In his first major address since taking office, Hannemann gave a candid appraisal of O'ahu's most pressing problems and made it plain that residents will have to bear their share of paying for the solutions.

O'ahu has amassed a debt of more than $3 billion, he said, about $3,000 for every man, woman and child in Honolulu. The amount paid in interest and principal each year stands at $194 million, nearly 20 percent of the city budget, he said.

He warned residents not to expect rollbacks in property tax rates despite rising revenues, and said there could even be new fees, perhaps at some city parks.

"The state of the city is such that it will get worse before it gets better, and we'll need every penny to balance our budget," he said.

Honolulu Fire Department Capt. Ernie Akana shows temporary repairs of the dormitory at the McCully station, which is scheduled to be demolished and replaced. Capt. Emmit Kane said yesterday the city may have avoided the costly replacement with proper maintenance. Richard Ambo• The Honolulu Advertiser

In the case of the sewer fees, residents have gone 12 years without any increase in residential rates. That 1993 increase prompted more than 5,000 complaints when rates went up more than 40 percent in one bill cycle.

"We cannot afford to neglect and defer this problem any longer," the mayor said. To wait would risk more sewer spills and even civil penalties brought by the federal government for failing to meet public health standards, he said.

Newly appointed neighborhood commissioner Tom Heinrich, who has known Hannemann since they both attended Iolani School, said the speech was excellent, blunt and "a good call to arms for all of us."

The former Manoa Neighborhood Board chairman was particularly encouraged by Hannemann's supportive references to the neighborhood boards and the call for everyone to work together.

"Everybody is going to have to bite the bullet in some respects, but if we do it responsibly then we can not just maintain, but improve the overall quality of life for the county as a whole," he said. "I expect everybody's pocketbook to be hit. Hopefully it will be reasonable and it will be accountable for specific services."

Leo Vaguilar, 63, a retired custodian, said he was unconcerned about how his wallet would be affected. "I think it's good if we're going to pay more taxes so we'll have more money for services."

The City Council would have to approve Hannemann's proposal, including the sewer fee increase. Yesterday, key members said they are ready to make that difficult decision, although they want to see the details first.

City Council Chairman Donovan Dela Cruz said sewer rates need to rise to get the job done.

"We have to be responsible," he said. "If we don't pay now, we'll definitely, definitely pay more later."

City Councilman Charles Djou praised the speech for acknowledging problems in city finances. "I give the mayor a lot of credit for taking a realistic look at the city budget," Djou said.

He expected that sewer fees would rise but was surprised at the size of the proposed increase. "The amounts are much higher than I expected," he said. "I'd have to take a hard, close look at the numbers."

City Council Budget Chairwoman Ann Kobayashi said insufficient spending on the sewer system leads to spills, which in turn cause problems with public health, tourism and even the economy.

"We can't keep running away from these increases. It hurts everyone," Kobayashi said. "We've got to bite the bullet."

Dela Cruz said he was pleased to see Hannemann's overall emphasis on ensuring that rural O'ahu neighborhoods — which he represents — get the same access to city services as urban Honolulu. For example, he liked the proposed night hours for satellite city halls at three malls.

Honolulu Fire Department Capt. Emmit Kane agreed with Hannemann that the city has fallen behind on a lot of basic repairs and maintenance. And now fixing bigger problems will cost more.

Kane points to the McCully Fire Station, which is scheduled to be demolished and replaced later this year. "With some prudent maintenance, we could have avoided some of those dramatic problems," he said.

In the past, Kane said, the Fire Department saw many budget requests denied unless the issues were "just short of crisis."

Kane said the McCully firefighters will go to temporary quarters in the McCully area while that work is done.