MINUTES OF THE COMMISSION ON THE 13TH FESTIVAL OF
PACIFIC ARTS & CULTURE (FestPAC) MEETINGTUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2021 AT 2:30 PM
VIA VIRTUAL APPLICATION ZOOM: VIDEO / AUDIO CONFERENCE
Commission Members Present were:
Kalani Ka‘anā‘anā, Chair
Maenette Ah Nee-Benham
Snowbird Bento
Māpuana de Silva
Jamie Lum-

Richard Onishi-

Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority (HTA) Designee
Governor’s Designee
Community Member At-Large
Community Member At-Large (Arrived at 2:35
pm)
Department of Business, Economic Development
and Tourism (DBEDT)House Speaker’s Designee

Maka Casson-Fisher
Ilihia Gionson
Lynn Martin Graton
Kealiʻi Haverly
Dede Howa
Jonathan Johnson
Aaron Salā
Mālia Sanders
Kanoe Takitani-Puahi-

Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority
Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association
Public Member
Public Member
Public Member
State Foundation on Culture and the Arts
Public Member
Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association
Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association

Margaret Ahn
Marlene Hiraoka
Timothy Tiu-

Deputy Attorney General
DBEDT
DBEDT

Apologies:
Jarrett Keohokālole
Makanani Salā
Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu-

Senate President’s Designee
City and County of Honolulu Designee
Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Designee

Guests:Staff:-CALL TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order by Chair Kalani Ka‘anā‘anā at 2:32 p.m., who welcomed
everyone present via ZOOM and Facebook Live.

Minutes of the Commission on the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture
Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 2 of 8

Chair called upon Mr. Aaron Salā to do the wehena (opening). Mr. Salā expressed his thanks to
Ms. Ah Nee-Benham for the invitation. He understands that the wehena should be inspired by
Hawaiian understanding, however, he asked if his presentation could represent the Samoan
culture for today’s presentation. Mr. Salā explained that today’s wehena is designed around the
Samoan fale (meeting house for chiefs) that is normally situated in a prominent position in avillage. The Taualuga, which will be presented, is a traditional Samoan dance and performed at
the culmination of a formal event. This particular dance will feature a woman, usually from aroyal class who represents the ideals of the Samoan culture. Her dance movements are gracefuland regal. The sharing of the Taualuga is a way to share cultural grounding. Mr. Salā shared avideo of the Taualuga for Commissioners.
Chair thanked Mr. Salā for the presentation.
At the request of Ms. Ahn, Chair announced the names of all Commissioners present.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY ON AGENDA ITEMS
Chair invited members of the public to testify on the agenda items. Hearing none, he continued
with agenda items.
APPROVAL OF AUGUST 23, 2021 MEETING MINUTES
The minutes were distributed and reviewed by Commissioners. Chair asked if there were any
comments or changes to the minutes. Hearing none, he asked for a motion and a motion toapprove the minutes was made by Ms. Lum and seconded by Ms. de Silva. A roll call vote wasrequested with the following Commissioners approving the motion to approve the minutes: Chair
Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
REPORT ON PERMITTED INTERACTIONS, PURSUANT TO ACT 103, SESSIONLAWS OF HAWAIʻI 2021
Chair asked if there were any Permitted Interactions held since the last Commission meeting.
Hearing none, he moved on to the next agenda item.
CREATION OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE PERMITTED INTERACTION GROUP (PIG)
Chair indicated that he would like Commissioners to act on the process to search for a CEO
Festival Director via the establishment of an Administrative Committee. This committee is not
an investigative Permitted Interaction Group (PIG) under section 92-2.5(b), but a “committee”
and will report on any discussions that take place between meetings to the full Commission at thenext regularly scheduled meeting, pursuant to Act 103.
Chair reported that the proposal to establish this Administrative Committee was sent to the fullCommission. He asked whether Commissioners were comfortable with the Administrative
Committee’s proposed role.

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Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 3 of 8

Mr. Onishi indicated that he agrees with the proposal to establish an Administrative Committee.
Ms. Ah Nee-Benham also agreed with Mr. Onishi. She further explained that the purpose of thecommittee would be to operationalize the planning and implementation tasks i.e., “boots on-theground” relative to the administrative affairs of the Commission. The first order of business forthe proposed Administrative Committee would be to manage the process of hiring the Festival
Director.
Chair referenced a Draft Organizational Chart that was distributed to Commissioners. He notedthat the committee will be named the Administrative Committee. He also mentioned that fortoday’s meeting, he is inclined to focus on the next steps required to hire a Festival Director.
Ms. de Silva raised a couple of questions related to the proposal. She commented that the firsttwo pages referred to the position as Festival Director as noted in the FestPAC manual; however,
she noticed that in subsequent pages of the proposal, “CEO” was added to the Festival Director’s
title as CEO/Festival Director. Ms. de Silva expressed her concerns that adding CEO presents a
different connotation based upon her previous experiences in working with the Council on
Pacific Arts and Culture (CPAC). She requested that the title of this position be Festival
Director and that any reference to “CEO” be removed from the title. Ms. de Silva reminded
Commissioners that the event is the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture, hosted by Hawaiʻiand CPAC oversees the Hawaiʻi Host Committee, therefore the Commission needs to be mindful
relating to wording, descriptions, etc. Chair thanked Ms. de Silva for her comments and notedthat the full name of the Festival will be used in future documents.
Chair stated that this discussion is for the agenda item related to establishing the Administrative
Committee. In addition to himself, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham, Mr. Keohokālole and Ms. Bento willserve on this committee.
Ms. Bento made a motion to approve the establishment of the Administrative Committee and Mr.
Onishi seconded the motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners
approving the motion to establish the Administrative Committee: Chair Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. deSilva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair repeated that this is not a traditional, investigative PIG under Chapter 92 but rather aCommittee.
DISCUSSION AND ACTION REGARDING FESTIVAL DIRECTOR POSITION
Chair clarified that the Administrative Committee would conduct the recruitment, oversee work
involved followed by making a recommendation to the Full Commission.
Chair thanked members for preparing the job description of the Festival Director. He agreed that
CEO would be removed from the title and that Festival Director would be the official title to be
used. Ms. de Silva sought clarification regarding the one-year term of the Festival Director.
Chair explained that because there are currently no funds to support this position from theFestival Budget, that the Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority (HTA) will be securing their funds toMinutes of the Commission on the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture
Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 4 of 8

support the payment of this postion for only 12 months. The Festival Director will be required tofundraise in order to cover subsequent salary costs after the 12-month period has been exhausted.
Mr. Onishi made a motion to adopt the job description of the Festival Director and Ms. de Silva
seconded the motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners
approving the motion to approve the job description of the Festival Director: Chair Ka‘anā‘anā,Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair reported that the salary range was determined to be $150,000 to $180,000 annually andthat this was based on the needs of the Festival, the scope of work of the role, and responsibilitiesof this position. He requested that the salary range be adopted with the understanding that it will
be negotiated with the candidate. For the first 12 months, the Festival Director position will beconsidered a contract position and the candidate will be responsible for taxes, medical insurance,
etc. There will be no additional benefits offered to the candidate.
Ms. Bento made a motion to adopt the salary range for the Festival Director and Ms. Ah NeeBenham seconded the motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners
approving the motion to adopt the salary range for Festival Director’s position: Chair
Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair noted that the FestPAC budget needed to be amended to accommodate the salary range
approved for the position of Festival Director. He suggested that for the purposes of the budget,the higher end of the salary range be used.
Mr. Onishi made a motion to approve the amendments to the Festival Budget in the line item for
the Festival Director and Ms. Bento seconded the motion. A roll call vote was requested withthe following Commissioners approving the motion to amend the line item for the Festival
Director’s position to $180,000: Chair Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms.
Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair reported that the Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association would hire the Festival Director
for 12 months subject to the approval of the full Commission.
Mr. Onishi made a motion to approve the delegation to the Native Hawaiian Hospitality
Association to hire the Festival Director for 12 months subject to the approval of the fullCommission. Ms. Bento seconded the motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following
Commissioners approving the Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association to hire the Festival
Director subject to approval by the full Commission: Chair Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum,
Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.

Minutes of the Commission on the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture
Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 5 of 8

Motion was unanimously approved.
DISCUSSION ON FESTIVAL VENUES
Chair explained that with respect to the venue recommendations, he requests that today’s votes
be considered as firm decisions with no further changes.
Chair reported that two options were recommended for the selection of the Waʻa Ceremony(arrival) venue: (1) Ala Moana-Magic Island; and (2) Keʻehi Lagoon and asked Commissioners
for their comments. Ms. Bento indicated that for the sake of proximity, Ala Moana-Magic Island
would be her first choice. Ms. de Silva asked whether Commissioners would be able to vote for
their first preference as well as a second option. Mr. Onishi agreed with Ms. de Silva’s
suggestion. He further commented that once the venue selection is made, the Commission willneed to go through a process of applying for permits and authorization to use the venue for
FestPAC. It would be best to concentrate on a venue first with the understanding that if theCommission’s request is disapproved, they would be able to consider the second option as analternative. Ms. de Silva commented that the alternate venue be considered with the approval of
the full Commission.
Mr. Onishi made a motion to select Ala Moana-Magic Island as the primary location for theWaʻa Ceremony and Keʻehi Lagoon selected as an alternate venue. Ms. de Silva seconded the
motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners approving Ala MoanaMagic Island for the Waʻa Ceremony with Keʻehi Lagoon as an alternate location: Chair
Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair moved to a discussion for the ʻAwa Ceremony with the Great Lawn at the Bishop Museum
and Kūkaniloko as options. Mr. Onishi stated that Bishop Museum would be his preference
because there are ADA accessibility issues, additional transportation costs, etc. with Kūkaniloko.
He considered Bishop Museum to be a perfect location with the availability of the Atherton
Hālau should weather conditions pose challenges. Mr. Onishi reported that this was thecommittee’s primary consideration in selecting the Bishop Museum. Chair also commented thatat Kūkaniloko, there is no parking, facilities, etc. that would make it a challenging location forthe ʻAwa Ceremony. Ms. de Silva also commented that Kūkaniloko is more suitable for asmaller group. Ms. Bento stated her support for the Bishop Museum and that Kūkaniloko wasinitially selected for VIPs and Aliʻi ʻohana (royal families) from respective delegations and not
for the entire group. She agreed that the Great Lawn at the Bishop Museum would be a suitablevenue for the ʻAwa Ceremony.
Ms. Ah Nee-Benham made a motion to select the Bishop Museum as the primary venue andKūkaniloko as the alternate venue for the ʻAwa Ceremony. Ms. Lum seconded the motion. A
roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners approving the Bishop Museum as
the primary venue for the ʻAwa Ceremony and Kūkaniloko as the alternate venue: Chair
Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.

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Chair noted that the ʻIolani Palace was the venue discussed previously for the Opening
Ceremony, however, he would like to suggest that the Hawaiʻi Convention Center (HCC) be
considered as an alternate venue or wherever the Festival Village is located. Ms. Bento agreed
that it would be appropriate to consider the HCC as an alternate site for the Opening and Closing
ceremonies.
Ms. Lum made a motion to select Iolani Palace as the primary location for the Opening
Ceremony with the HCC as an alternate location. Mr. Onishi seconded the motion. A roll callvote was requested with the following Commissioners approving ʻIolani Palace for the Opening
Ceremony and the HCC as an alternate location: Chair Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr.
Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
Chair reported on the three options that were considered for the Festival Village, however, asked
the Venues Committee whether the options were ranked in order of preference on the agenda.
Mr. Onishi said that the Venues Committee discussed the three options at length. The primaryreason the HCC was listed as the first option is because there are available funds from theCommission already being held at the HCC; and that it would likely be difficult to receive
approval to use Ala Moana-Magic Island or Kapiʻolani Park for the duration of the Festival. The
approval process would go through Neighborhood Boards for both locations and, for Kapiʻolani
Park, approval is required by the Kapiʻolani Park Preservation Society. Because the request
would be to use the park for over one month for set-up and tear down of the Festival Village, itwould also require approval by the City Council. The Venues Committee considered thechallenges in obtaining approval from these respective boards and City Council given the public
sentiments regarding these two venues.
Discussion continued with Ms. Bento stating that culturally, there will be some delegations thatwould need to perform on ʻāina (land, earth) beneath their feet. With that consideration, would
it be possible to create a main stage in the Exhibition Hall of the HCC? In other words, bringing
ʻāina into the hall? Chair asked how many delegations would require this accommodation
because he is trying to understand the scope of these requests. Ms. de Silva commented that
because previous Festivals were held outdoors, she could not provide an exact number ofdelegations that would have the requirement of dancing on ʻāina. Ms. de Silva commented that
she understands budgetary considerations, however, her preference would be to have the Festival
Village located at an outdoor location even if it meant creating a scaled down version of theFestival Village. She posed a suggestion of whether the Festival Village could be created on theMall at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (UHM). Mr. Onishi replied that the suggestion of
the Mall at UHM should be explored. Ms. Ah Nee-Benham commented that she has seen theMall at UHM used for other events. She further stated that the quarry area, East-West Center aswell as other campus venues might be an added benefit. She suggested that the committee havea conversation about this request by formally approaching the University of Hawaiʻi (UH). Ms.
Bento added that one challenge would be that there are no dressing facilities, however, sincedelegates will be housed at UH, they could also walk to the Festival Village on the Mall at UHM

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Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 7 of 8

already fully dressed in costume. She also commented that the Andrews Amphitheater is anotherbeautiful venue that could be used on UHM campus.
Chair stated that based upon today’s discussion, he would like the Venues Committee to review
the options again for the Festival Village. He agreed that having the Festival Village indoors did
not feel right although the HCC would be a great venue for other activities. He asked the Venues
Committee to further discuss the options suggested today. Mr. Onishi noted that the Roof Top at
the HCC is open and accessible. He said that creating a main stage with dirt and sod might be apossibility, however, he questioned the amount of funding that would be required to make thoseaccommodations. He suggested HCC as a location for consideration in the decision of venue for
the Festival Village as this would be the most convenient for all participants.
Chair mentioned that if it would be more appropriate to have all Commissioners present for the
discussion of Festival Village, he would like to consider adding the discussion and action on theselection of the Festival Village venue to the September 27, 2021 meeting.
Chair noted that Kapiʻolani Park was selected as the primary venue for the Closing Ceremonyand offered the HCC as an alternate location.
Mr. Onishi made a motion to select Kapiʻolani Park as the primary location for the Closing
Ceremony with the Hawaiʻi Convention Center as an alternate location. Ms. Bento seconded the
motion. A roll call vote was requested with the following Commissioners approving Kapiʻolani
Park for the Closing Ceremony and the Hawaiʻi Convention Center as an alternate location:
Chair Ka‘anā‘anā, Ms. de Silva, Ms. Lum, Mr. Onishi, Ms. Bento, Ms. Ah Nee-Benham.
Motion was unanimously approved.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY ON AGENDA ITEMS
Chair Ka‘anā‘anā invited the public to again offer comments.
Mr. Salā commented that, during previous Festivals, there were ecumenical services included inprogramming. He asked whether that was a requirement. Chair stated that the venues currently
being discussed are for the main high-level events. Other venues will be discussed separately at
a later time.
Hearing no further comments from the public, Chair continued with announcements and the next
meeting date.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Chair announced that Mr. Salā would be willing to assist the Commission, during the interim,
until a Festival Director is on board. He expressed his thanks to Mr. Salā.
Ms. de Silva expressed her thanks to Commissioners for putting the extra time outside ofCommission meetings for two committees to prepare for the discussion of the items presented
today. She thanked the Chair for trying to find an outdoor space for the Festival Village.

Minutes of the Commission on the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture
Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at 2:30pm via ZOOMPage 8 of 8

NEXT MEETING – SEPTEMBER 27, 2021
Chair stated that if anyone has additional agenda items to include for this meeting, please send
the information to Ms. Sanders and Mr. Tome. Also, he requested that Commissioners planvoting for the Festival Village venue at this meeting.
ADJOURNMENT
Chair Ka‘anā‘anā adjourned meeting at 3:37 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,

Kalani Ka‘anā‘anā
Chair

Date

09/24/2021