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OPEN FOR BUSINESS
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Gov. Linda Lingle was the keynote speaker Tuesday night for a Washington CEO Magazine release party in Waikiki. The December issue, which is sent to 100,000 mainland corporate executives, has a regional supplement about Hawaii. The coverage was orchestrated by Enterprise Honolulu and features an article by Lingle headlined "Hawaii is Open for Business."
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$8.2 million renovation planned for Pink Palace
The Royal Hawaiian Hotel's 166-room Tower Wing will undergo an $8.2 million renovation, starting in March, to give it a "contemporary" Hawaiian look," the hotels managers said. New room decor will include carved wood fixtures, rattan furniture, orchid floral bedspreads and Hawaiian-weave wall covering. Bathroom changes will include installation of granite counter tops and tub surrounds.The hotel is owned by Kyo-Ya Corp. and managed by Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. William Hurley, Royal Hawaiian managing director, said the work should be finished early in 2004.
20 Sprint Hawaii workers to be cut
Telecommunications giant Sprint Corp. announced yesterday it will cut an additional 2,100 jobs during the next year -- about 2.8 percent of its work force -- as it tries to reorganize and return to profitability.Sprint Hawaii will cut 20 of its 280 employees as part of that restructuring. All of the local jobs eliminated will be in the billing department, according to Sprint Hawaii General Manager Nonie Toledo, and should have no affect on local service. The work of those employees primarily supports mainland customers, she said.
Sprint, the nation's third largest long-distance provider and fourth-largest wireless provider, has laid off more than 15,000 employees since October 2001 as the company tries to remain competitive.
The company said yesterday it will combine network, information technology and billing operations for several divisions.
CPB switches to larger exchange
Shares of CPB Inc., parent of Central Pacific Bank, will start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Dec. 31.The company, which has traded on the Nasdaq exchange since 1987 under the symbol CPBI, said it has not yet finalized its choice of the new ticker symbol for the Big Board. "CPB" is already taken by Campbell Soup Co.
The company has grown significantly since it was first listed and the move to the NYSE is in the best interests of shareholders, said Clint Arnoldus, CPB chairman, president and chief executive officer. It should also improve the liquidity of the stock and help minimize its intra-day price volatility, he said. CPBI closed down 9 cents today at $26.90, but it is up 82.9 percent for the year.
Central Pacific is Hawaii's third-largest commercial bank, with assets of $2 billion.
Nextel opens on Maui
Nextel Partners Inc., which sells wireless-telephone service in smaller U.S. markets, will hold a grand opening for its second Hawaii retail store Sunday, a 1,400-square-foot unit in the Queen Kaahumanu Center in Kahului, Maui. The company opened a smaller store in June in the Westridge Center in Aiea.
