Bank of Hawaii, which opened its new Pearlridge branch on Monday, will hold a grand opening Saturday with live entertainment, food and giveaways to customers.

The new 5,500-square-foot branch at 98-1059 Moanalua Road in Aiea is the sixth and largest of the bank’s new “Branch of Tomorrow” concept. The former location was at 98-211 Pali Momi St. in Aiea.

The grand opening will start at 8:30 a.m. with welcoming remarks, followed by the opening of the branch at 9 a.m.

Hawaii State FCU membership tops 100,000

Hawaii State Federal Credit Union said Tuesday it reached the 100,000 membership milestone at the end of 2017. It said membership increased 47 percent over the span of a decade to 100,214 from 68,308 in 2007.

The credit union saw its highest year-over-year membership gain between 2014 and 2015 when it added 6,095 members (an 8.3 percent increase) following the launch of its “Always Right By You” rebranding campaign. The credit union had another boost in membership between 2016 and 2017, adding 5,519 members (a 5.8 percent increase) during its 80th anniversary year.

The credit union, founded in 1936, attributes its growth in membership, loans and assets to its focus on technology, innovation and new loan products.

Hawaii State FCU, with $1.5 billion in assets, serves state, city and county employees as well as nonprofits and select businesses and their families across the state.

PHH Mortgage settlement aids isle residents

About 70 Hawaii homeowners or former homeowners will benefit from a legal settlement between a major U.S. mortgage servicing company and regulators in 47 states.

The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs announced its participation last week in the deal that will provide payments to borrowers who were harmed by what the agency said were “severe operational deficiencies” in mortgage servicing by New Jersey-based PHH Mortgage Corp.

DCCA’s Division of Financial Institutions said PHH customers in Hawaii will share part of $31 million available for up to 52,000 borrowers who had mortgages in foreclosure handled by PHH between 2009 and 2012. On average, the payment total is $596 per borrower. PHH also agreed to pay an administrative penalty of $8.8 million to state regulators and is required to correct practices to ensure timely and accurate loan payment processing.

PHH claims to be the ninth-largest U.S. mortgage servicer. DCCA said Hawaii customers affected by the settlement include 19 borrowers who lost their homes to foreclosure and 48 who had ongoing foreclosure cases during the period.

Hawaii County solar permits fall 27.9%

Solar permits issued in Hawaii County fell 27.9 percent last year to 906 from 1,256 in 2016 despite an increase over the last two months.

“Compared to Maui and Oahu, Hawaii island fared better when it came to the state’s overall downturn in the number of new PV (photovoltaic systems) going in,” said Marco Mangelsdorf, who tracks rooftop solar permits and is president of Hilo-based ProVision Solar. “One new and potential lucrative market for 2018 could be the addition of battery energy storage to existing net energy metered customers. There are over 11,000 NEM customer generators on Hawaii island, the vast majority of them having no storage, which means that if the grid were to do down, their homes would go dark.”

ON THE MOVE

The Alzheimer’s Association has announced the following new employees:

>> Steven Tam is the company’s new director of development. Tam previously served as manager for BrightStar Care of Honolulu, director of advocacy for AARP Hawaii and vice president of sales for Prudential Locations.

>> Lyn Moku is the company’s new Oahu program specialist. Moku has been with the American Diabetes Association for more than 20 years, advocating and working with people with chronic diseases, including their families and care partners.

Castle Resorts & Hotels has announced that Violet Carlsberg has been promoted to director of business development. She was previously a manager for Castle Resorts & Hotels’ business development. Prior to that, Carlsberg served as head of marketing at Oahu Country Club.

U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono has announced new senior leadership to her team:

>> Alan Yamamoto is her new chief of staff based in Hawaii. He has more than 19 years of congressional experience in Washington, D.C., and Hawaii, including serving as state director for Hirono since April 2013. Prior to that, Yamamoto worked in the office of U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye and has numerous years of executive experience in the private sector in Hawaii.

>> Coti-Lynne Haia is Hirono’s new deputy of chief of staff in Washington, D.C. She previously served as the bureau chief for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs in Washington, D.C., and served five years in the offices of Hirono and Inouye. Prior to working in Washington, D.C., Haia was a deputy prosecuting attorney for the City and County of Honolulu.