Posted on: Friday, July 27, 2001

Liquor board nominee asked about violations

By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

The most recent nominee to the city's Liquor Commission is facing questions about liquor-related violations that occurred when he was a part owner of two bars.

Real estate agent Dennis Enomoto was nominated June 1 by Mayor Jeremy Harris to serve on the city Liquor Commission. The commission oversees about 1,500 businesses that sell liquor.

Enomoto and his brother, developer Tom Enomoto, served as shareholders in two bars — Hawai'i Stars Studios on Nimitz Highway and Downtown Karaoke Box on Merchant Street — which commission records indicate had a total of six violations against them.

Council Public Safety Chairman John Henry Felix said his committee postponed consideration of Enomoto's nomination this week to explore these concerns. If Enomoto is selected to serve, Felix said, "he's going to be sitting in judgment of people committing similar offenses."

Enomoto said he was a 15 percent owner in the bars, which catered to the karaoke crowd and have since closed. He said that three of the four violations that occurred while his company owned the bars were for filing reports late. He said one violation related to having an open container of liquor in the bar while the bar was closed. Enomoto said the company paid fines ranging from $100 to $500 for the violations "and made sure it didn't happen again."

Enomoto also said he had been stopped by police and accused of drunk driving in the early 1970s while working as construction worker when he was in his 20s. The case was dismissed. Enomoto said he doesn't think the experiences would make him more lenient on offenders. "All of these things make me more vigilant, I think."