As Mayor Roth delivers State of the County address, candidates line up to challenge him
KAILUA-KONA (HawaiiNewsNow) - Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth delivered his fourth State of the County address Friday in Kailua-Kona, announcing plans to reduce property taxes.
It’s one of the big promises as he runs for re-election.
“As many of you know, I’m not a politician,” he said near the beginning of the speech. “I am, at heart, a lifelong community problem solver.”
He also said he’s moving ahead with the county’s largest-ever public works project on the Hilo wastewater treatment plant.
He’s also trying to reduce homelessness, with projects like a new emergency shelter in Kailua-Kona. His administration is also adding more affordable housing units.
“Together, we have successfully worked with numerous communities and state partners to increase the number of homes in the pipeline when we came in or 1,200 - to this week, we have over 8,100 homes in the pipeline,” Roth said, drawing applause.
A few weeks ago, it looked like Roth might not have much competition, but that’s changing.
One of the earliest candidates to announce is Dr. Kimo Alameda, who served as the executive of the county’s Office of Aging under mayors Billy Kenoi and Harry Kim. Alameda has also already snagged an endorsement from the Hawaii Iron Workers Union Local 625.
Hilo businesswoman Breeani Kobayashi has also filed to run, with affordable housing as one of her top issues.
“I think at this point the term ‘affordable housing’ has been widely promised for so long that people are losing hope in what that word really even means at this point,” she said. “I would really love the opportunity to work with the community to finding ways and solutions that we can keep families here.”
Hilo pastor Junior Tupa’i has also filed papers to run. Tupa’i was Republican Duke Aiona’s running mate for lieutenant governor two years ago, and already has a full slate of community meetings lined up in the coming week.
The list of challengers can still get longer. The deadline to file candidate papers is June 4.
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