In Final Chamber Address, Ige Touts Past Big Island Projects with Eye on More to Come – Big Island Now

In his final address at the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce annual luncheon, Gov. David Ige bid farewell to a group hes worked closely with during his eight-year governorship and recapped some of the major accomplishments his administration helped land on the Big Island which have been many.

Ige has been the keynote speaker to the chambers annual membership and award luncheon every year during his eight years in office. The last two years have been held virtually, but Ige attended those as well.

I really want to thank all of you for being so kind every time I come to Hawaii Island, Ige said.

On Friday at the Fairmont Orchid resort in Waikloa, Ige celebrated a number of Big Island projects his administration promised to deliver, and did.

During the last eight years, those projects have totaled $20 billion, $1 billion in infrastructure alone. The list includes a widened and resurfaced Queen KaahumanuHighway, an expanded and upgraded Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Kehole, a $90 million Keahuol Courthouse, millions in support for the expansion of NELHA, a community college campus at Plamanui and multiple affordable living housing developments.

I made an effort to invest in Hawaii Island when I became the governor, Ige said.

Investments are still happening.

Just this week Iges office released more capital improvement project funds for the Big Island, including monies to pay off the recently completed federal inspection station at the airport.

And yes, we finished the federal inspection station under budget, Ige said to a smattering of applause.

The upgraded, expanded airport comes just in time for the return of international travel.

Ige recently returned from a visit to Japan where he learned Japan Airlines has agreed to begin direct flights from Tokyo to Kona beginning Aug. 1. The Japanese company is doing so with some trepidation, as many unknowns still linger regarding COVID-19, but the airline has committed to landing in Kona.

Its up to residents to roll out a hospitable rug, Ige said, as tourism is the No. 1 economic driver in the islands and Japan is the one market that hasnt returned to pre-COVID travel numbers.

We need to make Aug. 1 successful, Ige said. We can make the launch happen in an important way.

Ige began his half-hour address to the couple hundred in attendance in the resort ballroom by reflecting on lesson learned from the pandemic, and celebrating successes the islands achieved through it.

The Commonwealth Fund a private foundation that supports independent research on health care issues and makes grants to improve health care practice and policy ranked Hawaii as the No. 1 state in handling the pandemic. It included over 50 measures to get to the ranking, where Hawaiis zero days of having an overwhelmed hospital system played into that earning that top spot.

Its a ranking the departing governor said he was proud to be a part of.

I really take my hat off, he said to Hawaiis healthcare workers.

And lessons they learned from the pandemic they implemented into this years state budget, allocating $6.7 million into expanding doctor residency and nursing programs through the university to keep young healthcare workers here as they enter the workforce. The state is also bolstering internship programs in high schools and in state departments with the same goal, to give young professionals a chance to begin their careers in the islands.

We did great things during the COVID pandemic and we will be better for it, he said.

While those points had an eye on the future, Iges address was, in part, a stroll down memory lane. But the eight years have been packed with Big Island visits, and Big Island projects, as the governor noted, worth remembering.

It truly has been an honor to serve as the governor of the state of Hawaii, Ige said at the end. I am so proud of all you.

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In Final Chamber Address, Ige Touts Past Big Island Projects with Eye on More to Come - Big Island Now