Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
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Aloha Airlines names new CFO
James C. Clarke, formerly of Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp., has joined Aloha Airlines Inc. and parent Aloha Airgroup Inc. as senior vice president and chief financial officer. He will be responsible for overseeing the financial management policies and programs of both companies.Clarke, who started in his new position this week, had been at privately held AWAC in Appleton, Wis., for about two years as senior vice president and CFO. He will take over the duties at Aloha previously held by Owen Sekimura, who left the airline in June to take a position as controller at Kamehameha Schools.
AWAC, which operates as United Express and AirTran JetConnect, has more than 400 daily departures to 61 cities in 27 states and two Canadian provinces.
As United Express, it feeds United Airlines in Chicago, Denver and at Washington's Dulles Airport. As AirTran JetConnect, it feeds AirTran Airways at its Atlanta hub, as well as providing service within Florida.
AWAC, which last month finalized contracts to provide flight and ground-handling services for United Express, had been facing a precarious future since 90 percent of its short-haul flights served bankrupt United Airlines' United Express.
Prior to working at AWAC, Clarke was CFO at Indigo, a Chicago-based corporate jet airline launched in 2000 to provide corporate jet convenience to frequent business travelers. He held earlier financial-related positions with Merrill Lynch & Co., GE Capital Aviation Services, American Airlines and United Airlines.
Honolulu near top for home prices
Honolulu had the third-highest resale price in the nation for a single-family home in the third-quarter of this year, according to a new report from the National Association of Realtors.The Honolulu median, the price at which half the homes sold for more and half for less, averaged $392,500 in the three months through Sept. 30, up 13.8 percent from $345,000 in the third quarter of 2002.
The rise was not enough to put Honolulu in top place, however, as prices soared across the nation.
The highest median, $510,800, was recorded in Orange County, Calif. Next was Boston, at $432,700. The lowest quarterly median for previously owned homes among the nation's metropolitan areas was in El Paso, Texas, at $95,100.
The association said total sales activity in the third quarter was the highest on record, with 48 states and the District of Columbia reporting volume increases. (Information for two states was not available).
"Clearly, the historic lows we've seen in mortgage interest rates this year are the biggest factor in record home sales," said David Lereah, NAR's chief economist. "But the growing number of households entering the prime years for buying a first home will be driving the housing market for years to come," he said.
Host Marriott seals Maui Hyatt deal
Host Marriott Corp. yesterday concluded its purchase of the 806-room Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa for $321 million, or $398,000 per room.The deal, first announced Oct. 1, included 37 acres of Kaanapali Beach land under and around the hotel. The seller was an affiliate of privately owned Blackstone Real Estate Advisors, which paid about $200 million for it in January 2001.
The Hyatt name will stay and Hyatt Corp. will continue to manage the resort. Host Marriott, headquartered in Bethesda, Md., owns 120 luxury hotels, most of which are operated under the Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, Hyatt and Hilton brands.
As a 1993 spin-off from the former Marriott group, Host Marriott owns some hotels operated by Marriott International but has no other connection with Marriott.
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[Hawaii Inc.]
PROMOTIONS
>> Michael Kim and Gordon Wood have been promoted to AM Partners Inc. senior associates. Both were formerly associates with primary project management duties. Kim will assume major responsibility for implementing enhancements to the architecture and design company's quality assurance system. Wood's new assignments include market development and management of business operations. He also will continue to service the firm's clients, including Kawaiahao Church, the University of Hawaii and the City & County of Honolulu.>> Mauna Kea Resort, comprised of Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel and Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, has promoted Amber Garcia, from staff accountant to accounting manager; Kevin Kim to catering and conference services director; Wayne Shiraishi to group billing manager; and Anthony Labrador Jr., who takes on the responsibilities of residential services for the entire resort.
ON THE BOARD
>> The Chaminade University Board of Regents has re-elected John Brogan, retired Starwood Hotels president, to serve a second term as chairman. The board also elected two new members: L&L franchise founding partner Eddie Flores; and Cori Ching Weston, senior vice president, counsel and corporate secretary for Bank of Hawaii. Other members re-elected for three-year terms are Karen Answerson, Robin Campaniano, Bro. Bill Campbell, S.M. Carmen Himenes, Stanley Hong, Wendell Pang, Allen Uyeda and Zap Zlatoper.
