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Honolulu's planned convention center — a $300-million project at the Aloha Motors site in Waikiki — gets scrutinized from two angles in 1994. Christina Kemmer argues the center is essential for economic renewal, pointing to projected convention-visitor spending of $3.28 billion and 11,000 to 12,000 related jobs. Ken Kanter, whose association endorsed the Ala Wai Golf Course as the superior site, concedes the legislature's Aloha Motors decision is workable but constrains designers: the 9.5-acre parcel forces compromises that a larger site would not. Both guests support building sooner rather than later, noting that potential customers refuse to commit until construction begins and that Hawaii has lost business to competing cities for a decade. Roth presses on the true cost of the project, including operating subsidies and aging infrastructure — Waikiki's sewer lines are already 60 to 70 years old. Callers question whether revenues will cover costs, and one cites a 1994 Atlantic Monthly article arguing that American cities are consistently disappointed by convention center returns. Kemmer and Kanter respond that Hawaii's existing tourism infrastructure sets it apart from inland cities that have struggled with similar investments.
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