LIHU’E – When he was a student at Kapa`a High School in the late 1970s, politics wasn’t really something James Tokioka thought about. The 39-year-old restauranteur (Terrace Restaurant at Kaua`i Lagoons), who is running for his third term on the
LIHU’E – When he was a student at Kapa`a High School in the late 1970s,
politics wasn’t really something James Tokioka thought about.
The
39-year-old restauranteur (Terrace Restaurant at Kaua`i Lagoons), who is
running for his third term on the Kaua’i County Council, said he was “the last
person any of my friends thought” would become a council member.
“The
biggest reason I got involved was for my children,” said Tokioka, he has two —
a 5-year-old son and 10-month-old daughter. “I felt like the visitor industry
and the business community needed representation. And I felt like I could
represent the silent minority.
“A lot of my friends don’t get involved. My
mom and dad have never been to a council meeting. It’s not that they don’t
care. It’s just the way they were brought up.”
Although he’s obviously
interested in politics, the council isn’t something Tokioka takes home with him
very often. That’s because he’s married to Beth Tokioka, the public information
officer for the county.
“She was working there before” he ran for council
the first time in 1996, he explained. “We agreed not to bring our jobs home
with us.”
Tokioka said community service is one of his favorite parts of
council work.
“What’s most important to me is being committed to the island
and being committed to the quality of life here,” he said. “If we add a
lifeguard and he saves one life, that feels good in your heart.”
Another
part of the job Tokioka likes now is a more recent development: The council’s
“teamwork. We’ve not always agreed, but we worked together,” he said.
He
was in Michigan on vacation a few weeks ago “and watched a council meeting on
television, and it was nasty. Politics at its worst. We’ve tried to work
together. It’s good for the people,” he said.
When asked about the biggest
issues facing the island, Tokioka listed three: Kaua`i Electric, solid waste
and traffic.
“Even if you don’t vote, this (Kaua`i Electric) decision is
going to affect every single person on this island. We have to find the
appropriate entity to purchase the utility and bring down the rates here,”
Tokioka said.
He said the action he’s proudest of while a councilman is his
work on The Kaua`i Net Expo, an exposition that displayed Internet products and
capabilities through local and mainland vendors.
“Seniors came in and their
grandchildren showed them what the Internet was all about, taking away anxiety
about the Internet,” he said.
“If I never got re-elected,” he concluded, “I
don’t know if I would ever run again. But I would always be involved in the
governmental process.”
Staff writer Dennis Wilken can be reached at
245-3681 (ext. 252) and dwilken@pulitzer.net
