Well, it’s not quite 9 a.m.
I’m already well behind schedule.
We’ve walked the three miles to the other end of Kaaawa and back. We’ve devoured a breakfast of coffee, toast, and an egg white omelet with a little low-fat sausage on the side. Ms. Kili is now occupying one place mat at the dining table. A copy of the Sunday Advertiser is spread out across the other side of the table. The S-B had not been delivered yet when we got back from walking at 7:15 or so, so the ‘Tiser got our attention.
Soon my job is to vacuum the hair balls out of corners and out from under the chairs. It’s amazing how much cat hair eight cats can generate.
But I’m late getting today’s entry in order.
First, a “bravo” to Peter Boylan for staying on top of the mortgage scam involving so-caled Royal Hawaiian Treasury Bonds. His story in today’s Advertiser should have joined the Superferry bankruptcy story on the front page. More on that later.
The bankruptcy story was the main headline in the Advertiser this morning. I haven’t seen where it was handled by the Star-Bulletin yet, as the paper’s still sitting in the driveway.
Here is a link to the bankruptcy petition filed by HSF Holding Inc., the parent company of Hawaii Superferry.
I think I’ll settle for the as-yet-undigested document. Then you can do some of the work of assessing any gems it may contain.
I have a feeling one of the more interesting items, previously unavailable, is the list of investors, those left holding the Superferry’s preferred or common stock. The list of investors is included in the filing, along with the list of those who are owed money by the company.
Most of the “smaller” investors are investment funds and private trusts from the area around Stanford University and “Silicon Valley”. There may be a story there in terms of how these investors came to put money into the Superferry project.
There are only a few corporate investors from Hawaii, including Grove Farm, Maui Land & Pine, and Stanford Carr Development.
Individual investors include Brian J. Grossi, a partner of Barry Weinman in AVI Management Partners and a series of related California investment partnerships.
Readers may recall that Barry Weinman and his wife have been major financial backers of Gov. Lingle, and Weinman was at the center of the controversial hydrogen fund management contract that was subject of a special Senate investigation.
The list of investors also includes Carlton Kusunoki, whose Kapiolani Dragon LLC owns land along Kapiolani Blvd, including the site of the former Flamingo restaurant.
Also on the list are Kelvin Taketa, who formerly headed The Nature Conservancy in Hawaii and now directs the Hawaii Community Foundation. He is also a director of Hawaiian Electric.
Brian Nishida, former CEO of Maui Land & Pine’s agricultural operations, was listed as the contact for MLP’s corporate investment in HFS preferred stock.
He is also on the list as an individual investor in Superferry common stock.
There appears to be an issue of whether Nishida’s individual investment, made along with the company investment, was consistent with MLP’s code of business conduct and ethics, at least if it was made at the same time as the company’s investment. The code cautions against conflicts of interest, and includes a provision regarding personal benefit from company business.
You may not receive any personal benefit or advantage in connection with any transaction involving ML&P. You are prohibited from: (a) taking for yourself, your business, or your personal affiliates, any opportunities that are discovered through the use of corporate property, information or position, (b) using corporate property, information, or position for personal gain, and (c) competing with the Company.
The biggest revelation seems to be that the state held a mortgage on the boat. A mortgage indicates partial ownership doesn’t it? As far as I know the state consistently denied it had any ownership.
Re: “I think I’ll settle for the as-yet-undigested document. Then you can do some of the work of assessing any gems it may contain…Most of the “smaller” investors are investment funds and private trusts from the area around Stanford University and “Silicon Valley”. There may be a story there in terms of how these investors came to put money into the Superferry project.”
A couple of the original Directors were from Stanford and the Silicon Valley area. Their first investment consultants were from that area too.
Also from the Advertiser, “In its bankruptcy filing, Superferry lists the payments to the state and a litigation award to the Sierra Club, Maui Tomorrow and the Kahului Harbor Coalition — the environmental groups that blocked the project in court — as in dispute.”
This is interesting. After the last State Supreme Court decision and denial of reconsideration, to my knowledge, HSF did not file an appeal to federal courts on the award of attorney fees. They did not formally dispute this prior to filing their bankruptcy.
Ian: It’s interesting to see HSF’s lawyers Goodsill Anderson listed as common stockholders (300 shares). I wonder if the firm took stock in lieu of unpaid fees or whether the firm was an “owner” when Lisa Munger advised HSF that it could go forward without complying with Haw. Rev. Stat. chapter 343.
As for Brian Nishida, the stock may have been part of his compensation or his severance package.
Kelvin Taketa is a surprise.
Get a life… The cleanest, most energy efficient interisland transportation system in years is gone, thanks in part to you. Good work. Let those who honestly worked and invested in this rest in peace after their many years and many millions sunk, in part, due to you.
But of course you won’t print that because it’s not in your self-interest in your one-way tilted conspiracy theory world…