Rick Blangiardi, who will be sworn in as the next mayor of the City and County of Honolulu Saturday, announced top leadership and Cabinet positions on Tuesday.

Danette Maruyama 

Michael Formby will serve as managing director (as was previously announced), Danette Maruyama will be deputy managing director and Andrew Kawano will be the director of Budget and Fiscal Services.

Formby previously worked as an acting state transportation director, Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s city transportation director, chief of staff to former Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa, an interim director and member of the board of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation and an interim city councilman.

Andrew Kawano 

According to a press release from Blangiardi, Maruyama, who worked at DataHouse in executive positions, “brings to the City over 25 years of experience in strategic planning, implementing innovation and business development, in both the private and public sectors,” while Kawano will leave a position as director of facilities for Foodland Supermarket “and brings 25 years of managerial and executive experience in the controller, senior director of finance, CFO, and EVP roles” to the city.

The nominations of Formby and Kawano require City Council confirmation.

Other appointments:

  • Sarah-Jane Allen as director of the Department of Community Services. Her background includes “customer service, education, accounting and government work.” She is currently the state’s chief procurement officer.
  • Dean Uchida, director of the Department of Planning and Permitting. His previous work includes executive director of the Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii — a pro-development lobbying group — and land administrator at the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Land Division.
  • Laura Thielen, director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. She is a former state senator and former chair of the DLNR.
  • Roger Morton, director of the Department of Transportation Services. He has been president and general manager of Oahu Transit Services, operator of TheBus and TheHandi-Van.
  • Dr. James Ireland, director of the Honolulu Emergency Services Department. He is currently chief of Emergency Medical Services in the department and was formerly director from July 2010 through December 2012.
  • Nola Miyasaki, director of the Department of Customer Services. She served as the former executive director and CEO of the state’s Hawaii Technology Development Corp.
  • Alex Kozlov, director of the Department of Design and Construction. He is a retired U.S. Army brigadier general with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
  • Jerry Pupillo, director of the Department of Enterprise Services. He is “an indoor/outdoor venue, attractions, activities and entertainment veteran for nearly 30 years” in Hawaii and the Asia-Pacific region.
  • Wesley Yokoyama, director of the Department of Environmental Services. He has “played all the positions” in the wastewater Engineering and Construction Division, from planning chief to design chief to construction chief to division chief.
  • Mark Wong, director of the Department of Information Technology. He currently holds the position.
  • Scott Hayashi, director of the Department of Land Management. He was manager of commercial properties for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
  • Makanani Sala, director of the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts. She was previously an instructor in Hawaiian Studies at Windward Community College and an event producer and cultural consultant.
  • Lloyd Yonenaka, executive secretary, Neighborhood Commission Office. He previously was an executive with Communications Pacific and worked at the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.
  • Amy Asselbaye, director of the Office of Economic Revitalization. She has been reappointed to the position.
  • Matthew Gonser, director of the Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency. He has served as the Coastal and Water Program Manager for the office since October 2017.
  • Anton Krucky, executive director of the Office of Housing. He was most recently president and chief executive officer of Tissue Genesis and general manager of IBM Corp. Pacific.
  • Clarke Bright, bandmaster, Royal Hawaiian Band. He continues his role.
  • Masahiko Kobayashi, M.D., medical examiner. He continues his position.

The department directors, the bandmaster and the medical examiner are subject to confirmation by the council, as is the executive secretary to the Neighborhood Commission.

Over 400 individuals submitted their resumes for consideration for Cabinet positions, according to the press release.

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