Jeremy Harris built a pretty city during his 10 years as the mayor of Honolulu.
From a pair of large, regional sports parks in Waipi'o to a major facelift of Waikiki to a marine education center at Hanauma Bay, Harris changed the landscape in lasting ways. He planted scores of trees, hosted free movies on the beach and successfully promoted a positive image of O'ahu to an international audience.
But his many critics charged that the Harris vision of Honolulu was crafted at the expense of basic city infrastructure in dire need of repairs, such as the city's many crumbling roads and failing sewer lines. And on the eve of his departure, city debt for general obligation bonds, which finance most construction projects, had increased by $462 million during the previous decade.
Harris was born in Wilmington, Del., in 1950, the only child of a master carpenter and a social worker. He graduated from the University of Hawai'i with biology degrees and received a graduate degree from the University of California at Irvine, where he specialized in urban ecosystems.
His political career began as a delegate to the Hawai'i Constitutional Convention in 1978. In 1979, he was elected to the Kaua'i County Council, but in 1984 he moved to Ho-nolulu to become a top aide to then-Mayor Frank Fasi. Ten years later, Harris became acting mayor — and later that same year won a special election for the job when Fasi resigned to run for governor in 1994. Harris was re-elected in 1996 and 2000.
Many political pundits thought Harris could win the 2002 gubernatorial race, but he withdrew six months before the election.
Harris said that while dogged by an unprecedented criminal probe of donations to his campaign committee, he quit because he did not think he would win.
Harris remained at city hall and finished out his final two years as mayor.
