Council bill The cruise ship industry may soon stop getting free concert time from the Royal Hawaiian Band.
would end band’s
free Boat Days
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.comCity Councilman Jon Yoshimura yesterday introduced a bill that would once again require a $300 fee be paid for the services of the city's century-old band.
The Council, under the sponsorship of former Councilwoman Rene Mansho, in 1999 voted to rescind the $300 fee assessed to the nonprofit Aloha Boat Days, reasoning that the band's presence at ship arrivals and departures would give a needed shot in the arm to the fledgling cruise industry.
The band plays at an unspecified number of Boat Days events each month. Band members have privately expressed unhappiness about the hours and often erratic schedule. For instance, the band's Web page shows it played last Thursday and Sunday and again tomorrow, but will do only two dates in October.
Bandmaster Aaron Mahi could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Yoshimura, who supported Mansho's waiver, said the city has done enough.
"It was a good way for the city to show our support but now, after three years of subsidizing the fees for performances, I feel it's time for the industry to provide its fair share."
Yoshimura said he doesn't know exactly how much it costs for the band to perform but noted he did not think the $300 was enough to entirely reimburse the city its costs.
The city gets $1,200 for the first hour and $150 for each additional 15 minutes when the band plays at private functions.
Aloha Boat Days chairman Kraig Kennedy said his volunteer group is "disappointed" by Yoshimura's bill.
"We operate off of a lot of donations," Kennedy said.
"That would put an additional strain on our limited funds, so we'd have to take a look at it and figure out how often we could use the band."
Kennedy, executive vice president of the stevedoring company McCabe Hamilton & Renny, said that besides getting funding from shipping industry companies, Aloha Boat Days holds an annual fund-raiser and gets some money from the Hawaii Tourism Authority.
"Certainly, we're going to be looking for anyway we can to continue to do this because it really radiates the spirit of aloha," he said.
The Royal Hawaiian Band is not at every Aloha Boat Days program, he said. A musical group, the Moana Chang Trio, also plays during Aloha Boat Days.
Bill Thayer, vice president of shipping agent Waldron Steamship, said he believes the waiver is worthwhile.
"It's a small thing to do for a burgeoning cruise ship industry in Hawaii in our time of economic need," Thayer said. "It's a way of saying mahalo and aloha to people who are spending a lot of money in our economy."
Asked if groups like Waldron, which acts as an agent for cruise lines including Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Carnival, would want to chip in to pay for the band's performances, Thayer said: "Do you want to pay for your own welcoming committee?"
City & County of Honolulu
