Posted on: Friday, August 20, 2004
Ice, property values among voters' concerns in East Hawai'i
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — Residents of House District 3 in and around Hilo have been jolted in recent years by the proliferation of "ice" houses frequented by drug dealers and users, and by astonishing increases in neighborhood property values.
"We'll be looking very closely at those two issues," said Paula Helfrich, who has lived in the district's Waiakea Uka neighborhood for 13 years.
With Democratic Rep. Eric Hamakawa declining to seek re-election this year, there is no incumbent in the district for the first time in a decade.
The area has a long history of electing Democrats, but Republican Andy Smith staged a relatively strong campaign there in 2002, losing to Hamakawa with 44 percent of the votes cast to Hamakawa's 55 percent.
Smith, an appointee of Gov. Linda Lingle and a former University of Hawai'i-Hilo basketball player, is running again this year, and is unopposed in the Republican primary.
Businessman Clifton Tsuji and prison administrator Glen Hisa-shima are competing in the Democratic primary, with retired state worker Fred Fukuchi running as a nonpartisan.
Hisashima is a longtime Democrat who volunteered over the years on the Big Island campaigns of former Govs. George Ariyoshi, John Waihee and Ben Cayetano, as well as the unsuccessful gubernatorial bid of Mazie Hirono in 2002.
He said legislators today don't seem to listen to their communities' concerns, and that he wants to focus on the economy, education and healthcare.
More state money needs to be invested in schools, especially in new high-tech classrooms and better learning environments for youth, he said. "We've got to bring it up to the high-tech era," he said.
Tsuji said affordable healthcare is his primary concern, and that he is worried about the increasing burden that healthcare places on senior citizens. He said he wants additional state investment in the Hawai'i Health Systems Corp., the quasi-public hospital network that includes the Hilo Medical Center.
The HHSC hospitals will not be self-supporting any time soon, but Tsuji said he would like to see more state money for the system to help it become "No. 1 in the nation" for quality of care.
Tsuji said he also wants to stress improvements in education, with more state money allocated for dorm space at the University of Hawai'i-Hilo so it can continue to grow.
Smith said voters have made it clear they want more local control of the schools, and said he favors putting the school board issue to a vote as a proposed constitutional amendment to decide the issue.
He said he favors a state tax credit to encourage people to buy private long-term-care insurance, and favors another tax credit for people who modify their homes with wheelchair ramps or other improvements to care for frail family members.
On the drug issue, Smith said penalties for dealing and manufacturing methamphetamine "remain very weak," and said the state needs to get tough on crime and drugs.
Also running is Fukuchi, a hotel worker who filed as a nonpartisan. Fukuchi said he has learned from walking the district that residents want safer and better-maintained schools, and better maintenance of camp sites, parks and trails to boost tourism.
Fukuchi said he wants to create more preschool programs for middle-class families.
Many residents worry that their neighborhoods may be too expensive for their children to settle close to home, and that a growing drug problem has made the area more dangerous than it was a decade ago.
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| FRED FUKUCHI (N)
AGE: 68 FAMILY: Married, four grown children OCCUPATION: Part-time night desk clerk at Hilo Seaside Hotel; retired from state Department of Transportation, Traffic Division. ONE BIG IDEA: My platform is to listen to the voters' ideas, issues and concerns, and take it to the Legislature for action. |
GLEN HISASHIMA (D)
AGE: 55 FAMILY: Married, two grown children OCCUPATION: Acting warden, Kulani Correctional Facility; corrections officer since 1980. ONE BIG IDEA: There are issues that I would like to undertake if elected. Education, economic development, public safety and health insurance which includes long-term care for the elderly. We must address these issues to provide better quality of life for all. |
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| ANDY SMITH (R)
AGE: 30 FAMILY: Married OCCUPATION: Governor's liaison to East Hawai'i; former manager of Oroweat Bakery in Hilo ONE BIG IDEA: I'm running for the state House of Representatives because we need someone who is in touch with the needs and concerns of the community. It's time to leave behind the outdated "old boy" system of politics. For Hawaii to grow and flourish, we need change, and someone who will represent the people's values.ONE BIG IDEA: I promise to work with our legislative team to initiate programs to improve health care,Êprovide quality educational opportunities through University of Hawai'i at Hilo, Hawaii Community College and our public schools, expand job opportunities, and create a safe environment for our families. The rising cost of health care is an outrageous disease and must be placed into remission. We must provide more forÊretention of good teachers in our public schools and for preparing our students to become better citizens. We must fund "ice" education and prevention programs. The drug is devastating our community. |
CLIFTON TSUJI (D)
AGE: 63 FAMILY: Divorced, two grown sons OCCUPATION: Vice president, Hilo Candy Company Inc.; retired last year as senior vice president from Central Pacific Bank. ONE BIG IDEA: I promise to work with our legislative team to initiate programs to improve health care,Êprovide quality educational opportunities through University of Hawai'i at Hilo, Hawaii Community College and our public schools, expand job opportunities, and create a safe environment for our families. The rising cost of health care is an outrageous disease and must be placed into remission. We must provide more forÊretention of good teachers in our public schools and for preparing our students to become better citizens. We must fund "ice" education and prevention programs. The drug is devastating our community. |
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| District 3
Portion of Hilo, portion of Waiakea Kai, Waiakea Uka, Pana'ewa, portion of Kea'au, Kurtistown. More than 32 percent of District 3 residents identified themselves as Japanese, according to the 2000 Census, and another 28 percent identified themselves as mixed race. The district also includes Hawaiian Home Lands at Pana'ewa, but fewer than 9 percent of the district residents identified themselves as Native Hawaiian. Whites make up 12 percent of the population, and Filipinos are 9 percent. In all, 68 percent of the adults in District 3 are older than 40, and 23 percent are older than 65. Age breakdown for adults: 18-19: 3%; 20-29: 13%; 30-39: 16%; 40-49: 22%; 50-64: 23%; 65-and up: 23% |
