At least one department will
almost disappear as the
budget ax swings

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Star-Bulletin

The city's 33-member Department of Housing and Community Development will be reduced to an office of six people and likely come under the fold of the Planning Department.

That's the word at Honolulu Hale this morning as the city's 9,100 permanent workers braced themselves for news of layoffs, to be announced by Mayor Jeremy Harris in a news conference this afternoon.

Several hundred employees were expected to receive pink slips. A city source said the number would be less than the 300 to 500 jobs talked about earlier this month.

Managing Director Bob Fishman said city agency heads were informing employees of terminations this morning, but refused to give details.

An employee in the much-maligned Housing Department said all but six of the agency's 33 permanent employees would be lost as of June 30, the last day of the current fiscal year.

Among those losing their positions are Housing Director Bob Agres Jr. and Deputy Director Darwin Hamamoto.

Also, eight to 10 contract hires were told their services would not be renewed beyond June 30.

Administration officials would only say that police, fire and emergency medical service personnel are guaranteed to keep their jobs.