HART board discusses next evaluation for CEO Kahikina

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation’s board of directors is mulling the job performance evaluation of its top hire. But some on the rail board say the need to size up Executive Director and CEO Lori Kahikina in 2025 is premature, as she received a new multiyear contract to run construction of the city’s nearly $10 billion Skyline project only last fall. During the board’s Human Resources Committee meeting Jan.

24, committee chair Lisa Baker asked for the panel’s input on a quick timeline for Kahikina’s annual performance evaluation. Baker’s draft plan targeted late February to have that evaluation completed. “The goal would be to try to have this wrapped up by the second month of this calendar year,” she told the panel.



“And assuming I’m still chair in subsequent calendar years, we would start this process earlier so that we would be wrapped up by the end of the year.” The 2024 period to evaluate Kahikina, it was noted, was often mired in controversy and delay as the HART CEO and a few board members typically clashed during their monthly meetings. That rancor involved Kahikina’s ongoing tenure, which appeared tenuous at best following claims she’d fostered low morale and the loss of staff and displayed a lack of leadership while running the rail agency.

Kahikina, who joined HART in January 2021 as its interim leader, was appointed to a three-year term as executive director and CEO from January 2022 through Dec. 31, 2024. Still, she gained a new work agreement — a three-year, $336,000 annual contract that started Jan.

1 — that a majority of the board approved in early September. Board Chair Colleen Hanabusa abstained from that vote. Prior to that contract agreement, however, tension between Hana­busa and Kahikina became public after the two had a contentious exchange during an April board meeting over the departure of a key project leader.

Hanabusa also was embroiled in allegations she’d bullied and harassed Kahikina while serving as board chair. By May, Hanabusa claimed she’d referred prior concerns about Kahi­kina’s treatment by the board to the city’s Department of Human Resources for investigation in a move she described as “self-­reporting myself.” At that time, Hanabusa, appointed to a five-year term in 2021 by Mayor Rick Blangiardi, indicated she’d step down as chair but would remain on the board.

In October, though, no board member other than Hanabusa — who did not refuse a nomination to stay on as chair — presented themselves as alternatives to the current leadership. Hanabusa and Vice Chair Kika Bukoski were reelected to respectively serve as chair and vice chair through June 30. At the Jan.

24 committee meeting, Baker said the process to review Kahikina would be the same as in the past three years of her initial contract. “And this is the 2021 signed contract, not the one that was just negotiated and signed in 2024,” she added. Baker said the performance factors to evaluate Kahikina — namely, board interaction, external relationships, internal relationships and general management — were listed under the CEO’s prior contract too.

“The one thing that I am suggesting that we’ll need to vote on is I’m recommending that we just do a ‘meets’ or ‘does not meet’ criteria,” Baker said. “And I think we have had sufficient conversation about evaluation and performance to just do basically a ‘thumb up/thumb down’ for the 2024 year.” She also asked the board to write “specific examples, with as much detail as possible” on Kahikina’s overall job performance.

“One of the things I noticed within these (prior) reviews is that historically there’s not a lot of detail; it seems to be more subjective,” Baker said. “So I’m suggesting or requesting that we try to make our comments ..

. be as specific as possible. Otherwise, I think it becomes criticism rather than constructive feedback.

“And I think the point of an evaluation is to provide constructive feedback,” she added. For 2025, Baker claimed the board needs “to determine the metrics from which we expect” Kahikina to perform. Her draft plan lists metrics to four priorities of the CEO’s position as leadership, organizational structure, the plan and communication.

“So we started that process already. Lori sent me her first draft of the list on Jan. 10, as per contract.

And as per contract, we must have an answer back to her by March 10,” Baker said. “And we did not have performance metrics that I’ve been able to locate for last year, for 2024,” she said, adding the board will meet Feb. 21 to discuss and possibly adopt 2025 metrics.

Baker said board comments, which will be kept anonymous, would need to be submitted to board staff by Feb. 10. Board members at the same Jan.

24 Human Resources Committee meeting offered their views on the proposed evaluation strategy. “I think that making it simpler will just be better for everybody, and then putting a deadline on it,” Natalie Iwasa said. “Last year’s evaluation, I don’t know when it technically ended, but it seemed to go on and on and on for months.

And that’s not good for everybody.” Board member Robert Yu questioned the need to evaluate Kahikina’s 2024 job performance at HART. “So that’s kind of weird,” he said, “because we already gave her a new contract that started this year, right? But we’re evaluating something that we already gave her.

” Baker replied, “And that’s why I’m kind of trying to slim this evaluation process down, because we’ve already awarded the contracts. So clearly she must meet a good majority of what her requirements were, otherwise we would not have renewed her contract.” In response, Yu said the board “preconcluded” Kahikina met her performance requirements.

“I know we have to do (the evaluation),” he added. “I just don’t see a reason to do it.” Honolulu Deputy Corporation Counsel Daniel Gluck later clarified that the City Charter requires the board to evaluate its CEO “at least annually.

” “It doesn’t say when, and you can do more than annually,” Gluck added. “So you can change the timing if you want to, just so long as there is at least one annual evaluation.” Hanabusa said that because Kahikina’s annual performance evaluation was technically a “personnel matter, it can be basically an executive session and confidential.

” She then asked Kahikina whether she wanted to hold the matter in a nonpublic executive session. To that, Gluck told the board that some things, like the discussion of performance metrics, could be done in open session. “Lori’s self-evaluation and any preliminary drafts of the evaluation that (the HR) committee and the board are going to do” would be in executive session, he said.

“Once it’s final though, that final evaluation would be public. And, of course, if Lori wants to waive and have everything open, that’s her right also.” Later, Kahikina queried Hanabusa on whether she’d recuse herself on her new evaluation as she had during last year’s vote on the CEO’s new contract.

“No, I’m not recusing myself on the evaluation,” Hanabusa replied. “The contract has been approved by the board.” Kahikina then asked Hanabusa about the status of the city’s investigation into allegations she’d bullied and harassed the CEO while serving as board chair.

Both Hanabusa and Gluck claimed they’d not heard back from the city on the investigation. Gluck later indicated he’d follow up on the matter. Ultimately, the HR committee voted to recommend the draft performance evaluation for further action.

The Mayor’s Office later offered no new information to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on the status of the city’s investigation into harassment allegations involving Hana­busa, the HART board and Kahikina. “Even though this played out in a public meeting, Department of Human Resources does not comment on personnel matters,” said Scott Humber, the mayor’s communications director..