Gov. Linda Lingle appointed three neighbor island administrators to her Cabinet yesterday. 3 neighbor isle officials
join Lingle teamTop posts at the land and human
Lingle nominee withdraws
services departments are filledBy Pat Omandam
pomandam@starbulletin.com
She tapped Peter T. Young, Hawaii County deputy managing director, to head the state Department of Land and Natural Resources and Lillian B. Koller, Maui County's drug court coordinator, as head of the state Department of Human Services.
Lingle also appointed Ernest Y.W. Lau, Kauai County water department chief, to serve as the Department of Land and Natural Resource's deputy director.
"You can tell it's kind of a neighbor island day here ... It wasn't planned that way, it just turned out. We went looking for the very best people we could to head two very important departments, and I believe we have found them," Lingle said yesterday.
Lingle said Young's experience in government, business and as a community leader gives him a unique perspective on how to protect the state's natural and cultural resources.
Young resigned Monday from his deputy post on the Big Island, where he had supervised the county's administrative functions. A businessman, he is an owner of Hawaii Wine Connection -- The Wine Collection, a family-run wine marketing company since 1994.
He said his emphasis will be on preserving and enhancing the state's natural resources, which is what makes Hawaii a great place to live.
"I hope to bring all stakeholders together -- government, businesses, landowners and the community -- to ensure we are managing our resources responsibly and efficiently," Young said.
Koller, an attorney who is responsible for managing the Maui drug court program, also served as deputy corporation counsel and deputy prosecuting attorney for the county. Lingle said Koller knows how to navigate the court system, and public and private human service organizations to get services to those in need.
Koller is a former law clerk to retired Maui Judge Boyd P. Mossman, who was elected as a trustee to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs last November. Before that, she was an attorney on Maui and in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
"We must do our best to help people in need get back on their feet, rebuild their lives, restore their self-esteem and dignity, increase their self-sufficiency and improve their quality of life," Koller said.
Lingle hopes to have directors named at the state departments of Taxation and Human Resources Development -- her last two major appointments -- before her next Cabinet meeting in February.
State of Hawaii