Fed nominee Landon’s assets may hit $41M
Allan Landon, the former Bank of Hawaii chief executive officer nominated to fill a vacancy on the Federal Reserve Board, reported assets of at least $9.7 million and as much as $41 million.
Landon said in a November letter that was part of publicly available financial disclosure documents he would resign from several corporate board and university teaching positions, and divest of holdings in financial firms, if he is confirmed for the post by lawmakers. Confirmation hearings in the U.S. Senate have not been scheduled.
Landon, who was CEO at Bank of Hawaii from 2004 to 2010, was selected by the Obama administration to fill one of two vacancies on the seven-seat board. If confirmed, he would bring banking experience to a board dominated by lawyers and economists, and will vote on monetary policy as officials this year weigh the first interest rate increase since 2006.
Landon’s largest reported holdings, each worth between $1 million to $5 million, included common stock in the Bank of Hawaii, shares in two mutual funds, savings and checking accounts, and Peoa Orchards LLC, a "fully owned farmland and barn in Peoa, Utah," according to the document on the website of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
Executive branch disclosure forms require respondents to place the value of individual assets within certain ranges without revealing exact figures.
Hawaiian Air to reopen renovated lounge
Hawaiian Airlines will celebrate the reopening Wednesday of its flagship Premier Club lounge at Honolulu Airport, the first of six Premier Club lounges that the airline is renovating across the state.
The event will include live music by Holunape and food from Tanioka’s Seafoods & Catering, Hokulani Bake Shop and The Alley Restaurant.
The new 3,500-square-foot space offers amenities including cable TV and a variety of reading materials, free high-speed Wi-Fi, ample power outlets and complimentary snacks and refreshments.
Hawaiian’s multimillion-dollar renovations are taking place in two phases to minimize any disruption with the company’s Pualani Elite and Premier Club members’ use of these lounges. The Premier Club at Kahului Airport is scheduled to reopen soon, followed by Kona in late February.
Italian-restaurant owner eyes Kewalo Basin
A company that owns several Italian restaurants in Japan is advancing work to open one in Honolulu called Napule in a vacant state-owned building at Kewalo Basin small boat harbor. The company, Bellavita Inc., has filed a draft environmental assessment for the project it estimates will cost $3 million.
The environmental report is a requirement of using the site, which is owned by the Hawaii Community Development Authority, a state agency that regulates development in Kakaako.
HCDA has agreed to negotiate a lease for the building, which fronts Ala Moana Boulevard. A lease would be subject to approval by the agency’s board following two public hearings.
Bellavita wants to add an outdoor covered dining area to the 3,000-square-foot building it seeks to convert for restaurant use. The building has been used by tenants including dive shops, a parasail business, a fishing supplies store and a police substation.
If approvals are obtained, the company anticipates beginning renovation or redevelopment work in August.
Hawaii jobless rate among lowest in U.S.
Hawaii is tied for the seventh-lowest unemployment rate in the nation.Jobless rates in December fell in 42 states, rose in four and were unchanged in four, according to a report Tuesday from the U.S. Labor Department.
Hawaii announced Friday that its unemployment rate last month held steady at 4 percent after four consecutive monthly drops.
The states with the lowest unemployment are North Dakota (2.8 percent), Nebraska (2.9 percent), South Dakota (3.3 percent), Utah (3.5 percent), Minnesota (3.6 percent) and Idaho (3.7 percent). Hawaii, Colorado and New Hampshire are all at 4 percent.
The broad improvement shown in Tuesday’s report from the Labor Department reflected a pickup in hiring across the country. Employers nationwide added nearly 3 million jobs last year, the most since 1999. The gains were driven by solid economic growth in spring and summer. During 2014 the national unemployment rate sank to 5.6 percent from 6.7 percent.
ON THE MOVE
First Hawaiian Leasing, a subsidiary of First Hawaiian Bank, has announced that Brent Helgeson has been named its president. He previously served as senior vice president of First Hawaiian Bank and manager of its Dealer Center division. Helgeson has 24 years of financial services industry experience and started as a management trainee for First Hawaiian in 1990.
Outrigger Resorts has named Alan Naito as general manager of the Holiday Inn Waikiki Beachcomber Resort, an Outrigger-managed property. He joined the resort in 1988 as an auditor for the Outrigger Waikiki. In 1990 Naito was promoted to assistant hotel manager for the Outrigger Maile Sky Court. He had served as a general manager for the Ohana Waikiki East hotel for the past eight years after working in a variety of management positions.
