Kawamoto had written a letter signed also by state Sen. Carol Fukunaga and Rep. Ken Ito asking for the delays because of concerns over the salaries paid to workers building and renovating 2,000 former Navy homes at Iroquois Point and Barbers Point.

The Iroquois Point and Barbers Point projects are not part of the Army, Navy and Air Force privatized military housing projects. And the developers are not required to pay union-level wages dictated by the Davis-Bacon Act, Kawamoto was told in meetings.

But Kawamoto pulled back his request after he was assured that Fluor Hawai'i LLC will pay Davis-Bacon wages and its sub-contractors will meet state labor regulations for the Iroquois Point and Barbers Point project.

"Fluor Hawai'i LLC will use local sub-contractors and adhere to the federal Davis-Bacon Act for the $85 million worth of work already awarded to Fluor Hawai'i for the work on Ford Island, which is scheduled to commence in 2004," the company said in a statement yesterday.

"We agree and applaud Sen. Kawamoto, Sen. Fukunaga and Rep. Ito that moving forward with the (projects) will help to bring about Hawai'i's economic recovery and supply much needed jobs in the local construction industry," the statement said. "We applaud their efforts in making sure that our local companies and employees are given every opportunity to benefit from this great project."

The statement satisfied Kawamoto.

"They indicated to us that they would be abiding by Davis-Bacon and they're not going to circumvent any state construction licensing rules and they're going to pay the pre-paid medical and the workmen's comp," Kawamoto said. "They have that in a public statement so we're happy with it."

As the discussions were under way among military, political and private development leaders, the company building the biggest Army housing project of its kind also said it will pay Davis-Bacon Act wages and will expect local and small-business subcontractors to adhere to state and local labor laws.

Actus Lend Lease also remains in the running for the Navy and Air Force housing projects. The company would pay Davis-Bacon wages and enforce local labor laws if it won those projects, as well, said Peter Koziol, CEO of Napa, Calif.-based Actus Lend Lease.

For any of the projects, Actus will demand that workers follow strict standards for safety and professionalism, Koziol said.

There will be zero tolerance for injuries over the 10 years it will take to build and refurbish 7,700 new Army homes all over O'ahu, Koziol said. Every worker operating above 6 feet, for instance, will have to be harnessed in safety gear, he said. And everyone will have to wear hard hats.

Another 250 to 300 employees will work directly for Actus managing and maintaining the homes over the entire 50-year length of the $1.7 billion contract.

The property and maintenance managers will receive top pay, Actus' healthcare plan and a 401(k) program that the company will match, Koziol said.

"The salaries are actually much higher than they would get working for other property management and maintenance companies," he said.

And everyone working on the project will be indoctrinated into a company philosophy that demands professionalism, he said.

"If you have a culture of taking risks, we have to change that culture," Koziol said. "We like to be in business with good quality companies, people who treat their laborers well. If you commoditize certain trades, they start to act as commodities. If you don't pay them well, don't treat them as human beings, they start functioning like that and you do have safety problems."

The combined Army, Navy and Air Force projects are expected to drain Hawai'i's pool of construction workers, a prediction that has building industry and state officials looking for ways to train crews quickly.

At the same time, Koziol thinks Actus might create manufacturing plants on O'ahu that will cut down on shipping and reduce the demand for high-skilled workers while creating jobs for lower-skilled workers.

Rather than importing entire wall systems and ready-built windows, for instance, Actus might only ship in the parts and assemble them here, Koziol said.

As Koziol spoke in the company's Bishop Street offices, oversized artist renderings hung on the walls behind him.

Koziol flipped through page after page of drawings of parks, community centers and homes named for the Hawaiian words for "warrior" and "bravery." The renderings showed neighborhoods that ringed centralized parks.

There will be no tri- and four-plexes, Koziol said. And even duplexes offered sloping roofs, open-air designs and native landscaping designed with a distinctive Island feel, said Lucien Wong, Actus Lend Lease's regional vice president.

"We don't want this to be military housing," Koziol said. "We want it to be community housing."