MAHALO PIHA  | OER CEASE OPERATIONS 08/14/26

OER News Letter, Aug 7, 2026

To the entrepreneurs, farmers, community members, business partners, and fellow community builders we have had the privilege of working with  — mahalo nui to each of you.

Due to the City Council budget decision for Fiscal Year 2027, the Office of Economic Revitalization (OER) will officially cease operations on August 14, 2026. 

The Honolulu Film Office will continue operating with its current three full-time employees.  The remaining 6 of 24 OER full-time employees will transition to different departments across City government.

OER was established to serve as Oʻahu's dedicated economic development office for the City & County of Honolulu — connecting our people to opportunities, supporting small businesses, strengthening our food system, and building a stronger local economy. 

Economic development is not a single-function activity. The International Economic Development Council (IEDC), the largest membership organization for economic developers in the world, defines today's economic developer as a grant writer, cross-agency coordinator, public-private convener, federal funding specialist, innovation facilitator, and data and policy analyst — often fulfilling all of these roles at once. Effective economic development depends on cross-sector relationships, place-based approaches, and the ability to connect the right resource to the right person at the right time. 

OER served as a central connector across government, businesses, and community organizations, helping to ensure that programs, funding, and partnerships reached the people who needed them most. The closure of this office represents a significant reduction in City capacity to address economic issues on Oʻahu. 

Between 2020 and 2026, OER managed approximately $408 million in federal pandemic relief and other private and competitive federal grants for programs supporting small businesses, local agriculture, and broader COVID-19 relief across Oʻahu, reaching thousands of residents and businesses during a critical period. While the early years of OER were shaped largely by pandemic-response work funded by federal relief, OER's broader Charter mandate continued to develop in subsequent years and is reflected in the Economic Revitalization Commission’s draft strategic plan. 

Over the past six years, OER advanced more than 30 major initiatives, built partnerships with more than 200 organizations, and directly served more than 12,200 beneficiaries through capital investments and capacity-building programs supporting Oʻahu's small businesses, farmers, and working residents. 

An additional 46,595 households benefited through community outreach, door-to-door business outreach, direct access to local produce, rental and utility relief, and employee retention and workforce programs. This impact was made possible through the trust and dedication of our partners and community.

OER's remaining five program-level staff will continue serving Oʻahu's communities under the direction of the following City departments, effective August 17, 2026:

• Three Community Equity Liaisons will transition to the Department of Community Services (DCS)
• The Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Program Manager will transition to the Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency (CCSR)
• The Small Business and Finance Program Manager will transition to the Managing Director's Office (MDO)

The following active OER grants and projects will continue under the direction of their new respective City departments (detailed list of projects):

• Department of Community Services (DCS) — Continuing community outreach and equity work across Oʻahu, including a multilingual emergency-communications initiative, neighborhood career fairs and expanding the City presence in underserved communities.
• Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency (CCSR) — Continuing food systems and sustainable agriculture initiatives, including the Stations of Abundance food-access project, watershed protection coordination with federal, state, and local agricultural stakeholders, and expanding access to local food in kupuna meals programs.
• Managing Director's Office (MDO) — Continuing scaled-down small business support, including the Oʻahu Business Connector, the Oʻahu Small Business Loan Fund, and Stay Open Oʻahu (small business disaster resilience); 
• Mayor's Office of Culture and Arts (MOCA) — Continuing a federally funded regenerative tourism placemaking initiative in Chinatown to expand the Wahi Pana art installation project.
• Department of Housing and Land Management (DHLM) — Continuing two months of a federally funded fellowship to activate vacant City properties for economic development.

For questions and concerns regarding the items above, please reach out to the respective departments.

Due to reduced staffing and program funding, the following OER projects and programs will be suspended indefinitely:

Kona Low business recovery grants

• $4M in direct grants to Kona Low affected businesses on O’ahu

Economic development representation

• City staff and representation in statewide/national economic development initiatives
• Comprehensive small business support
• All direct door-to-door business outreach and community Small Business Connections hubs (Honolulu, ‘Aiea, Kapolei, & Wai’anae) offering business resources and guidance.
• Idea2Biz business incubation program in underserved communities
• Sponsorships for community small business events

Workforce development support

• All workforce development programmatic and funding support at the City level.
• This includes building career pathways in emerging sectors, funding to attract talent for high-demand City jobs, City funding for reskilling and AI programs, connecting residents to quality jobs, and contributing to statewide workforce development advisory boards.

Regenerative tourism support

• All tourism sector support at the City level.
• This includes advancing community-driven tourism and stewardship models, investing in agri-tourism, placemaking, and cultural experiences, and coordinating a five-year O’ahu Tourism Strategic Plan.

Innovation and tech support

• All local innovation and tech sector support at the City level.
• This includes kickstarting innovation projects in the City and the community, securing private and federal grants, and expanding broadband access, digital equity, and technology-sector programs.

While OER as an office is coming to a close, many of the relationships, partnerships, and programs it helped build will continue through other City departments and the community organizations that have carried this work alongside us. 

None of this would have been possible without the relationships we built along the way — mahalo for being part of that. Progress moves at the speed of trust, and in Hawaiʻi, that has never been more true.

We are grateful to have played a part in building a stronger local economy for Oʻahu, and confident that this community will continue to carry that work forward.

It has been our honor to serve alongside you. 

Mahalo piha,

Office of Economic Revitalization Team