Radio; $936.45 for bumper stickers with Hawai`i Printing Corp. in Hilo; $650 for design of T-shirts, signs and banners with Acmegraphics in Pahoa; $510.04 to reimburse himself for mileage; $368 for a promotional event in Yano Hall in Captain Cook; $299.48 for color brochures from Office Max; $250 to the County of Hawai`i to become a candidate and $234.36 for advertising in The Ka`u Calendar newspaper.
 Brenda Ford
Photo by William Neal
      Brenda Ford, a South Kona resident who is currently a three-time County Council member whose district was redrawn to include Ka`u, reported spending $11,452.91. Expenditures included $2,400 in advertising in West Hawai`i Today; $1,605.50 for signs from ASAP Graphics in West Palm Beach, Florida; $1,171.80 for media coordination by Lynn Beittel of Kealakekua; $1,033.32 with Alvin Signs in Kona; $850 with C.G. Tees in Kona; $617.39 for supplies and equipment from Office Max in Kona; $446.25 for advertising with Tradewind Consulting in Kona; $416.64 for advertising with Big Island Chronicle; $318.90 with National Pen of Detroit, Michigan; $265.62 with Creative Video and Photo in Kona, $260.42 for Internet advertising with Tiffany Edwards Communications, of Ocean View; $250 for advertising with Big Island Video News; and $250 for the county candidate filing fee.
Maile David
Photo by William Neal
      Maile David, a paralegal and staff member for County Councilman Angel Pilago, reports spending $18,403.25. Expenditures included $5,575.24 for advertising in West Hawai`i Today; $4,359.87 for banners, bumper stickers, yard signs and magnetic campaign signs with Ali`i Design and Printing in Kona; $1,844.58 for T-shirts from West Hawai`i Screen Printers in Kona; $1,220.76 for design and website creation by Colorwave Imaging in Holualoa; $1,067.45 for advertising with Big Island Chronicle in Kurtistown; $425.10 for supplies from Lowe’s; $422.94 for supplies at Ace Hardware stores in Hilo, Captain Cook and Kona; $361.20 for rack cards and supplies from Office Max in Kona; $313.02 for mileage; $291.66 for advertising in The Ka`u Calendar and $250 for the county candidate fee.
Lee McIntosh
Photo by William Neal
      Lee McIntosh, a Discovery Harbour resident and owner of GopherLee’s Yard Service and cartoonistforchrist.org, reported spending $672.09. He does not have public funding. Expenditures included $225.00 for campaign shirts from Bolo Graphics in Hilo, $208.33 for banners from The Kahua Group in Hilo, $50 each to Peter Anderson and Kahuku Photography for photographs, and $90.93 for sign frames from The Home Depot.

MAZIE HIRONO said: “You can be the smartest person, but you’re not going to accomplish much if you can’t work with your colleagues and if you can’t convince your colleagues of what you’re doing.” She is quoted in today’s Honolulu Star Advertiser in a three-part series on Hirono, Ed Case and Linda Lingle, who are campaigning to take the place of U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka, who is retiring.
Mazie Hirono with Lorna Jeyte friends at a recent stop
in Volcano Village. Photo by William Neal
      The Derrick DePledge story says that most of the labor, environmental and progressive interests, which are the focuses of Democratic Party politics, have endorsed her and that Hirono has out-raised Case in campaign contributions.
      According to the article, Case criticized Hirono for not moving beyond her biography. DePledge wrote: “Hirono has relied on her immigrant story to explain to voters why she would be on their side. He quotes Hirono: “My background has so much to do with the fact that I don’t give up, that I’m very focused, because I had a mom who did that.” Hirono talked about her mom: “I’ve told her that there’s nothing I can do that will ever match what she did in terms of her personal courage,” the Star Advertiser story reports.
      Regarding whether it is Case or Hirono who could be the one to beat Lingle in the general election, some observers think that, if Case wins, then the effort to elect a woman to become Hawai`i’s next senator will become a campaign strategy.
       See www.staradvertiser.com for more. The Ed Case interview was yesterday, and the Linda Lingle interview runs tomorrow.

Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes
National Park.
HILO ONE performs tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. The group features R. Likeke Teanio on lead guitar and `ukulele, Aaron Agres on electric upright bass and Kahele Miura on electric 12-string rhythm guitar. Five-dollar donations support park programs, and park entrance fees apply. 

KA`U AGRICULTURAL WATER COOPERATIVE meets Thursday at 4 p.m. at ML Macadamia office in Pahala. Anyone interested in irrigation water or joining can contact Jeff McCall at 928-6456 or mccalljeffreyw@gmail.com.

THE KAHUKU UNIT of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park hosts Ka`u `Ohana Day this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Participants connect ancient traditions and native plants through `oli, a sensory booklet, map and compass orientation. Also, ranger Jaeneise Cuison shares stories of five generations of paniolo who worked on the ranch. Pre-register at 985-6019.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.