Genshiro Kawamoto's reputation precedes him, and it has tarnished his latest philanthropic offering before it's even out of the box.

Most Hawai'i residents have long enough memories and tenure in the Islands to recall his part in the land speculation upheaval of the '80s, fueling the upward spiral in property values, and when the eccentric investor preferred spelling his name "Gensiro."

And they only have to dig back a few years, to 2004, to find tales of woe when 27 Kawamoto tenants received eviction notices in Hawai'i and elsewhere, as he reshuffled his investments. In California, some renters were given 30 days to vacate, only winning an extension after a noisy outcry.

He brushed off complaints about poor maintenance, pointing fingers at his property managers and vowing to take a more "hands-on" approach next time.

If the "Kahala Avenue Mission" is the result, residents here can only hope Kawamoto can find better ways to occupy those hands.

Without diminishing the euphoria of three families chosen so far to live in his posh homes for free, Kawamoto could find a way to play the benefactor that is less showy and more effective. Many charities (the Weinberg Foundation comes to mind) have put their money to use in more lasting initiatives for the poor. And as many of Hawai'i's poor are non-Hawaiian, these charities do not discriminate on the basis of ancestry, either.

In fact, the Hawai'i Civil Rights Commission needs to keep an eye on this project for a potential housing discrimination. If Kawamoto charges rent, fair housing laws would apply, precluding making ethnicity a factor in the rental agreements.

Kawamoto may be enjoying all the free publicity he's getting, but the families he's selected may not appreciate the fishbowl in which they'll be living. That's too high a price to pay, even with the rent waiver.

It's sad that their longterm well-being has not been given full consideration.