Ex-DFS executive appointed city manager
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
Mayor Mufi Hannemann filled most of the remaining vacancies in his Cabinet yesterday, but said the search for a new director of design and construction will take at least one more month.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser
"We have a nice blend of the faces of O'ahu, and I think it will work out real well," Hannemann said.
Mayor Mufi Hannemann introduces John L. Reed, at lectern, nominated as managing director; Mary Patricia Waterhouse, budget and fiscal services; and Lester K.C. Chang, parks and recreation.
Cabinet members announced yesterday were:
• John L. Reed, city managing director. He is a former regional president of DFS, formerly known as Duty Free Shoppers, and was chairman of DFS Pacific Retail. Reed also has served as chairman of the Hawai'i Tourism Authority. He founded a teeth-whitening treatment company called BriteSmile Inc. in 1999 in California. Hannemann said he met Reed when Hannemann was director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism under then-Gov. John Waihee in the early 1990s. Reed replaces Ben Lee.
• Mary Patricia Waterhouse, director of the Department of Budget and Fiscal Services. She is vice president of finance for Catholic Charities Hawai'i, and was chief financial and administrative officer for the Hawai'i Community Foundation from 2000 to last January. Waterhouse served as deputy comptroller for the state Department of Accounting and General Services from 1995 to 2000, and is a certified public accountant who has taught accounting at the University of Hawai'i. Waterhouse replaces Ivan Lui-Kwan.
• Lester K.C. Chang, director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. He is a retired Air Force colonel who has been a senior instructor with the Air Force JROTC program at Kailua High School. Chang served as director of personnel support policy and services in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and commanded the 86th Services Squadron at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. He was chief of plans and force management at Pacific Air Forces headquarters and commanded the Army and Air Force Exchange Services Pacific Region. He replaces Bill Balfour.
Mayor Mufi Hannemann's public inauguration will be at 1 p.m. today at City Hall. The public is welcome to attend, but seating will be limited. The event will be broadcast live on 'Olelo Community Television, Channel 54, and also can be viewed live on the Internet at www.olelo.org. The Mayor's Inaugural Gala will be held tonight at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, beginning at 5 p.m. The event is sold out.
Hannemann, who presided over his first Cabinet meeting yesterday, said he had asked Department of Design and Construction acting director Tim Steinberger to remain on the job for at least one month while the search for a permanent replacement continues.
Ceremony today at City Hall
Hannemann said it is very important to find the right person, even if that takes some time. "I don't want to be rushed into making a decision I may not be comfortable with," he said.
Reed said he will pay close attention to major city problems as managing director, and said the administration should be run more like a business.
"We're at a crossroads as a city and a county in terms of landmark issues, like mass transportation, like the landfill issue," he said. "These are just two of many landmark issues that I think we have to, as an administration, get hold of and eventually solve in this term, or at least within the next five to six years. They have to be solved one way or the other, and I believe that can be done. I believe in Mufi."
Reed also said that while he recognizes serious pothole problems in city streets, it would take some time to devise a repair plan.
"I'm a bike rider, I ride about 300 miles a week, and I'm acutely aware of the potholes because in the dark I can't see them, and I hurt myself once," he said.
Once repairs are planned and scheduled, "we'll fix it, pronto," he said.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
