Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 37, Number 10, 1 ʻOkakopa 2020 — BLANGIARDI, [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

BLANGIARDI,

I, RICK

© team@rickblangiardiformayor.com ® www.rickblangiardiformayor.com AGE: 74 0CCUPATI0N: business executive WHERE 010 V0U GR0W UP: I grew up in Cambridge, MA. My father was a machinist by trade, and due to his plaee of employment (Watertown Arsenal) closing, he accepted a transfer to the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard in 1965 as a civil service employee. My family strongly requested I make the move with them, and consequently I enrolled at the University of Hawai'i, where I also earned a full seholarship fer playing football.

SCH00L(S) ATTENDED: Springfield Cellege; University of Hawai'i CURRENT RESIDENCE: I presently reside in Honolulu on the island of O'ahu.

1 ] Let me say first that before taking steps to solve issues, you need to fully understand them. As your Mayor, I would start by ealli ng together representatives of the Native Hawaiian and Pacific lslander community (NHPI), including OHA, to share your knowledge regarding the disparate impact of this pandemic on the NHPI. We do know, for example, that COFA migrants are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 with their numbers being 30% when they represent 4% of the population. We also know COFA migrants are denied Medicaid cover- age, and while the CARES Act did not address this, the HEROES Act as passed by the House does. I am confident that meeting with and iearning from representatives of the NHPI, my administration will be better able to address and combat the unique chalienges and issues facing the NHPI; and I commit to work with you. With respect to the HEROES Act, if and when it is passed by Congress, my administration will do everything it ean to help the NHPI access and maximize available resources, such as Community Deveiopment Financial lnstitution funds, Community Heaith Systems, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, and Native Hawaiian Organizations. I will also ensure that the NHPI share equally with all others in the funds that become availabie after the CARES Act, such as extended stimulus, unempioyment and/or PPP. Finally, I commitas Mayorthat, as we develop city policies, programs and initiatives, inciuding housing, homelessness and COVID-related public health poiicies, we consuit the NHPI and make sure we are taking care of and meeting the needs of this important community. 2] Given thata disproportionate numberof Native Hawaiian and Pacific lsianders (NHPI) reside in rental homes, the pandemic has had a disparate impact on the NHPI community and wouid have been mueh worse, but for the eviction moratoriums. As Mayor, houseiessness wili be a top priority in my administration and city, state, and federal resources, aiong with non-governmentai organizations, must focus on comprehensive, collaborative and long-term strategies and solutions. The so-called "compassionate disruption" approach only moves the problem in circles to other streets, neighborhoods and communities and then back again. It is not a solution, most assuredly during a health pandemic. As Mayor, I would make sure the city immediately identifies and makes use of vacant city properties for shelters, including rental properties the city ean secure on a room and/or building basis. I wiii also seek additionai federai funds to expand our housing programs. Finally, given COVID-19 and its projected multi-year impact to our economy, I wili iook for revenue sources to offer sustainable rent assistance programs that wili assist our most vuinerable individuals and famiiies on O'ahu whiie we recover lost jobs and create new jobs through diversification. 3 ] There is no doubt our economy's historical dependence on tourism has exposed an eeonomie vulnerability during a pandemic. I am confident, that under my ieadership as Mayor, we ean safely recover our tourism sector to levels that are healthy, responsible, and sustainable, while diversifying Oahu's economy both inside and outside of tourism. We should begin by looking broadiy at what items we import from outside Hawai'i. For exampie, food security from sustainable agricuiture is an industry we desperately need and wili benefit from, just like our historical dependence on imported fossil fueis created an opportunity for locally sourced renewable energy, a sector with additional capacity for diversification and growth. In the construction sector, there are enormous opportunities for green, carbon-reducing, resilient infrastructure, including smart growth transient-oriented communities with affordabie housing and public spaces, and projects to address Hawai'i's climate change and sea-level rise. And even in the tourism sector, there is enormous potential to diversify with a focus on "quaiity" tourism versus "quantity" tourism. The opportunities to diversify Hawaii's eeonomy are many if we just keep our focus on sustainability, resiliency, and our future generations who want to iive and raise their families on O'ahu and in Hawai'i.