Memorial Day isn’t until tomorrow, but the Friends of the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium are hosting an observance ceremony this morning at 10 a.m. Click here for details.

Tomorrow, on the holiday itself, Mayor Peter Carlisle will participate in a ceremony. Military jets will conduct a low-altitude flyover at Punchbowl after a rifle volley at approximately 9:15 a.m. 

Honolulu government offices will be closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day. Here are the details:

• Emergency ambulance, fire, lifeguard and police services will be available as usual.
• Municipal golf courses, botanical gardens and the Honolulu Zoo will be open.
• Regular Monday refuse material collections will be made and landfills/transfer stations will be open.
• City buses will operate on a Sunday schedule. (For more information, go to www.thebus.org)
• The People’s Open Markets will not be held.
• The Blaisdell box office will be closed.
• All Satellite City Halls and Driver Licensing offices will be closed.

These traffic and parking regulations will be in effect:

• On-street parking will be free, except for the meters on Kalakaua Avenue along Kapiolani Park.
• Parking will be permitted in tow away zones as allowed on holidays.
• Traffic lanes will not be coned for contra flow.
• Motorists are reminded that parking in municipal lots with meters will not be free.

Here’s where you can find Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle over the next seven days.

Saturday, May 26th

• 11:30 am—Mayor Carlisle is a guest at the Rotary Club of East Honolulu Kalama Award-Inspiring Excellence luncheon. Hale Koa Hotel. 

Sunday, May 27th

• 10:00 am—Mayor Carlisle presents a proclamation at the Waialua Lions Club 65th Memorial Day Program. Haleiwa BeachPark, Lions Memorial Tower.
• 2:30 pm—Mayor Carlisle is a guest at the USS Arizona Memorial 50th Anniversary Commemoration. WWII Valor in the PacificNational Monument.
• 5:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle is a guest at the 35th Annual Na Hoku Hanohano Awards Show. Hawaii Convention Center.

Monday, May 28th

• 8:30 am—Mayor Carlisle delivers the keynote address at the 2012 Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony. National MemorialCemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl.
• 1:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle attends the state Memorial Day Ceremony. Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery.
• 5:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle is a guest and assists with lighting the flame of harmony at the 14th Annual Lantern Floating Hawaii Ceremony. Ala Moana Beach Park.

Tuesday, May 29th

• 4:30 pm—Mayor Carlisle delivers remarks at the Hawaiiana Management Company Annual Clients Meet and Greet Event. Neal Blaisdell Center Exhibition Hall.
• 5:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle is a guest at the 95th Anniversary Celebration of the American Red Cross in Hawaii. The Plaza Club.

Thursday, May 31st

• 9:00 am—Mayor Carlisle delivers remarks at the Hawaii Association of Mortgage Professionals 2012 Annual Conference. Sheraton Waikiki Hotel.
• 2:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle delivers remarks at a community celebration for the “Be a Jerk” campaign against underage drinking.Mission Memorial Auditorium.
• 7:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle delivers the keynote address at the Honolulu Police Department’s 170th Police Recruit Class Graduation. Hawaii Okinawa Center.

Friday, June 1st

• 11:00 am—Mayor Carlisle delivers remarks at a groundbreaking ceremony for Kooloaula Phase 1 Residential Apartments.Keahumoa Parkway, East Kapolei.
• 6:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle delivers the keynote address at the Le Jardin Academy Graduation Ceremony for the Class of 2012. Le Jardin Academy, Wang Gymnasium.
• 7:00 pm—Mayor Carlisle is a guest at the International Boxing Federation and United States Boxing Association 29th Annual Convention. Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Honolulu mayoral candidate Ben Cayetano will skip a candidate forum Tuesday that he initially said he would attend.

An official with Cayetano’s campaign said the former governor can’t go to the question-and-answer session due to a scheduling conflict that arose subsequent to accepting the invite. His camp denied to elaborate on the conflict.

With Cayetano out, this leaves Mayor Peter Carlisle and fellow pro-rail candidate and former Honolulu Managing Director Kirk Caldwell to duke it out. I wonder what they’ll talk about…

Tuesday’s debate, which will be held at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Tapa Tower, is hosted by the Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association. It will also feature candidates running for retiring U.S. Senator Dan Akaka’s seat.

Those candidates include Congresswoman Mazie Hirono and Ed Case, both Democrats, and Republican challenger John Carroll. Linda Lingle is not listed as a participant.

— Nick Grube

It’s been a pretty crazy week for the mayoral race, with two debates in the books. I’m not giving you a full recap of today’s breakfast panel hosted by a real estate trade organization — suffice it to say that it focused on development and permitting as well as the usual issues of infrastructure and rail.

One of the most heated moments came in closing statements, when Mayor Peter Carlisle went after his opponents for their positions on the controversial rail project.

“Now we need somebody who’s committed to see it to its end. We don’t somebody who’s committed to killing it. We don’t need somebody who’s going to become wishy-washy when there is adversity or the winds of public opinion swirl,” Carlisle said. “Now it’s time for persistence and perseverance. … We do not need people who are going to be weak or hostile to rail.”

“Killing” and “hostile” are clear references to Ben Cayetano. “Wishy-washy” and “weak” are pointed at Kirk Caldwell, who earlier this week unveiled a “build rail better” campaign that promised another go-round of public input on the downtown segment of the system.

Caldwell shot back in his own closing argument, saying that Carlisle’s position of plowing forward despite public concerns amounts to, “It’s my way or the highway. Sit down. Shut up. We’re building it. That doesn’t work in this community.”

I didn’t have a chance to make it to the Honolulu Planning Commission meeting this morning where the topic of discussion was extending the life of the Waimanalo Gulch landfill beyond July.

Part of it was just being busy, but part of it was that I believed the decision was kind of moot considering the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that the condition closing the landfill could not be sustained.

KHON reports that the Planning Commission today delayed a decision for six months — that’s after the deadline.

Civil Beat’s tracking advertising buys on television this election season, and mayoral candidates are getting into the act.

Honolulu mayoral candidates Ben Cayetano and Kirk Caldwell bought a handful of TV commercials this week, according to Civil Beat’s review of the public files.

…

Both still have a long way to go to catch up with Mayor Peter Carlisle, who has bought ads all the way through the Aug. 11 primary.

Read Sanjeev Ranabhat’s story for the details: The Public File: Mayoral Candidates Join Ad-Buying Race

Something to look forward to, so mark it down on your calendar. From The Beat:

Civil Beat is teaming up with our TV partner, KITV News, to host a mayoral debate on July 11.

The 90-minute debate is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live from KITV’s studio. News anchor Paula Akana will moderate and the three candidates — Mayor Peter Carlisle and challengers Ben Cayetano and Kirk Caldwell — will answer questions from a panel of journalists.

Mayor Peter Carlisle has called a 3 p.m. press conference to sign the “Complete Streets” bill that would set the stage for Honolulu to design its roadways for safer pedestrian and bike access.

The bill passed the Honolulu City Council earlier this month.

Carlisle will be flanked by council Transportation Chair Breene Harimoto and Transportation Services Director Wayne Yoshioka.

UPDATE: Carlisle signed the bill and put out a statement after the press conference. Here’s a quote from it:

Complete Streets recognizes that motorists are not the only ones who use public streets and facilities, so the needs of other transportation modes and users must be included.

Ikaika Anderson will file his re-election paperwork in a few minutes.

Honolulu City Council Vice Chair Ikaika Anderson, with his wife Lisa, and their children at his side, will file papers for re-election tomorrow afternoon at 12:30 at Honolulu Hale. Also joining Anderson will be campaign chair Brooke Wilson, and co-finance chairs David Rae and Oswald Stender. Anderson will file for re-election to represent District 3 on the Honolulu City Council, which encompasses Kailua, Kaneohe, Waimanalo and Ahuimanu.

Anderson will be the first candidate to file for the seat. Chad Kaukani pulled papers last month but has yet to file, according to the most recent report.

The deadline is June 5.

UPDATE: Anderson did indeed file his paperwork. Photographic evidence above, courtesy of Friends of Ikaika Anderson.

Now that the legislative session is over, Vice Speaker Joey Manahan can turn his full attention to his race for Honolulu City Council.

Manahan will hold his fourth fundraiser of the election cycle — and second as a declared candidate for the District 7 council seat being vacated by the term-limited Romy Cachola — tonight, according to a filing with the Campaign Spending Commission.

Cachola is going to run for Manahan’s seat in the Hawaii House of Representatives.

Tonight’s fundraiser starts at 6:15 p.m. at the Hibiscus Room at the Ala Moana Hotel. Manahan’s asking for $75 per person.

About 36 hours after they were on the stage together for the first televised debate, Peter Carlisle, Kirk Caldwell and Ben Cayetano are getting together for breakfast.

A commercial real estate industry trade organization called NAIOP Hawaii (I still haven’t figured out what the acronym stands for) is hosting a forum with the mayoral candidates to hear their policy positions on issues with significant implications for Honolulu’s commercial real estate community.

Rocco Sansone is moderating and will ask questions about entitlements and permitting, sewer infrastructure and urban vs. suburban growth, according to a press release.

The event is from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Plaza Club.

My recap of today’s oral arguments: Supreme Court: Can Rail Avoid Hawaiian Burials?

Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle today presented the Paramedic of the Year award to City employee Lorrin Okumura and the Honolulu Lifesaver Award to Iolani School Health Director Shannon Yonamine, according to a press release.

Okumura developed critical department safety programs and was also involved in developing an infectious disease exposure plan for the City.

Yonamine was recognized for her performance and quick response in saving the life of a colleague who suffered cardiac arrest on May 4, 2012.

Jason H. Nunogawa, Palolo pool manager, and Pool Aides Deborah J. Chun and Lana Chun were also selected for Honolulu Lifesaver Awards for saving the life of a resident who suffered cardiac arrest at the pool on June 20, 2011.

Earlier today, I shared with you Ben Cayetano’s response to our story where he repeated his claim that the Pacific Resource Partnership ran a push poll against him. He also threatened to sue PRP chief John White over the “smear campaign.”

This afternoon, PRP hit back, putting out a press release reiterating the claims it made yesterday.

We will not be silenced by bully tactics and threats of lawsuits. We maintain that these illegal donations are directly tied to non bid contracts awarded by the Cayetano administration. They are part of the pay to play culture that permeated the Cayetano campaign and his administration. His record as governor should be reviewed as he tries to resurrect his political career to become Honolulu’s next mayor.

Cayetano’s campaign also reached out today to share the 2006 Attorney General opinion that effectively instructs the Campaign Spending Commission to forgive debts when a campaign is unable to remit money collected from illegal contributions. Here’s the conclusion paragraph, which backs up Cayetano’s argument that he’s not obligated to pay back the $531,000 his campaign owed after he left office a decade ago.

Given that we cannot simply impute knowledge of a false name contribution, it would be inappropriate to penalize the candidate by treating the reference to “escheat” as being the equivalent of a fine. … As such, the term “escheat” is simply a forfeiture of whatever the candidate’s committee has up to the amount of the false name contribution.

Read the full letter here: