HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0459.179 2024-2026From:
RSpencerOrn N
Sent:
Tuesday, September 16, 2025 11:37 AM
cC_J
To:
Council Testimony "'o
:2nc
Subject:
RE: SUPPORT Resolution 286-25 The use of PONC Funds for Honolulu Landing
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Acquisition
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Aloha kakou,
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My name is Renee Tello Spencer and I testify today in strong support of the protection of Honolulu, Puna.
I come before you in deep kuleana to speak for the 'aina, for our kupuna, and for the future of our keiki.
I strongly urge the Department of Finance to use PONC funds to purchase and protect Honolulu Landing.
This wahi pan@ is not simply land for sale. It is a living ancestor, a cultural and spiritual foundation that
cannot be commodified or replaced.
If Honolulu Landing is sold to foreign investors or private developers, the consequences will ripple far
beyond this one place. For Puna as a whole, development means:
o Overburdened Infrastructure: Our roads are already narrow and limited, yet traffic is increasing.
Development at Honolulu Landing would funnel more cars into rural corridors never designed for
such capacity.
o Water Insecurity: Puna relies on fragile catchment and limited water systems. Large-scale
development will place unsustainable demands on water resources, threatening both residents and
ecosystems.
o Loss of Access and Heritage: Honolulu Landing contains historic coastal trails, villages, and
cultural features that tie us directly to our kupuna. Once covered by concrete, our mo'ok'auhau will
be silenced forever.
o Community Displacement: Foreign investment drives up property values and taxes, forcing local
families off the land their ancestors stewarded. This is not just development
it is erasure.
Puna has already carried the heaviest burdens of unchecked growth. We face insufficient infrastructure,
long commutes, limited healthcare access, and fragile utilities. Adding luxury developments or speculative
projects only deepens inequities and disregards the rural character of our community.
More importantly, for Native Hawaiians, 'aina is not a commodity. 'Aina is kupuna. To sell or destroy this
place is to wound our ancestors and sever the living relationship that sustains us.
The PONC Fund exists to prevent this exact harm: to protect wahi pana of cultural, historical, and
environmental importance before they are lost to speculation and profit.
By purchasing Honolulu Landing with PONC funds, you affirm that this land is not for sale to the highest
bidder - it belongs to the people, to our heritage, and to future generations. This action will preserve
access, safeguard natural resources, and ensure that Honolulu Landing remains a place of learning,
connection, and healing.
I urge you to act swiftly and decisively. Do not let Honolulu Landing become another casualty of foreign
development. Let it remain, forever, as it was intended: a place of life, culture, education, and aloha 'aina.
Mahalo nui for your time and for honoring this kuleana.
Me ka ha'aha'a,
Renee TeRo Spencer
Comm.
Ref. To:'
Ref. Date SFP 1 7 202;