Waipahu city hall closing

By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Staff Writer

Diana Lagmay of 'Ewa ponders where she will go for city services when the Waipahu Satellite City Hall shuts down June 30. Mobile satellite city hall service to 'Ewa Beach, La'ie, Hale'iwa, Mililani and Salt Lake will also be halted. Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser

Mayor Jeremy Harris said the city also will end mobile satellite city hall service to 'Ewa Beach, La'ie, Hale'iwa, Mililani and Salt Lake. He expects to announce the closing of one or two more locations next week.

"We're trying to figure out how we can make the cuts and minimize the impacts," he said.

The Waipahu location has faced declining transactions since the Kapolei site opened in February 2001. Many Waipahu residents also use the Pearlridge site because it is open Monday through Saturday.

Waipahu has had a satellite since 1974, and has been open in the Lee Town Center on Farrington Highway for the past three years.

In working to pare down the $1.2 billion budget, the City Council deliberately cut financing for one satellite, despite the administration's warnings that at least two would be closed as a result.

"We even proposed an amendment to the budget bill to restore the funding because the Council Budget Committee had budgeted $400,000 unnecessarily in next year's budget to purchase a piece of property. As it turned out, they had already budgeted the $400,000 in this year's budget. It made common sense to use this double-budgeted money to keep the satellites open," Harris said.

However, only Councilman Mike Gabbard and Councilwoman Barbara Marshall supported the last-minute change and Harris' amendment was rejected.

The announcement comes as Harris goes line by line through the council's budget, deciding whether to veto the whole document, to line-item veto or to allow it to become law without his signature.

The mayor has until Friday to figure out the best way to deal with the budget.

Council Budget Chairwoman Ann Kobayashi was out of town yesterday and could not be reached. Councilman Nestor Garcia, who represents Waipahu, Mililani and Makakilo, declined comment.

"I hate to see it close," said 'Ewa Neighborhood Board Chairman Jeff Alexander.

However, while he will miss the Waipahu Satellite City Hall, he said, "It was always too cramped and crowded and there wasn't enough parking."

Since he has not seen the mobile satellite city hall in his neighborhood for a long time, Alexander said he had been using the Kapolei Satellite City Hall. His only complaint with that location is that it has not been fully staffed, and he hopes the Waipahu employees will be transferred there.

Harris said two of the employees would go to Kapolei and two would be transferred to the satellite city hall at Pearlridge Center.