Savio group wins bid to buy Iroquois Point

A group led by local developer Peter Savio has won a bid for the former 1,450-home Iroquois Point Navy subdivision owned by Hunt Development Group.

The group, comprising 25 individuals and businesses, bid between $300 million and $350 million for the waterfront Ewa Beach subdivision with a 102-year lease from the U.S. Navy for the land, Savio told the Star-Advertiser.

"This is the first time a local hui (group) has won the right to bid over mainland buyers," he said, adding that investors are putting in between $1 million and $30 million each.

The group has secured $75 million from a mainland equity investor and is assuming existing debt of $175 million, he said.

"We have core investors and now are going to reach out to try to attract additional investors," Savio said. "The idea is not just to do this one project. We’re going to try to put another hui together for the next big project."

Hunt acquired the 367-acre Ewa Beach property from the Navy in 2003. Savio intends to sell units for between $30,000 and $70,000 under market.

Symposium set for small, medium businesses

Registration is being taken for the APEC Business Advisory Council SME symposium that will be held for small and medium enterprise businesses on Nov. 10 at the Halekulani Hotel.

CEOs, business executives and government leaders from across the Asia-Pacific region will speak at the event. Topics will include new roles for small and medium enterprises, or SMEs, in global markets; free trade agreements opening doors for SMEs; creating transparent and open business environments for SMEs; and trading across borders — regulatory and operational concerns.

Registration is $150 and includes full access to the symposium, which runs from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; parking at the hotel; printed event materials; lunch; and coffee break refreshments. For more information, go to www.apbsymposium.com/sme.html.

Chest physicians’ event to attract 6,000

About 6,000 medical professionals from 78 countries will attend the American College of Chest Physicians’ 77th annual CHEST meeting, which begins today at the Hawai’i Convention Center.

New this year is the "Centers of Excellence," a networking and collaboration forum featuring real-life patient care examples from medical providers. Participation will include several Hawaii hospitals as well as the University of Hawaii’s Telehealth Research Institute.

Under the ACCP’s philanthropic arm, the Chest Foundation, medical professionals will work with Sacred Hearts Academy in Honolulu to educate students about tobacco prevention. The Chest Foundation’s OneBreath initiative is donating $10,000 to support educational health prevention efforts at the school. In addition, renowned specialists will deliver "grand rounds" lectures at select Hawaii hospitals.

High school students focus on APEC at UH

The Pacific and Asian Affairs Council expects more than 260 students from high schools across the state to compete in an APEC-themed academic competition from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. today at the University of Hawaii.

Students will be quizzed on APEC economies, current events in APEC economies, China, security, trade and clean energy, highlighting priority areas for the APEC leaders meeting coming to Honolulu next month.

The winning team will receive a trip a to Washington, D.C., to represent Hawaii at the National WorldQuest Competition in April.

Indonesia will be highlighted in a cultural fair featuring gamelan music, clothing and dance from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the UH Campus Center Ballroom, the UH Music Building ampitheater and the East-West Center gallery at Burns Hall.

Verizon earnings double on pension effects

NEW YORK » Earnings doubled at Verizon Communications Inc. in the latest quarter due to pension accounting effects, but the bottom-line result masked a weak quarter in the local-phone division, which was hammered by a strike and a hurricane.

In wireless, Verizon, the largest carrier, kept adding more high-paying subscribers than rival AT&T Inc. But like AT&T, it was hurt by the delayed launch of the new iPhone model, and missed analyst expectations for the number of new subscribers on contract-based plans.

Verizon said Friday its net income rose to $1.38 billion, or 49 cents a share, in the three months ended Sept. 30. That’s up from $659 million, or 23 cents a share, a year ago.

Excluding an adjustment in the value of its pension plans, Verizon said it earned 56 cents a share. That is a penny above the average forecast of analysts polled by FactSet.

Revenue rose 5.4 percent to $27.9 billion from $26.5 billion a year ago and was in line with analysts’ expectations.

ON THE MOVE

First Hawaiian Bank has announced that four executives have graduated from the Pacific Coast Banking School. The executives include: 

» Gina Anonuevo, executive vice president and chief compliance officer, Corporate Compliance Division.

» Martha Camacho, vice president and deputy manager, Residential Real Estate Division.

» Peter Valdez, vice president and Tamuning branch manager.

» Lisa Tomihama, vice president and business banking officer, Main Banking Region.

American Savings Bank has started its Bank for Education program, which will run through Dec. 15. The program helps the community raise funds for Hawaii schools with every new qualified personal checking account that is opened. ASB is committed to awarding more than $250,000 to local schools.