Who says there's a brain drain? Just as The ARTS at Marks Garage lost director Kim Coffey-Isaak, it found someone tailor-made for the job. The five-year-old community art center, which has been a major player in the revitalization of Chinatown, has hired Erik M. Takeshita to take the helm.

As senior policy aide and project coordinator under Mayor R. T Rybak, Takeshita created Minneapolis Mosaic: A Celebration of the Arts and Cultures of Minneapolis.

He was also a faculty member at the Institute for Community & Cultural Development in Minneapolis and worked with the Minneapolis Neighborhood Revitalization Program.

And the Minnesotan has Hawai'i ties — his parents are from Hawai'i, and he and his wife moved to Nu'uanu to raise their two daughters.

Reach Lesa Griffith at lgriffith@honoluluadvertiser.com.