City faulted for City Corporation Counsel David Arakawa said city officials erred when they blocked a Star-Bulletin reporter from viewing contracts for the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve after a series of stories raised questions about the cost of the project.
blocking Hanauma records
A Star-Bulletin reporter was denied
access to the project's contractsBy Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.comThe same records were readily available Friday, before a story yesterday reporting that the administration of Mayor Jeremy Harris approved 14 change orders for the Hanauma Bay project that added $2.1 million to the original $10.6 million contract.
Arakawa said the city should honor requests in writing from the public for information that is not deemed closed, regardless of who makes such requests.
The Star-Bulletin was informed yesterday by personnel in the Purchasing Division of the Department of Budget & Fiscal Services that media requests to view contracts needed to be approved by Carol Costa, director of the Department of Customer Services and spokeswoman for Mayor Jeremy Harris.
The newspaper was seeking to view the same records that it was given access to immediately upon requesting them verbally at the counter last week.
Costa told the Star-Bulletin yesterday that she did not know that requests for information were being funneled to her office and would look into the matter.
Costa also said she did not know if contracts are public record, and suggested that the reporter make a request to her via e-mail, which would then be forwarded to Budget Director Caroll Takahashi.
Arakawa said the information should have been made available because a written request had been made Dec. 31 and the information would be available today. He said these are public documents and should be available for review. He also said it is incorrect for the city to issue directives pertaining to the media that are more stringent than those for the public.
Moya Davenport-Gray, director of the Office of Information Practices, concurred.
"It's unfortunate," Davenport-Gray said. "They can't discriminate against the media."
Davenport-Gray said her office is looking into the matter.
Arakawa said he does not know specifically how the Department of Budget & Fiscal Services handles requests for information. But requests that come through his desk, he said, are all done in writing.
Councilman John Henry Felix, who has been critical of the Hanauma Bay improvements contract, accused the admin- istration of "stonewalling."
"They should be giving everyone free access to this information," he said.
In a related matter, Felix asked Council staff to draft a resolution seeking an independent performance and financial audit of capital improvement project management.
City & County of Honolulu
