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Jeremy Harris (continued from page 1)
Mr. Harris was most recently Mayor of Honolulu, serving two terms for the twelfth largest metropolis in the United States. Mr. Harris got his political start in the former mayor’s office where he become Managing Director of the city, later taking responsibility as Acting Mayor for several years until he ran successfully as Mayor. However, he describes himself as an ecologist first and a politician second, which is accurate as he received his Masters in Biology from the University of Delaware.

In his tenure as mayor his office was able to operate the municipality within a balanced budget while proceeding with many innovative urban projects. "The city of Honolulu was as modern as many American, Asia or Africa cities – dysfunctional. These cities are based on an urban model of consumption of surrounding resources in a pattern that is environmentally unsustainable”. Mr. Harris points out that the human population on the earth continues to grow and the lifestyle that many societies are pursing are creating the problems we are now familiar with; smog, coral bleaching, polar melting, deforestation and urban degradation, such as sprawl, traffic congestion, the erosion of the quality of life.

"With our planet in peril, society’s challenge is how to change our cities to foster positive urban growth”. Mr. Harris explained that architects have a responsibility in the formations of urban landscapes that will allow future generations to live comfortably. In Honolulu, the city was able to take on many innovative projects that not only improved the quality of life but saved the tax payers money. These projects involved not just forward thinking design but creative financing. The obstacles were at times insurmountable but through the incorporation of the community into the design process and the use of private sector and accounting, urban projects of various scales were executed during his short term in office. These projects ranged from transportation solutions to local tourist point improvements, as well as providing housing and meeting the energy needs of the city. The success of these projects has become an inspiration to other states and countries world wide. Honolulu boasts one of the best transportation systems in the world, has digitized large volumes of public records and created dialogues or "Envisioning" processes for solving problem on a neighborhood and city scale.

Fortunately during Mr. Harris's visit to Santa Barbara he had the opportunity to meet with and tour with Mayor Blum and her aids. The Architectural Community was thankful to have this impressive speaker here in town to share with us the possibilities that exist as we now grapple with Santa Barbara 2020.