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Mayor Rick Blangiardi nominates retired Honolulu fire chief to serve on police commission

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  • STAR-ADVERTISER / 2012
                                Honolulu Fire Department Chief Kenneth Silva, standing outside HFD headquarters, announced his retirement after a 31-year career with the department. Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi has nominated retired Honolulu Fire Chief Kenneth G. Silva to serve on the Honolulu Police Commission.

    STAR-ADVERTISER / 2012

    Honolulu Fire Department Chief Kenneth Silva, standing outside HFD headquarters, announced his retirement after a 31-year career with the department. Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi has nominated retired Honolulu Fire Chief Kenneth G. Silva to serve on the Honolulu Police Commission.

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi has nominated retired Honolulu Fire Chief Kenneth G. Silva to serve on the Honolulu Police Commission.

If approved by the City Council, Silva would replace Michael Broderick, principal of Broderick Dispute Resolution and a retired Family Court judge, who resigned in December. Silva’s term would end on Dec. 31, 2026.

In a Nov. 7 opinion column in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Broderick asked Blangiardi to replace him with a Pacific Islander, or a Native Hawaiian, “who works closely with those communities and populations that most frequently interact with the police.”

Silva, a graduate of Kamehameha Schools, spent 31 years with the Honolulu Fire Department, the last seven as chief. The City Council is scheduled to consider Silva’s nomination on Wednesday .

From 2013 to 2019 he served as executive pastor of extension and operations at New Hope Oahu. At the church, he oversaw operations facilities, and extension activities outside the church along with the building expansion project, according to the church’s website.

“Ken Silva is a man of high integrity and outstanding character. Ken’s prior experience working with the FBI, HPD, military and Secret Service, along with his strong leadership and communication skills, provides the necessary combination of life experience, community service and senior leadership that we need for the next member of the Honolulu Police Commission,” Blangiardi said in a statement to the Star-Advertiser.

“In his role as chief he resolved concerns and issues at fire stations in every community on Oahu and he knows, first-hand, the disparate needs and priorities of our residents and neighborhoods. Ken is highly respected for his many outstanding contributions to our community over the course of his career and is especially recognized for being an exceptional leader with a keen sense of social equity. I am more than pleased that Ken has agreed to volunteer for this critically important role,” Blangiardi said.

Blangiardi nominated Silva on Jan. 10

Silva earned Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in public administration from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

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