Racetracks, Motorsports, and Politics

[Glen Miyashiro]

Re: Capitol Rally @ Hawaii State Capitol April 9th, 2006 11AM-1P

Huh. An interesting bit that I hadn't connected is that Mike Oakland is Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland's father-in-law. Something to remember. I always thought she was a good egg but I'm not so sure about this particular family connection.

[LikaNui]

Re: Replacing Hawai'i Raceway Park

That same article includes this:
"But after The Advertiser raised questions about Chang's potential conflict, he spoke with House leaders, who quickly decided in a closed-door caucus to table the bill rather than risk embarrassment."
So it was just tabled, and not killed completely? Interesting.
But far more interesting -- and maddening -- is this:
"There are no conflict-of-interest rules for lawmakers in state ethics law. The law prohibits lawmakers from using their offices to give unwarranted privileges but work on bills, resolutions or other official duties is exempt. The House does have a code of conduct that cautions lawmakers against using the prestige of their offices to advance the private interests of themselves or others."

[poinographer]

Re: Replacing Hawai'i Raceway Park

"tabling" (actually called "recommittal") at this stage of the Lege kills that particular bill.

That doesn't mean there are no other bills where they could tuck this scheme in...

[Miulang]

Re: Replacing Hawai'i Raceway Park

Well, why the hecuba don't the voters of Hawai'i insist that there be a referendum to institute some sort of conflict of interest rules for the people who are passing the laws of the State? Wouldn't that be the first question to ask? If the Legislature truly wants to eliminate embarrassment, the first thing it should do is recognize that as a body of public figures, they WILL and MUST be held to a higher standard of moral conduct than ordinary mortals. One sure sign of a "backwater" government is one that allows the foxes to raid the henhouse. Oh wait. You don't have the Constitutional power to have referendums, either, do you?

Miulang

[kilikopela]

Re: Capitol Rally @ Hawaii State Capitol April 9th, 2006 11AM-1P

His daughter-in-law pulled out of Mike Oaklands campaign somehow, sometime last year. I dont know exactly how she wasnt involved. I'll post it up when I find it.

[kilikopela]

Re: Capitol Rally @ Hawaii State Capitol April 9th, 2006 11AM-1P

Hooo boy. Out comes the opala. The chief proponent of the bill to allow a tax credit for building a new raceway just withdrew the measure "because of potential conflicts of interest". Um, why did this bill get as far as it did before this conflict was discovered? Who's sleeping at the wheel? Why wasn't there more due diligence on the part of the committees that allowed the bill into the Senate and House? Love the way the killing of the measure was described :
"..."For Representative Chang's reputation and for the institution of the Legislature, we thought that it would be best to nip it in the bud and table the measure"...just the old boy network trying to protect its own, which is disgusting.

If the voters of Hawai'i want a replacement for Hawai'i Raceway Park, let them decide that on its own merits rather than having to rely on "sweetheart deals" that could benefit certain people who are in a position to approve the funding.

Miulang

and why should it be different than the tax credit awarded to the ko olina party? the only time that place ever has a high amount of attendance is during the probowl. whereas the race track will always be used by the local enthusiasts.

you are right about the conflict of interest. it was like a low blow to mike oakland regarding Changs interests. was it fair to us? Hell no. politics...it f*cking sucks!

well sucks to be us. hopefully we'll find a resolution for us.

just an FYI, a local group who have been against us since the beginning will propose a bill to condemn the existing land of HRP, and probably get the influential, Hanabusa to push it foward. Now...what would you all rather support...a tax credit bill?? or a bill that uses over $20M in tax payers money to condemn the existing land from it's new owner. none of this, "I support neither" crap. And to people think we're trying to take $50M in non refundable tax credits. I hope you Waianae residents will have someone running against Hanabusa next term.

[Miulang]

Re: Capitol Rally @ Hawaii State Capitol April 9th, 2006 11AM-1P

and why should it be different than the tax credit awarded to the ko olina party? the only time that place ever has a high amount of attendance is during the probowl. whereas the race track will always be used by the local enthusiasts.

you are right about the conflict of interest. it was like a low blow to mike oakland regarding Changs interests. was it fair to us? Hell no. politics...it f*cking sucks!

well sucks to be us. hopefully we'll find a resolution for us.

just an FYI, a local group who have been against us since the beginning will propose a bill to condemn the existing land of HRP, and probably get the influential, Hanabusa to push it foward. Now...what would you all rather support...a tax credit bill?? or a bill that uses over $20M in tax payers money to condemn the existing land from it's new owner. none of this, "I support neither" crap. And to people think we're trying to take $50M in non refundable tax credits. I hope you Waianae residents will have someone running against Hanabusa next term.

No, Ko Olina shouldn't have happened, either. Just because one thing happened in the past that was wrong doesn't mean that you can use that precedent to continue doing the wrong thing today or in the future. I don't see anything wrong with letting the VOTERS decide whether to support this tax credit or not. Unfortunately, in Hawai'i, your State Constitution doesn't allow for referenda, so you're kind of stuck with the whims of your elected officials.

Miulang

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Replacing Hawai'i Raceway Park

Now regarding the topic of actually replacing the raceway park...I think every island needs a park to allow motorsport enthusiasts a safe place to run their vehicles.

No one is asking the State or Counties to fund the construction let alone the maintenance of these parks (unlike our tennis, basketball and softball fields). The problem lies in the fact that a project this large requires as much funding going directly to it's construction and maintenance. Tax credits allow that to happen.

And Miulang in one of your earlier posts you compared substitute teacher pay equality. My brother-in-law's wife is a sub teacher. She has no teaching credentials other than a teaching certificate that is not on par with what full-time teachers must go thru in the form of education and certification. For a substitute teacher to ask for equality and not go thru the same certification process as their full-time peers is asking a lot.

But getting back OT I think Hawaii Raceway Park as well as Hawaii Motor Speedway needs to be saved. Especially HMS because I did the V/O's for the HMS commercials that appeared on OC16!

[kilikopela]

Condemnation to save Existing race track?

Does anyone believe in this?
Would everyone in the State of Hawaii support this?

This will cost the state over $15M if the land stays Ag. It will cost tenfold when it's rezoned for commercial use. that's not including the epa mandates that need to be cleaned up, and not including the cost to make the necessary improvements to make the facility more safe and modern to accomodate the racers.

The group Save Oahu's Race Tracks (SORT) group will be proposing this. to use the State Tax funding for our personal benefit? As a tax payer...I do not agree to this. Racing should be kept as private enterprise...the bill that was killed (but was supposed to pass until lthe conflict of interest Jerry Chang). SORT also tried everything they can and even Lobbied Colleen Hanabusa to kill the bill. Back to the thing them Mike Oaklands Daughter in Law, she widthdrew from signing or voting because of conflict of interest..why couldnt Hanabusa do the same? You see how our reps are corrupted? Now, they're probably going to have Hanabusa push for the state to use Tax Money to condemn the land. They're going to do exactly the opposite of what the proposed WFC was intended to do. Instead of giving a non refundable tax cushion, it will be using your tax money.

[poinographer]

Re: Condemnation to save Existing race track?

I'm confused why you think Senator Hanabusa should have bowed out. Just because SORT lobbied her and she supported their position? Did/does Hanabusa have something personal to gain, in your view?

It's not unethical to listen to lobbyists. The pro-tax-credit side was lobbying heavily, too. They lost this round. Yawn.

[kilikopela]

Re: Condemnation to save Existing race track?

It's not unethical to listen to lobbyists. The pro-tax-credit side was lobbying heavily, too. They lost this round. Yawn.

hardly, Mike Oakland's daughter-in-law, removed herself from the vote so that there would be no conflict of interest. We had no representatives speaking for us during our push for the bill. In fact, the house of reps were planning on passing the bill as noted by the advertiserm but because of Changs partial ownership of land or something of that matter cause a conflict of interest, which ultimately killed the bill without voting.

[poinographer]

Re: Racetracks, Motorsports, and Politics

[scratching head]

What, specifically, is Senator Hanabusa's conflict of interest on this matter?

Chun-Oakland did not involve herself in this because the matter involved her father-in-law. You say Hanabusa should not have voted because ... lobbyists talked to her?

[timkona]

Re: Racetracks, Motorsports, and Politics

Why close one track and open another track somewhere else?

The land under the racetrack is ALREADY dirty. Why mess up some new place? Just rebuild the existing facility without the EIS. What's the point of an EIS for a dirty use if the land is already dirty? Keep all the dirty uses in their spots.

I'm all for racing.

[ArchangelX]

Re: Racetracks, Motorsports, and Politics

This an absolutely fantastic thread...I'd like to commend all the participants on not taking it to a smack-talking session like say, the Honolulu Advertiser Discussion board...now thats a real mess.

Tim, I completly agree, but the fact is, the land has been SOLD already to a new landowner who has business plans set for that parcel of land. As was said to me, anyone that buys 65 acres of land in a one-time deal is in it for making money off of it. That land has plans for it already. It's gone. Plus, it's simply entirely too small now...it was built on 1960's era racing...racing has evolved now. The cars are faster, the drivers more capable, and the sports we do are more different and varied. Drifting? I don't think they had that back then.

Anyways, I just wanted to add now...so what do you all think, now that the tax bills are dead, and that Michael Oakland is still going to push for the new world class facility WITHOUT the tax credit?

Which one would you support now? A world class facility that supports the current and future needs of the community while doing it in a safe, and strictly regulated manner that's completly funded by private investors? Or SORT's push for condemnation by the State funded by tax payer dollars that will ultimately result in limited facility that cannot fully support all of the racer's needs?

I guess you obviously know where I stand on this issue...I was considering the idea of joining forces with SORT after the bills were killed (I stated this publically), but morally and ethically, the thought of condemnantion gives me pause. If it were the only option on the table...I might have been forced to support the measure...but since the WCF isn't dead, and it's still moving forward, I cannot publically support condemnation.

Lemme tell you this though, on the subject of Michael Oakland being a "bad cookie". I've only been on this island for two years, (the previous four years from 94-98 don't count 'cuz I didn't know anybody then either). I've been here for a very limited time, I don't know the history of hardly any of these people. I've heard bad things about MO, I've heard bad things about SORT and the people involved. I've seen SORT make public attacks on MO's character (but I haven't seen MO publicly attack SORT). I cannot and will not make my decisions based on conjecture from EITHER side. And noone else should either, if you're not intimately involved. I haven't since this thing began...I try to make my decisions based on the evidence and business plans at hand. And honestly, the WCF is already impressively thought out, and well documented. It's going to be incredible once it's built. I've been thinking only about the racer, my friends that are drifters, and the community that supports them.

There was so much grief about Oakland wanted the tax bills to line his pockets with money, that he had some scam going on that relied on getting those bills passed, and that he was just going to leave all of us high and dry. Welps...the tax bills are dead, and guess what? Oakland is still there. And he's still pushing to get this new world class facility. With his own hard-earned dollars. If he makes money on the deal, I could really care less. Because I'll be racing at a shiny, new, facility that supports our growing needs.

Wow...I really went off on a tangent there..hehe...been off the internet for about a week or so for the most part. Kinda let it rip.

[Miulang]

Re: Racetracks, Motorsports, and Politics

If Oakland and his hui want to still build a racetrack without using any State revenue resources (tax credits or whatever) in Hawai'i, then I say, full speed ahead. I only have issues when a private enterprise wants to use tax dollars to help subsidize something that isn't totally necessary for the health and safety of all residents.

Just like up here, where we're still paying off bonds for the Kingdome, which was demolished about 5 years ago and now we're also paying for the new baseball stadium and football stadium that were built right next to each other...and now Mr. SBUX is trying to extort the taxpayers into coughing up more bux to refurbish Key Arena or he's threatening to sell the team or move the franchise elsewhere. Sheesh. It costs about $60 PER SEAT for a ticket to a Sonics game (and then you figure in the food, parking... ) Conceivably it could cost 2 people close to $200 for one stinkin' NBA game. Football's just as bad...around $45 for a nosebleed seat. And you'd think baseball ticket prices, because there are so many more home games played, would be a whole lot cheaper? Uh uh. If you want a seat with any kind of view, expect to cough up about $29, and this is AFTER I've already helped pay for the place with my tax dollars.

Any type of organized sports activity is a "nice to have" in a community, but if it's not self-supporting, then that tells me that the community doesn't care whether it exists or not. I believe there is only one instance of a community fully supporting a sports franchise, and that's the Green Bay Packers, which has close to 112,000 "owners" from the community as shareholders. If Mike Oakland could do something like this, then it would be a winner in my eyes.

Miulang