BUSINESS BRIEFS
Hanapa'a Sushi adds new locations
Advertiser staff
Hanapa'a Sushi Co. is expanding with the opening of two new retail locations inside the Times Supermarkets on Beretania Street and in Waimalu.
Those are in addition to the original Hanapa'a Sushi site in the Times Supermarket in Kaimuki.
Company officials said they hope to open three more locations before the end of the year in Times Supermarkets on the Windward side.
"While most of the food service industry is trying to recoil in this tough economic time, we strive to be aggressive by offering lower prices without sacrificing quality," said Grant Kawasaki, president of Hanapa'a Sushi.
The company, founded in April, is owned and managed by Kawasaki and partners Norlan Horita, Shannon Akazawa and Ikaika Kimura.
Customers can place orders at the company Web site, www.hanapaasushi.com, for pickup at any of the three retail locations.
CALIFORNIA FEE ON PORT CARGO VETOED
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed legislation that would have imposed a pollution fee on cargo ships at California's ports, siding with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Hawai'i Gov. Linda Lingle.
The fee would have paid for clean-air programs, but Republican vice presidential nominee Palin wrote to Schwarzenegger saying it would lead to higher costs on goods shipped to her state. She asked Schwarzenegger to reject the bill in a letter dated the day before she was named Sen. John McCain's running mate.
Schwarzenegger has endorsed McCain's presidential bid.
Lingle also opposed the fee. Hawai'i is heavily dependent on shipments from California.
The bill by Democratic Sen. Alan Lowenthal would have imposed a fee of up to $60 for each 40-foot cargo container moving through the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland. That Southern California port complex is the nation's largest and handles more than 40 percent of the nation's goods.
VERIZON WIRELESS DONATES SERVICE
Verizon Wireless this year expects to donate 140 cellular telephones and 400,000 minutes of service to Hawai'i agencies that support domestic violence victims.
The donation is part of Verizon Wireless' HopeLine program, which provides used wireless phones to agencies for their clients to use to communicate with family, friends, shelter support staff and employers. In 2008, Verizon Wireless said, it has donated phones and service to the Domestic Violence Action Center, Women Helping Women, Turning Point for Families, Na Loio Immigrant Rights and Public Interests Legal Center, and Parents and Children Together.
The HopeLine program is accepting cellular phone donations at all Verizon Wireless stores in Hawai'i. For information, visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.
A&B SHARES RISE IN NYSE DEBUT
Shares of Alexander & Baldwin Inc. posted a solid gain yesterday in their first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchage.
The Honolulu-based owner of real estate and Matson Navigation Co. saw its stock rise $1.07 to close at $45.10 during its Big Board debut under its AXB symbol.
The company previously traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol ALEX. The company announced the move to the NYSE last month, saying trading on the world's best-known stock exchange could be an important factor for its businesses in the coming years.
