Posted on: Friday, June 1, 2001

Kaua'i Electric manager Polosky to retire

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua‘i Bureau

LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Kaua'i Electric manager Denny Polosky, who had been expected to lead the company through its sale by owner Citizens Communications, yesterday announced he will retire Aug. 1.

Polosky, who has been integrally involved in the company for two decades and has run the utility since 1996, also reorganized the utility's management, with the changes to take place upon his departure.

Overall Hawai'i leadership will pass to Jim Yates, general manager of The Gas Company, which is also owned by Citizens Communications. Yates will take the title of vice president of Hawai'i energy. Local control of the electric company will pass to Dave Morgan, who will step up from manager of production to assistant vice president and general manager. Alton Miya-moto, manager of strategic planning, will become director of administration.

Polosky said he expects no major changes in the way the utility is run. Polosky joined the company in 1981 as administrative assistant to the vice president and later was named director of planning and regulatory affairs. He was named general manager in 1996 upon the retirement of longtime utility chief Boyd Townsley. When parent company Citizens Communications decided to divest itself of its utility companies, Polosky became active in the firm's quest to sell the Kaua'i power company.

That effort, however, has been a troubled one. The Public Utilities Commission rejected the company's proposal to sell the utility to a cooperative formed to run it, the Kaua'i Island Utility Co-op. Among the issues was that the price was too high, putting customers at risk of future rate increases.

Since then, the county has considered a purchase and recently concluded five months of hearings by the Mayor's Committee on Governance of an Island Utility. The committee Monday split on who should run it, with four votes in favor of a co-op and four votes favoring county government ownership.

Both sides will prepare reports to Mayor Maryanne Kusaka, who will use them to prepare a recommendation for the County Council. Meanwhile, the county and the co-op each are proceeding with appraisals of the electric company. The co-op recently announced changes in its board and internal rules.