CM&D wins nod from home builders' group

Honolulu-based Construction Management & Development Co., has won two "Grand Awards" from the National Association of Home Builders for its role as project and construction manager for a residential development in the San Francisco Bay Area.

CM&D, headed by President Jim Salter, was recognized for the way it positioned luxury homes to maximize views without intruding on the area's natural beauty, according to the association.

The firm also used other Hawaii businesses in the 62-home De Silva Island project. Puna Chillingworth, broker for Hawaii's Monarch Insurance Services, provided insurance coverage and Fischer Tile & Marble, also of Honolulu, delivered and installed tile, marble and granite.

The awards were part of a "Golden Nugget" contest with more than 600 entries from 14 Western states.

Convention Center guards tough, friendly

The Hawaii Convention Center is offering center users something new -- security personnel trained in customer service.

Called the Convention Service Officers Program, staff are trained by Pacific Rim Seminars, said Joe Miller, transportation and security manager at the center.

Not only are the security officers prepared to handle emergencies, guests can rely on them for tips, such as the easiest way to get from one part of the center to another, said Miller. The employees work for management firm SMG, which runs the center for the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

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[TAKING NOTICE]

NEW JOBS

>> Steve Townsend has been named general manager at the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel. He will be responsible for working with project team members to complete a $30 million renovation by spring 2002. Townsend is also responsible for all operations at the hotel, including retail and food and beverage outlets. Prior to joining Aston, Townsend was employed at Castle Resorts and Hotels Hawaii.

>> Sheryl E. Nojima has been named an associate at Gray, Hong, Bills, Nojima and Associates. She will be responsible for management of civil/environmental engineering projects and will also be involved in marketing and business development. Nojima formerly worked at the University of Hawaii at Manoa as assistant dean for the College of Engineering.

>> Jan K. Fujiwara, George K. Haia and Jennifer J. Loo have joined the staff at Hawaii Dental Service. Fujiwara, who was named director of quality management, will oversee the compliance programs, quality improvement activities and privacy and confidentiality protocols at the company. She previously served as quality improvement manager at Queen's Health Management. Haia, who joins HDS after working at GE Medical Systems, will serve as a claims manager. Loo was named sales representative. He previously worked at University Health Alliance as an account service representative and provider relations representative.

>> Ellen Mulholland has been named vice president and secondary market manager at American Savings Bank. She will be responsible for mortgage banking activities. Mulholland, a 17-year veteran of the mortgage banking industry, joins ASB after serving as sales vice president at PNC Mortgage in Los Angeles.

>> The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii has named Beverly Harbin director of economic development and small business advocate. Harbin will provide support for the Chamber's Small Business Council. She previously served as coordinator of the Small Business Economic Revival Force and as president of the Kakaako Improvement Association.

>> Straub Clinic and Hospital has hired Marti Taba at Straub Kailua Family Health Center. Taba, a graduate of the University of Hawaii Burns School of Medicine, specializes in primary care, women's health, adolescent development and preventive medicine.

>> Pete Jaeger and Calvert Chun have been named to positions at Nextel Partners Inc. The two will serve as technical operations manager and project manager, respectively. Jaeger will be responsible for oversight of technical operations within the state of Hawaii for the company. Chun will be responsible for management of site acquisition and construction.

>> Anntonette Capre-Brown has joined Properties of the Pacific as a real estate agent. She joins the company from Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties.

PROMOTIONS

>> Henry Bennett has been named to the new post of director of Kamehameha Schools Press. He has been editor and publications specialist for the press since 1993. Before joining Kamehameha, Bennett formed Independent Resources, a Honolulu-based publishing consultancy that provides professional support to commercial, institutional and private book publishers and authors. He remains president of the company.

>> Aston Hotels and Resorts Hawaii has named Michael Duncan director of training in the company's corporate human resources department. He will be responsible for identifying company-wide training and development needs and opportunities. Duncan, who has 25 years of human resources experience, joins Aston after serving as director of training at DFS Hawaii.

>> Deb Trankel has been named patient care coordinator at Hospice Hawaii. She has been with the company since 1994. Trankel will work closely with the director of Clinical Operations and the company's nurse case managers to administer patient care to Hospice Hawaii's Oahu and Molokai patients.

>> Guy Watarai has been named sales executive at Hagadone Printing Co. He has been with Hagadone since 1998.

>> Finance Factors has named Alison Shiroma assistant vice president and downtown branch manager for the bank. Shiroma, who joined the bank in 1994, most recently served as manager at the Kapiolani branch of Finance Factors.

>> Susie Hong has been promoted to sales agent at Ocean Pointe by Haseko Homes. Hong, who has more than 12 years of residential real estate experience, joined Ocean Pointe in 1998.

ON THE BOARD

>> Allen B. Uyeda has been appointed to the board of directors at First Hawaiian Bank. Uyeda is president and chief executive officer at First Insurance Company of Hawaii Ltd.

>> Audrey Ng has been appointed to the state Contractors License Board by Gov. Cayetano. Ng, an attorney at Goodsill Anderson Quinn and Stifel LLP, began her four-year term on July 1. She is one of 13 members of the board, and is one of only three who are not contractors.

RECOGNITION

>> Matthias Busch, president of Busch Consulting Inc., has been awarded the Certified Information Security System Professional designation by the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium. Busch is one of 4,000 people worldwide who have earned the CISSP certification.

>> Kathy Skillington has been named one of the top field leaders at First Command Financial Planning. Skillington was among 17 district agents that were named Diamond Producers at the company's annual sales meeting Aug. 6 in New Orleans, La.

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[WINNERS & LOSERS]

[WINNERS]

The economy on the Big Island, which experts say is bucking the slowdowns on the mainland and in Japan. Though the worldwide shakiness is putting a smudge on the Big Island's picture, it's not enough to shake boosts from the high-tech, health care and cruise ship sectors, according to a University of Hawaii report. Meanwhile agriculture remains steady, as does construction.

The tourism industry, despite lower hotel occupancy numbers for July. OK, take a deep breath and repeat after me -- again -- "Any drop in tourism statistics is a fall from A RECORD HIGH. There is no need to panic." The industry may indeed see a slightly lower year than it did in 2000, but it's important to remember the drop has been minuscule thus far, and that 2000 for good or bad, brought more tourists here than any other year ever.

Hawaii developer Peter Savio, who seems to be shrugging off his recent financial troubles, and is in the process of buying three Waikiki properties from Outrigger Enterprises -- the Ala Wai Terrace, Ohana Ala Wai Tower and Tradewinds Mauka. Part of the area known as the Ala Wai Gateway, the properties will be marketed as condominiums and apartments.

[LOSERS]

The perception of the overall Hawaii economy, which several business surveys last week reported as tempering for the remainder of the year. While most economic signs remains strong -- the lone exception the state's somewhat suspect index of leading economic indicators -- the folks who do the hirin' and the spendin' say they're keeping a close eye on things. The question is: Are they getting ready to turn tail?

Travel agents, who are seeing airlines send their commissions to the same place they put the cocktail peanuts. Several major airlines have capped agent commissions at $20, no matter the price of the flight, making it almost not worth an agent spending time scouting around to find a good price for a customer. The airlines, of course, are trying to move customers to their Web sites, where they don't have to pay any commissions at all.

The Federal Reserve Board, which doesn't seem to be able to hack its way out of the economic malaise. We don't mean to say Greenspan & Co. are losing their effectiveness, but there ain't a whole lot left to cut, and a lot of room for the economy still to fall. Thank goodness for American consumers who continue to spend way beyond their means.