After a bruising mayoral battle that held Hono-lulu’s rail project in the balance, Kirk Caldwell has emerged as the city’s next leader, and he will need to work mightily to keep the public’s trust on this divisive project and to meet expectations raised in campaign promises. Still, Caldwell’s election over former Gov. Ben Cayetano was the right choice at this critical time for Oahu, as our island grapples with growth issues and hard decisions loom about the quality of life for our wide range of citizens.

The contest between the two men focused largely on rail, but Caldwell, a former city managing director, was right to also highlight his experience and engagement on core services affecting everyday life such as sewer systems, potholes, trash, homelessness and public safety. The challenge now: to shepherd through smart solutions that improve our city.

In electing Caldwell, voters allow groundwork to proceed on a city future that can be both orderly and visionary. Cayetano had vowed to kill rail, a chaotic prospect bucking the legal will of Oahu voters manifested twice before: First, in their approval in fall 2008 for the steel-wheel-on-steel rail system; then again in November 2010, when they voted to create the semiautonomous Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to build and oversee the fixed guideway system.

Cayetano’s scant bus-transit proposal would have taken years just to plan and review, and serious questions lingered about funding and the city’s inability to transfer for non-rail uses the millions of dollars collected from a dedicated general excise tax surcharge. Meanwhile, this would have likely caused the rail project to lose $1.55 billion in nearly-here federal funds, and commuters would remain stuck in gridlock with little relief in sight.

In Caldwell, voters have chosen a staunch rail supporter who now must adhere to his promises to help the rail be done right. And that means advocating for a smaller transit station footprint where possible, ameliorating the 20-mile system’s visual blight and helping ensure that processes are responsible and transparent.

On the cusp of the state’s largest public works project, Honolulu now has tremendous potential to recalibrate its vision for the future. A fiscally sound rail must materialize for the benefit of all citizens across socio-economic levels, and the project’s profound effects on communities along its path hold promise for positives like new affordable housing.

Our new mayor, who takes office in January, will also need to delve into other pressing city issues, including:

» Other transportation remedies: "Smart streets" in town using better traffic-control systems and bolstering TheBus service, the target of many recent complaints.

» Parks: Improve repairs and upkeep of these public facilities.

» Sewer and water: Keep a tighter rein on crucial repair and maintenence to comply with environmental standards and minimize public disruption.

» Homelessness: Create safe zones, and accelerate transition and longer-term housing to clear homeless off the streets.

» Garbage/HPOWER: Initiate better recycling and pursue technologies to reduce the landfill need.

Not least of all, finally, will be Caldwell’s willingness and ability to make hard decisions in the face of pressure from Hawaii’s powerful labor unions, most of which endorsed him. Cooperation is a key component of leading, but being beholden is another matter when the discussions turn to labor issues such as better efficiency or civil service reform.

Also to watch are the moneyed donors who contributed to this mayoral campaign. The push and pull of powerful players were certainly felt — and some of that deteriorated into the muck, most deplorably and notably the nearly $3 million, anti-Cayetano campaign by Pacific Resource Partnership. This cannot be allowed to become the new normal in Hawaii politics, or in local governance.

Honolulu needs responsible minds and firm hands to meet its many challenges. Caldwell will need to detach himself from interests and be steadfast in tough decisions that show him to be an independent leader. He will need to keep sight of what’s best for all of Oahu.