Hannemann hosts
gathering of new Cabinet

Three more posts are filled as
he prepares for a public inaugural

Each day so far has provided a new "first" for newly elected Mayor Mufi Hannemann.

Yesterday, he held his first Cabinet meeting.

He introduced his department heads for the first time to the new managing director -- the man who'll run the day-to-day operations of the city -- and two new colleagues.

And today Hannemann will give his first inaugural address.

"I think you're going to see and I'm going to outline generally how this administration is going to be different, how the city is going to be different in making a difference," Hannemann said. "There's going to be a lot of passion for wanting this city, the place of my birth, to be the best place in the world to live, work and raise our families."

Hannemann is scheduled to give his speech this afternoon in the courtyard of Honolulu Hale where he will be sworn into office for a second time, this time in public. The official swearing in -- the one that made him mayor -- was at Kapolei Hale on Sunday at noon, a time designated by the City Charter. Only family and close friends were invited, although the media was allowed to cover it.

Today, he will be sworn in by former Chief Justice William Richardson, a longtime friend, in what will mostly be a ceremonial act.

His speech, he said, will focus on how his administration will look to the future.

During meetings yesterday between longtime city managers and newcomers, he said, "As I looked around the table ... I've got a nice blend of faces of Oahu, a diversity of backgrounds, experiences."

He introduced the group to the new managing director, John Reed, newly retired chief executive of BriteSmile Inc., who worked for 21 years for international duty-free operator DFS before retiring as chairman of Pacific retailing for DFS Group.

"You run it like a business, similar to a business. You do have circumstances here that will be different from businesses, and I'm going to have to learn that," Reed said, promising to stick to Hannemann's management philosophy.

Hannemann also introduced his new budget and fiscal services director, Mary Pat Waterhouse, the former state deputy comptroller and Y2K coordinator, who is leaving Catholic Charities as its vice president of finance. And he introduced retired Air Force Col. Lester K.C. Chang as parks and recreation director.

Hannemann said that he is having trouble recruiting an engineer to be the director of the Department of Design and Construction. "That's always a problem that we're facing is finding someone who can leave a private sector career where they make three, four times more."