The Honolulu City Council voted Wednesday to drastically downsize the countyʻs pandemic-era Office of Economic Revitalization over the strong objections of Mayor Rick Blangiardi who called the move “reckless and shortsighted.”
The decision will result in 15 of the current 21 staff losing their jobs and the agency winding down operations by Sept. 30.
The office was set up in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic as a mechanism for distributing $324 million in federal stimulus funds meant to alleviate local economic impacts and support workforce recovery. Since then it has expanded its role to supporting local startups and entrepreneurs and running workforce development, digital technology, food system and agricultural programs…