3 Hawaii malls get new management

Shopping mall owner General Growth Properties Inc. has agreed to transfer management and leasing responsibilities of 18 of its malls to Jones Lang LaSalle.

Three of the malls are located in Hawaii: Queen Kaahumanu Center in Kahului, Windward Mall in Kaneohe and Kings’ Shops in Waikoloa.

Meanwhile, General Growth is getting a $500 million infusion from a Texas teachers pension fund.

The Chicago developer, which is trying to emerge from bankruptcy protection, says the Teacher Retirement System of Texas will receive shares priced at $10.25 per share in the reorganized company in exchange for the cash.

The deal is part of the requirements for the real estate investment trust to emerge from Chapter 11 protection and needs bankruptcy court approval.

HECO bills to be mixed in June

Residential electricity rates will edge up on Oahu this month but decline slightly on Maui and the Big Island.

Hawaiian Electric Co. said the typical 600-kilowatt-hour residential bill on Oahu will rise to $157.99 from $156.83 in June.

The effective rate for electricity on Oahu will rise to 24.81 cents per kilowatt-hour from the 24.62 cents charged last month.

Elsewhere in the state, Maui customers will see their average bill drop to $180.59 from $181.24 in June as rates drop to 28.76 cents from 28.86 cents.

On the Big Island the average bill will decrease to $209.45 from $210.14 as rates fall to 33.06 cents from 33.18 cents.

Oceanic adds multilanguage channel

Oceanic Time Warner Cable has added New Tang Dynasty Television to its digital cable lineup on Channel 698.

New Tang Dynasty is a nonprofit broadcaster that was founded by members of Falun Gong, a spiritual movement outlawed in China.

The New York-based broadcaster provides programming in Mandarin and Cantonese as well as other languages.

"We plan to make our programming more localized by adding local content and more English programming," said Samuel Zhou, NTD’s senior vice president of public relations and development.

Clerical workers’ port strike ends

LOS ANGELES » Clerical workers who struck the nation’s busiest port complex for 11 days returned to work yesterday after arbitrators’ rulings said their union was negotiating in bad faith with shipping companies.

The workers twice attempted to shut down loading and unloading operations at five terminals at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach by starting picket lines and getting fellow members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union to stay away from the docks.

Both times, an arbitrator said the union local representing about 900 clerical workers was negotiating in bad faith with the 14 shipping companies, and ruled their pickets were "not bona fide."

The rulings "made it impossible" for the more than 10,000 longshoremen at the ports to respect the picket lines, ILWU spokesman Craig Merrilees said. Managers handled the clerks’ workload during the strike, so there was no significant disruption to shipping.

Merrilees said the union was appealing the arbitrators’ decisions.

Contract talks resumed yesterday afternoon following a weekend break.

ON THE MOVE

Dr. James Ireland was appointed by Mayor Mufi Hannemann as director of Honolulu’s Department of Emergency Services. Ireland also was named Community-Based Faculty of the Year by students training in the department of family medicine and community health at the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s John A. Burns School of Medicine.

» Hawaii Kai Retirement Community has appointed Tommy K. Koahou and Leslee M. Koahou as community managers. They have 14 years’ experience in the senior living industry.

Ala Moana Hotel has promoted the following:

» Dennis Miho to director of engineering from chief engineer. He has 24 years experience in the hospitality industry and was previously with Outrigger Hotels & Resorts and OHANA Hotels & Resorts.

» Debi Streeter to director of front office from front office manager. She has 30 years in the hotel industry in Hawaii and on the mainland and was previously in the reservations office and front desk of the Hilton Hawaiian Village.