Posted on: Saturday, June 25, 2005
HawTel gives $125K for Sunset on Beach
| • | True cost double on beach events |
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer
A new private partnership will allow the popular Sunset on the Beach events — once sponsored entirely by city taxpayers under then-Mayor Jeremy Harris — to continue.
Hawaiian Telcom will be the presenting sponsor for six of the events this year, starting with this weekend's, said Mayor Mufi Hannemann. The company also committed to sponsor an additional 12 events from January to June 2006.
The city had been seeking a private sponsor to help underwrite the cost of the beachside food and movie events and hopes other companies will come forward.
Hawaiian Telcom Chief Executive Officer Michael Ruley said the company committed $125,000 to the program and sees it as a valuable way to give back to the community.
"It's important for us to recognize the special attributes of our community, and Sunset on the Beach is one of those tremendous attributes," he said.
The Waikiki Improvement Association under president Rick Egged has taken over management of the program. He said the total annual cost of the events is now between $700,000 and $800,000.
Egged said the Hawai'i Tourism Authority also continues to support the event, contributing $300,000 for upcoming programs.
He said the city provides such things as permits and access to the public parks and beaches, but he said the association now hires private companies to handle most services once provided by city workers at taxpayer expense. Those include set-up and clean-up.
"We've been able to eliminate all the city overtime," Egged said. "This guarantees we will continue at least through June of 2006," Egged said.
While council members and Hannemann praised the intent of the festivals, they had criticized the Harris administration for elusive accounting of spending and pushed for a switch to private companies supporting the events.
Hawaiian Telcom's sponsorship kicks in for this weekend's Sunset. The movie selection: "Racing Stripes" for today and "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events " for tomorrow. Egged hopes the new sponsorship signals a series of fortunate events — more sponsors.
Reach Robbie Dingeman at 535-2429 or rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.
