Council members said last night they intend to pursue that and two other issues:

Several millions of dollars received by Shimada's engineering consulting firm in the 10 years since he left his job as deputy director of the state Department of Transportation.

A $150,000 loan another Shimada company made in 1992 to the campaign of former mayoral candidate Dennis O'Connor.

Shimada and city Managing Director Bob Fishman said there are explanations and they believe that Shimada's appointment is sound.

The Council's Executive Matters Committee yesterday held up Shimada's nomination because of concerns about the state DOT's longtime reputation for handing out nonbid contracts that "blossomed" into large sums.

Shimada said that reputation began after he left.

But two key Council members said the resume issue was cause for greater worry.

Frank Nalbach and his Oahu Taxi Owners Association sued the state and Oahu Transport alleging, among other things, that the bidding process was rigged to favor the team headed by Shimada and two other former state officials.

Shimada, 50, was deputy director for the state Department of Transportation from 1980 to 1986. In 1993, Shimada was president of Oahu Transport Management, which won a two-year contract for an open taxi system at Honolulu Airport.

Shimada denies any wrongdoing. Taxi owners sought his help "because of my knowledge at the airport. xxx They recognized I'm a transportation expert and asked me to assist them."

Shimada said he received no compensation. He said he decided to leave OTM several months after the company won its contract to devote more time to his engineering consulting firm, Pacific Planning and Engineering.

Shimada said he left his OTM involvement out of his resume because "I was never an operating officer. ... I never managed operating taxis at the airport. I just assisted in preparing the bid."

Council members Duke Bainum and Donna Mercado Kim said they're glad their call for more scrutiny led to a deferral.

"This is the one of the departments that powers the budget," said Bainum, the Council's budget chairman. "With all the construction and building projects they handle, we have to make sure the person at the helm has a sterling track record."

Council members said they are also disturbed that Pacific Planning, which Shimada co-founded 10 years ago and had a 40 percent stake in, received several million in DOT airport construction monies.

Shimada said he was the major contractor for only one state project - the automated people mover system. He said his company received $8 million for initial work on the as-yet uncompleted project. But, he said, Pacific Planning kept only about $2 million; the rest went to subconsultants.

Council members said they're also worried about the $150,000 that Airport Management Services loaned to the O'Connor campaign in 1992. Airport Management was a group of transportation companies that wanted to lobby the state for a ground transportation service at the airport.

Of the $150,000, he said, "part of it was my funds, part of it was consulting fees paid to me in 1991-92 to represent this group," he said.

Shimada never received his money back.