Maui Council Confirms Eight, Rejects Three Appointees

The Maui County Council on Friday approved eight nominees to respective department directorships, and rejected three appointees.

Photos: David Goode (left); Will Spence (middle); J D Kim (right). Courtesy County of Maui.

Those approved include: Sandy Baz as the county’s managing director, Patrick Wong as corporation counsel, Michael Miyamoto as director of the Department of Environmental Management, Scott Teruya as director of the Department of Finance, Karla Peters as director of the Department of Parks and Recreation, Michele McLean as director of the Department of Planning, Marc Takamori as director of the Department of Transportation and Jeffrey Pearson as director of the Department of Water Supply.

Those rejected are: John Kim to the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney, David Goode to the Department of Public Works and William Spence to the Department of Housing and Human Concerns

Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino congratulated those who were approved, but expressed deep disappointment with the council’s decision to reject three of his appointees.

“For eight of my appointees, they can finally remove ‘acting’ from their titles, roll up their sleeves and continue to work for the people of Maui County – without a cloud of uncertainty hanging over their heads,” Mayor Victorino said. “This has been an extremely stressful time for department staff and, especially, our directors. I thank them and their families for hanging tough during this difficult process.”

“Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for three of my nominees,” said Mayor Victorino of Kim, Goode and Spence. “I continue to believe they are the best leaders for their departments, with a strong combination of experience, qualifications and a commitment to public service.”

“A majority of council members didn’t see it the same way, and that’s the process,” he said. “However, I’m especially disappointed that council members chose not to meet in executive session to allow Mr. Kim to respond to allegations against him. He has been unable to discuss these matters publicly because of ongoing litigation. Instead of hearing Mr. Kim’s side of the story, the council majority decided to rely on behind-the-scenes allegations,” Mayor Victorino said.

“As for my next steps, I’m considering my options,” Mayor Victorino said. “I understand I have up to 60 days to submit a name for consideration by the council.”

“I thank all the members of the County Council for their work in this confirmation process, especially Council Member Mike Molina, chairman of the Governance, Ethics and Transparency Committee.”