HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0460.003 2022-2024P / LAAG
�e5.263-23
cu ua ? ' _ comm. 40
COUNTY
October 2, 2023
1073 OCT - 2 t!l R: 4 2
TO: HI County Council's Committee on Legislative Approvals and Acquisitions
FROM: Deborah Chang, Resident of Pa'auilo, Hamakua District
SUBJECT: Resolution 263-23 Authorizing the Director of Finance to Enter into Negotiations for the
Acquisition of All or a Portion of the Property Identified as TMK: (3)2-8-008:100, Situated
in the 'Ili of Pepe'ekeo, Ahupua'a of Makahanaloa, District of Hilo.
Aloha Chair and Presiding Officer Holeka Goro Inaba and Members of the Hawaii County Council:
I ask for your support of the above-mentioned Resolution 263-23. 1 was born in North Kohala and spent
part of my childhood in Honomu surrounded on two sides by acres of sugar cane as far as the eye could
see. While the subject property has a long history of sugar cultivation, the rich history and cultural
heritage of Pepe'ekeo, Makahanaloa, and the surrounding ahupua'a far predate the sugar plantations.
Acquisition of this 38.25 -acre property in Pepe'ekeo through the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural
Resources Preservation Fund (PONC) would secure this area in perpetuity for the use and enjoyment of
the people of Hawai'i. It would open the way to community -led initiatives to restore this'aina to
traditional food growing, protect important natural freshwater resources, perpetuate the unique fishing
methods that were once more commonly practiced along the pali (cliffs), and teach the younger
generation ancestral knowledge that can be applied to their lives today.
It has been over 20 years since Continental Pacific LLC began the process of subdividing the lands that
encompassed the former Pepe'ekeo Sugar Mill and its surrounding cane fields, former plantation camps
(including cemeteries) where Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, and other ethnic groups raised their families.
The subject property is part of that much larger subdivision of former cane lands. Acquisition of this
property would open the way to intergenerational sharing and understanding of the area's past and
present.
Nomination of this property for PONC acquisition came from the Makahanaloa Fishing Association,
which represents more than 100 families from Honomu, Pepe'ekeo, and Pipa'ikou. There appears to be
strong community-based desire to steward this property should it be acquired by the County, and the
landowner is willing to negotiate with the County in a property sale.
Conditions are favorable for County acquisition of this special property. Please approve Resolution 263-
23.
Mahalo for your consideration!
Comm. No. 0 • �
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