Building Industry Hawaii January 2015 - (Page 56)

KEEPing HAWAII'S HEROES Contractors and business leaders join forces to thwart proposed reductions in Hawaii's military population BY SUZANNE ROIG "The potential loss of 20,000 soldiers and 30,000 family members would be devastating for the City and County of Honolulu, particularly for businesses in Wahiawa, Mililani and the Salt Lake areas." -Mayor Kirk Caldwell B usinesses that depend on military contracts, from housing developers to roadway builders, fear there could be massive civilian job losses and Hawaii's economy would suffer if the U.S. Army follows through with a plan to remove 20,000 soldiers and their families from two Oahu posts. Privatized housing could go empty and civilians who work for the Army could find themselves unemployed, construction firms said. But that all could be mitigated if the state and industries that depend on the military present the right message to the newly elected Republican Rick Heltzel 56 | BUILDING INDUSTRY HAWAII | JANUARY 2015 Congress, says Rick Heltzel, president The group, which is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, of Healy Tibbitts Builders Inc. While hopes to get 40,000 signatures on Healy Tibbits mostly does Navy a petition to present to officials in work, the firm has worked on other military contracts. Washington, D.C. as a way to con"Military construction has provided vince lawmakers and the Department a stable volume of work in our of Defense to keep the bases intact. industry," Heltzel says. "We need to continue collaboBY THE NUMBERS rating with various military agencies responsible for $8.8 billion military investment in Hawaii construction work in Hawaii $14.7 billion economic investing in Hawaii to bring value and economy 97,000 jobs in Hawaii to future projects." $8.7 billion in household earnings for local Under the Army's 2020 families plan to realign its forces, Source: Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii about 19,800 soldiers could potentially be eliminated from Schofield Barracks and another Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell 3,786 soldiers from Fort Shafter, says he's worried about the conseaccording to Keep Hawaii's Heroes, quences of a drawdown that large. a group that is tracking the effort. "The potential loss of 20,000 sol-

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Building Industry Hawaii January 2015

Military: Battling Against Attrition
Cement & Concrete Products Industry of Hawaii 2015 Resource Directory
Keeping Hawaii’s Heroes
Forecasting Construction in 2015
An Interview with Dan Grabauskas
News Beat
Datebook
Contracts Awarded and Low Bids
Spotlight on Success: Maui Hyatt Residence Club, Kaanapali Beach
News Makers
New Products
Faces: BIA-Hawaii Installs New Officers
Best Practices

Building Industry Hawaii January 2015