Policy Cut
Honolulu:
Honolulu exists in its own time zone which appears impenetrable to economic development research. From its modern beginning, Honolulu has been arguably America’s most diverse municipality and an international city. “The city’s ethnic variety was set in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s, when sugar kings brought in thousands of Chinese, Japanese, Okinawan, Filipino, Portuguese, and Puerto Rican workers. Honolulu was the first, and still is the only American city in which Asians and Pacific Islanders constitute the majority of the population[1]. Hidden from view, however, are the descendants of the New England missionaries who both set the moral and political tone of the Island’s political culture, but constituted a high percentage of its economic—and until Hawaii’s statehood in 1959, the core of its—and political elite (and the state Republican Party). The return of Daniel Inouye and his fellow 442nd Infantry Regiment following World War II, however, set the stage for native Hawaiians to assume political dominance. Elected to the territorial House in 1953, Democrat Inouye in 1959 became Hawaii’s first member in the U.S. House of Representatives. The state has been among the bluest ever since.
While Las Vegas’ 1940 population was only 8,400, it may surprise the reader that in the same year Honolulu’s population was nearly 180,000—it was a territory and did not fit into conventional economic or political statistics of that time. Large scale “immigration” into Honolulu’s port of entry did not begin until 1955 when it jumped from a 1929-1954 average of less than 500 per year, to 10,700. The obvious source of Honolulu’s growth was the U.S. military and its base at Pearl Harbor—but again, hiding beneath the surface, was a Pacific Rim gateway strategy linked to its location as a midway between Asia and the continental U.S. Honolulu’s residents, as early as 1960, called its downtown office core the “Plaza of the Pacific” and the state defined a distinct Pacific Rim economic development strategy in 1960.
Honolulu’s greatest achievements in tourism and economic development lay outside this postwar time period—in the 1980’s especially. In this postwar era, Honolulu broke away from the primacy of the military in its economic base. “Statewide income from the defense industry surpassed income from sugar and pineapples in the 1950’s. Tourism, in turn, surpassed defense in 1970”. The seventies were the breakthrough years for Honolulu and Hawaii’s tourism industry as commercial air access flourished and an avalanche of hotels were built. Honolulu by 1970 combined three cities into one: (1) the Navy city around Pearl Harbor; (2) the tourist city along Waikiki; and (3) the regional trade and finance center in between.[2]
[1] Carl Abbott, the Metropolitan Frontier, op. cit., p. 92.
[2] Carl Abbott, the Metropolitan Frontier, op. cit., p. 72.
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Honolulu
Honolulu has been arguably America’s most diverse municipality and an international city. The city’s ethnic variety was set in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s, when sugar kings brought in thousands of Chinese, Japanese, Okinawan, Filipino, Portuguese, and Puerto Rican workers. Honolulu was the first, and still is the only American city in which Asians and Pacific Islanders constitute the majority of the population (Abbott, 1998, p. 92). Hidden from view, however, are descendants of the New England missionaries who set the moral and political tone of the Island’s business political culture, and, until its statehood in 1959, constituted a high percentage of its economic and political elite (and the state Republican Party as well). The return of Daniel Inouye and the 442nd Infantry Regiment following World War II, however, set the stage for native Hawaiians to assume political dominance. Elected to the territorial House in 1953, Democrat Inouye in 1959 became Hawaii’s first member in the U.S. House of Representatives. The state has been among the bluest ever since.
It may surprise the reader that in 1940 Honolulu’s population was nearly 180,000—it was a territory that did not fit into conventional economic or political statistics of that time. Large scale “immigration” into Honolulu’s port of entry began in 1955, jumping from a 1929-1954 average of less than 500 per year, to 10,700. The obvious source of Honolulu’s growth was the U.S. military and its base at Pearl Harbor—but again, hiding beneath the surface, was a Pacific Rim gateway strategy that linked to its location midway between Asia and the continental U.S. Honolulu’s, as early as 1960, called its downtown office core the “Plaza of the Pacific”, and the state formulated and pursued a distinct Pacific Rim economic development strategy as early as 1960.Honolulu’s greatest achievements in tourism and economic development lay outside this postwar time period—in the 1980’s. In this postwar era, Honolulu broke the primacy of a military economic base. “Statewide income from the defense industry surpassed income from sugar and pineapples in the 1950’s. Tourism, in turn, surpassed defense in 1970”. The 1970’s were breakthrough years for Honolulu and Hawaii’s tourism industry as commercial air access flourished, and an avalanche of hotels were built. Honolulu by 1970 combined three cities into one: (1) the Navy city around Pearl Harbor; (2) the tourist city along Waikiki; and (3) the regional trade and finance center in between (Abbott, 1998, p. 72).
The battleships sunk at Pearl Harbor returned to service after repair in Portland—except, of course, the Arizona.
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Honolulu:
Honolulu exists in its own time zone which appears impenetrable to economic development research. From its modern beginning, Honolulu has been arguably America’s most diverse municipality and an international city. “The city’s ethnic variety was set in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s, when sugar kings brought in thousands of Chinese, Japanese, Okinawan, Filipino, Portuguese, and Puerto Rican workers. Honolulu was the first, and still is the only American city in which Asians and Pacific Islanders constitute the majority of the population[1]. Hidden from view, however, are the descendants of the New England missionaries who both set the moral and political tone of the Island’s political culture, but constituted a high percentage of its economic—and until Hawaii’s statehood in 1959, the core of its—and political elite (and the state Republican Party). The return of Daniel Inouye and his fellow 442nd Infantry Regiment following World War II, however, set the stage for native Hawaiians to assume political dominance. Elected to the territorial House in 1953, Democrat Inouye in 1959 became Hawaii’s first member in the U.S. House of Representatives. The state has been among the bluest ever since.
While Las Vegas’ 1940 population was only 8,400, it may surprise the reader that in the same year Honolulu’s population was nearly 180,000—it was a territory and did not fit into conventional economic or political statistics of that time. Large scale “immigration” into Honolulu’s port of entry did not begin until 1955 when it jumped from a 1929-1954 average of less than 500 per year, to 10,700. The obvious source of Honolulu’s growth was the U.S. military and its base at Pearl Harbor—but again, hiding beneath the surface, was a Pacific Rim gateway strategy linked to its location as a midway between Asia and the continental U.S. Honolulu’s residents, as early as 1960, called its downtown office core the “Plaza of the Pacific” and the state defined a distinct Pacific Rim economic development strategy in 1960.
Honolulu’s greatest achievements in tourism and economic development lay outside this postwar time period—in the 1980’s especially. In this postwar era, Honolulu broke away from the primacy of the military in its economic base. “Statewide income from the defense industry surpassed income from sugar and pineapples in the 1950’s. Tourism, in turn, surpassed defense in 1970”. The seventies were the breakthrough years for Honolulu and Hawaii’s tourism industry as commercial air access flourished and an avalanche of hotels were built. Honolulu by 1970 combined three cities into one: (1) the Navy city around Pearl Harbor; (2) the tourist city along Waikiki; and (3) the regional trade and finance center in between.[2]
[1] Carl Abbott, the Metropolitan Frontier, op. cit., p. 92.
[2] Carl Abbott, the Metropolitan Frontier, op. cit., p. 72.
Ron W. Coan 