Court rules on Maui Council issue

WAILUKU » The Hawaii Supreme Court has dismissed a challenge contesting the election of Sol Kaho'ohalahala as a Maui County Council member.

The court said the complaints were “;styled”; as an election challenge but were really a challenge to Kaho'ohalahala's qualifications. The court, in its dismissal of the complaint Monday, said any challenge of the qualifications must be pursued under a different Hawaii law involving his nomination.

“;We're thankful the Hawaii Supreme Court disposed of this matter so quickly,”; said Ben Lowenthal, Kaho'ohalahala's attorney. “;Now Mr. Kaho'ohalahala can take his seat on the Council without a cloud over his votes.”;

The challenge to the Supreme Court was made by John Ornellas, who ran unsuccessfully against Kaho'ohalahala.

Other complaints include a challenge to Kaho'ohalahala's claim of Lanai residency at the Intermediate Court of Appeals.

UH-West Oahu graduation tomorrow

Graduation ceremonies for University of Hawaii-West Oahu students will be held tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at the Leeward Community College theater.

About 99 graduates will receive degrees.

Doors will open at 6 p.m. to ticket holders and close when the ceremony begins at 6:30 p.m. Latecomers and those without tickets may view the ceremony on an outdoor screen. Graduates are expected to greet friends and family members outside of the theater at 7:30 p.m.

UH President David McClain and UH regent and Central Pacific Bank President Ronald K. Migita are scheduled to speak at the commencement. Mano Takara, a business major, will speak on behalf of the graduating class.

Hawaii Bowl headlines Sunset event

Football teams and cheerleaders from the University of Hawaii and the University of Notre Dame, who will meet in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl Wednesday, will attend this weekend's Sunset on the Beach family event in Waikiki.

A “;Barefoot Pep Rally”; will be held Saturday for the UH Warriors and the Fighting Irish. Wear your favorite team's colors and come to cheer.

Live music will start the family event at 4 p.m., and movies will be shown around 6 p.m. Food booths and deejay entertainment will be available.

On Saturday the feature film will be “;We Are Marshall,”; starring Matthew McConaughey and Matthew Fox. On Sunday a preview trailer of “;Bedtime Stories,”; starring Adam Sandler, will be shown before “;Kung Fu Panda,”; an animated film. Tesoro Hawaii and the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl are presenting the event in conjunction with the City and County of Honolulu, the Hawaii Tourism Authority and the Waikiki Improvement Association.

For more information, call the association at 923-1094 or e-mail .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

UH-Manoa to cut air conditioning

The University of Hawaii at Manoa will shut off air conditioning in more than a dozen buildings from Christmas Eve through Jan. 4 to reduce electricity costs.

The university said its “;Manoa Green Days”; project will be considered for future break periods if it is successful. People in participating buildings will work without air conditioning, take vacation, work from home or move to alternative buildings, the school said.

Buildings involved in the project include Hawaii Hall, the William Richardson School of Law, Wist Hall, Everly Hall, Architecture, Dean Hall, Gartley Hall, George Hall, parts of Holmes Hall, Sakamaki, Kuykendall and the auditoriums of Physical Science, Bilger and Spalding.

Air-conditioning costs comprise about 60 percent of the Manoa campus utility bill, which has been rapidly rising because of increases in utility rates, according to the university.