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Maui County
Maui votes '08
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August 28, 2008
Maui votes '08
County Council
(South Maui)
NAME: Wayne Nishiki
AGE: 64
YEARS ON MAUI: 40
EXPERIENCE: Businessperson, Maui County Councilmember
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Decline to state
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: JOBS Calls on government to "start addressing infrastructure, energy and conservation projects which will supply good paying jobs to our out-of-work residents."… QUALITY OF LIFE This includes affordable housing, environmental protection and increased food and energy independence.
KEY MAUI ISSUES: WATER Advocates legal changes to allow gray water irrigation, drought tolerant landscaping, more reservoirs/catchment systems: "We have more water than we think - we waste a significant portion of it."… PLANNING Notes the ongoing General Plan Revision process and argues the Council should stop routinely approving variances and "adhere to our plan and use it to shape our island'''s future."
"Quality of life is not just economic survival. It means having the discipline to plan within our island's carrying capacity, to protect our environment and to preserve our culture."
-Wayne Nishiki
NAME: Don Couch
AGE: 52
YEARS ON MAUI: 18
CURRENT PROFESSION: Information Technology Manager
EXPERIENCE: Budget/finance specialist, radio/television commentator, County Deputy Planning Director, Executive Assistant to Mayor Alan Arakawa
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Decline to state
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: KIHEI GREENWAY Calls creation of a non-motorized right-of-way a "forgotten promise," vows to "use every lever available to me to see that the Kihei Greenway gets built."… DEVELOPMENT Sees the proposed creation of a large residential district in Kihei as outlined in the General Plan as a red flag: "I am not convinced at this point that such an artificial addition to the South Maui community would be a positive step."
KEY MAUI ISSUES: ECONOMY Calls on the County to recognize "that tourism drives a large percent of our economy and [to] act accordingly." At the same time, advocates economic diversification… WATER "There is enough water on Maui. It just has to be acquired… I will use the resources available to push for development of adequate water supplies."
"We are chasing the weddings off the beaches, closing down the vacation rentals, stopping the windsurfing lessons, blocking Halloween in Lahaina…The message went out that Maui County is no longer welcoming its guests."
--Don Couch
NAME: Norman Vares
AGE: 68
YEARS ON MAUI: 59
PRFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Veteran, contactor, construction consultant
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Decline to state
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: HOUSING Advocates use of a "revolving fund" to pay for affordable housing that would be managed by the County or locally owned companies; calls for smaller lot sizes… INFRASTUCTURE Calls for completion of road projects to ease Kihei traffic, expansion of Kihei's wastewater treatment plant, creation of a non-potable water transmission line for use on golf courses, parks and highways.
KEY MAUI ISSUES: ECONOMY Says the County needs to diversify the economy through promotion of agriculture, high tech businesses and alternative energy… INFRASTRUCTURE Calls the economic downturn a "perfect time to catch up on capital improvement" projects.
"I do not have a political background but I think that would be my advantage coming into this race."
--Norman Vares
NOTES: The incumbent, Michelle Anderson, decided not to run for personal reasons and is endorsing Nishiki; Joseph Gannon has dropped out of the race and told us he is supporting Couch.
House 11th District
(South Maui)
(Incumbent)
NAME: Joe Bertram III (D)
AGE: 51
YEARS ON MAUI: 40
CURRENT PROFESSION: State legislator
EXPERIENCE: Non-profit director, various community positions
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Obama
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: EDUCATION Promises to "continue to birddog the DOE to allow a private developer to build a high school."… HEALTHCARE Wants to reform the Certificate of Need process "to allow our own hospital."
KEY MAUI ISSUE: ECONOMY Says he will "advocate for small businesses"; wants to "[reduce] government regulations for public/private partnerships [and] to base our economic development on protecting and enhancing our environment."
(Challenger)
NAME: Michael Gingerich (D)
AGE: 30
YEARS ON MAUI: 9
CURRENT PROFESSION: Business owner/fitness trainer
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Obama
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: ECONOMY Says restrictions on tourism-centric industries like beach weddings disproportionately affect Kihei/South Maui: "I wish to represent the little guy, making Hawaii much friendlier to small businesses."… GROWTH "We have to take the appropriate steps, ensuring we have a proper plan in place to grow responsibly."; advocates construction of a hospital and/or high school to serve as a "center of the community."
KEY MAUI ISSUES: ECONOMY Calls for tax credits, other incentives to encourage alternative energy use, decrease foreign oil dependence; Says more capital improvement projects should be advanced to create jobs: "This island is small, we all know of someone who has been affected by the recent layoffs."
(Challenger)
NAME: George Fontaine (R)
AGE: 47
YEARS ON MAUI: 29
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Retired Maui Police Captain
PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT: Decline to state
KEY DISTRICT ISSUES: TRAFFIC Opposes widening of South Kihei Rd.; calls instead for a collector road between S. Kihei and Piilani Hwy. that incorporates a bike and footpath and greenway… EDUCATION "A school in South Maui will not only reduce traffic to Kahului, it will enable families to become more involved."
KEY MAUI ISSUES: HEALTHCARE Calls medical liability reform "an absolute necessity" that will help "recruit and retain physicians."; says doctors should be allowed to "charge a fair rate for their services as well as negotiate directly with insurance companies."… EDUCATION "I believe the most serious problem facing our public schools is the Oahu-centralized control of the Department of Education. The first step to correcting this would be to decentralize the DOE and create local school boards."
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