State of the County

LIHU‘E — Approximately 150 people, mostly county officials and staff, gathered at the Mo‘ikeha building’s rotunda Monday morning for Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr.’s fifth State of the County address.

Carvalho outlined the administration’s commitment to efficiency, quality services and community engagement, but also confirmed plans to enhance county revenues by raising property taxes and county fees.

“The sun is shining, it’s a beautiful day, I’m going to rock and roll this morning,” said Carvalho, who had to trade his iPad for a hard copy of his speech due to an unforgiving sun.

Sweating profusely under a suit and several lei, Carvalho dove into a roughly 45-minute address, which included a detailed outline of his proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2014, submitted Friday to the Kaua‘i County Council.

“I have to admit, if I had a chance to create a budget out of thin air, without having to deal with the tough realities we face, it wouldn’t have looked much like the document we delivered on Friday,” he said. “But I don’t have that luxury. I have to deal with realities. We have to deal with realities, because we are a community. And as a community we face things together.”

Carvalho said working together on the challenges reminds him of sitting around the dinner table with his family.

“We celebrate the good and we work through the not-so-good,” he said. “And we do so with aloha and respect. That’s what makes Kaua‘i so special.”

He touched on a number of “positive” things happening on Kaua‘i, including an improving economy, “especially in the visitor industry,” lower unemployment, an increase in building permit applications and higher real estate sales.

“Aside from the economy, there are many good things happening all over our island,” Carvalho said. “As mayor I have tried very hard, with the support of my team, to make internal systems changes so we can better meet the needs of our community.”

While saying that changing long-standing systems is not easy, Carvalho said his administration “made great progress” over the last year. He said some of the promises he made — and kept — to the community since last year’s address, includes the formation of a “small equipment maintenance” team, a reorganization of the Personnel Department and the completion of the terms and conditions of the county’s probation agreement relating to the endangered Newell’s shearwater.

“We are now off probation and were able to do so without any additional fines,” said Carvalho, referencing the federal complaint that prompted the county to protect the shearwaters from stadium lights. The complaint caused an unpopular re-scheduling of the popular Friday-night football games to Saturday mornings during fledging season.

Carvalho also discussed his passion for going “paperless” and “green” at the county level. As for overtime, he said it is “a big expense” for the county and “one we must control.”

“Our current projection for overtime savings in public works for this year is $438,000, with most of the savings coming from solid waste collections and baseyard operations,” he said.

‘Bold’

Carvalho described his proposed FY 2014 budget as “bold,” focusing on the difficult task of spending less and doing more. He said it will require the county to be more efficient and for each and every business and resident on Kaua‘i to pitch in.

“It is bold because it will not make everyone happy, but it will make us as a community stronger,” he said. “If we all share in the burden together we have a better chance of prospering together.”

With salaries and related costs taking up more than 60 percent of the county’s operating budget, Carvalho said he and his team have “worked hard” to achieve a 3.5 percent decrease in salaries for next year, amounting to $3.8 million in savings. He also discussed the county’s “green” initiatives and the need to reduce county travel expenses.

“This tightening of the belt is difficult and it will challenge our department heads to manage manpower and dollars with the utmost efficiency,” he said. “Even with these deep operating cuts, we find that revenues are not sufficient to provide an acceptable level of service.”

Carvalho’s budget proposal includes fee increases to the Vehicle Weight Tax, vehicle registrations, the gasoline tax, the Kaua‘i Bus monthly pass and the Solid Waste Tipping Fee for commercial deliveries.  

Carvalho discussed a number of priority Capital Improvement Plan projects, including a General Plan update, radio system upgrades, the Kekaha Gardens Park and renovations to the Hanalei Courthouse.

“We will be focusing our attention back into our core services, and by that I mean keeping our parks and public facilities up to a basic standard that will ensure customer satisfaction at all times,” he said.

Carvalho described the ongoing effort as, “Raising the Bar — making sure that when you visit one of our parks or public facilities you have a great experience.”

Prior to his closing statements, Carvalho highlighted some of the initiatives of the Holo Holo 2020 vision, including the study for the new landfill and resource recovery park, which will likely be in Kalepa, above Hanama‘ulu; the Complete Streets and Safe Routes to School program; bus stop shelters; the Ke Ala Hele Makalae, or multi-use path; the master plan for Hanalei’s Black Pot Beach Park; and plans for an adolescent residential drug treatment center.

Working together

“As I close today, I want to remind you that this is really a good news story,” Carvalho said. “There is much to be thankful for. We are on the road to economic recovery and we live in a community that is resilient, connected and strong.”

Carvalho said it is important to embrace people from all walks of life in an effort to preserve what is special about Kaua‘i and Ni‘ihau. Everyone has something valuable to contribute, he said.

“Let’s not just raise the bar in our parks,” he said. “Let’s all dig a little deeper and commit ourselves in a greater way to our community and our beautiful island home.”

Carvalho encouraged local residents to stay engaged in their county government, attend community meetings, get involved in the budget process and share their ideas with local leaders.

Speaking directly to the council members in attendance, Carvalho said he has no doubt there will be disagreements regarding his budget proposal.

“Let’s commit ourselves to a respectful dialogue that focuses on finding understanding and compromise,” he said.

Like ‘ohana at the dinner table, Carvalho said the goal is “to build up, not to break down.”

“I am confident that, working together, we can all raise the bar a little bit more every day,” he said. “Let’s all start today.”

• Chris D’Angelo, lifestyle writer, can be reached at 245-0441 or lifestyle@thegardenisland.com.