FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                   February 9, 2005              

Release M-17

MAYOR SIGNS LANDMARK BILL INTO LAW

            In a ceremony at the Mission Memorial Auditorium, Mayor Mufi Hannemann today (February 9, 2005) signed into law Bill 53, repealing the city ordinance that provided for mandatory lease-to-fee conversion of condominiums.

           On hand for the historic signing were invited guests including trustees of the Queen Lili’uokalani Trust and the Kamehameha Schools, members of the Small Landowners Association, the Queen Lili’uokalani Children’s Center and the Royal Order of Kamehameha I. Also present were Honolulu City Councilman Todd Apo and former councilmen John DeSoto and Mike Gabbard, both of whom worked for repeal of the condo conversion law.

            The Honolulu City Council approved Bill 53 on January 25, 2005, by a 6-3 vote.

It is the first bill Hannemann has signed into law since he became mayor on January 2.

“I am pleased to repeal the city’s leasehold conversion ordinance,” said the mayor. “I have long believed that government should not dictate to private landowners when and how they should sell their property.

“Additionally, this bill enables the ali’i trusts to provide for future generations,” the mayor said.

           “It is my firm belief and hope that, despite what has been said during the public debate over this issue, no one should be made homeless because of this bill.”

           The new law repeals Chapter 38 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu, which was enacted in 1991.                    

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For more information contact:

 Bill Brennan 527-6928

Mark Matsunaga 527-5767