Update on Wailua Diversion

SUBHEAD: Meeting Thursday 12/14 from 11:00am-1:00pm at the Kapaa Neighborhood Center.

By Bridget Hammerquist on 12 December 2017 in Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2017/12/update-on-wailua-diversions.html)


Image above: Two hikers at the Blue Hole walk across the concrete diversion (at left) of the North Fork of the Wailua Rivere diversion lets only overflow water into the natural channel of the river (at right). From (https://yosemitenews.info/forum/read.php?1,64439,64449).

[IB Publisher's note: The day with article was first published KIUC announced they were changing policy on the North Fork diversion of the Wailua River. See content of email we received.]

KIUC Board's Action on to Wailua River Diversions Līhu'e, Kaua'i, HI - 12/12/17 - The Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative Board today authorized KIUC President and Chief Executive Officer David Bissell to make changes to the ditch system to return water to the North Fork of the Wailuā River at the Blue Hole and Waikoko diversions. This action will ensure that water is flowing immediately downstream of the diversions. The board also authorized the commencement of engineering design for permanent diversion modifications to ensure continuous stream flow for aquatic habitat. Construction will take place upon approval from the appropriate regulatory agencies. Additionally, approval was granted to install additional gauging stations to increase data collection and understanding of the hydrology of the system. "The hydros have been producing energy on Kauaʻi for more than 100 years and represent an important piece of KIUC's renewable portfolio and will help us reach the State's mandate of 100 percent renewables by 2045," said KIUC Board Chair Allan Smith. On December 8, the State Board of Land and Natural Resources met and approved the holdover of a revocable permit for water use at the Blue Hole Diversion, which contribute 1.5 megawatts of energy to the island's renewable portfolio.

Image above: Boulders are scattered across the diversion at the head of the North Fork of the Wailua River due to heavy winter rains. Note the diversion channel is all but blocked (at left) and the natural flow of the water is in the original river bed (at right). From (https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2017/12/11/kiuc-receives-approval-for-holdover-of-hydro.html).

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IB Publisher's note: On Friday 7 December 2017 the Hawaii State Board of Land & Natural Resources (BLNR) met on Kauai to consider the  renewal of a revocable water-diversion permit for Kauai Island Utility Cooperative’s (KIUC) hydroelectric plants that utilize water from Mt. Waialeale.

The water diversions have been criticized as illegal.  The Kiai Wai O Waialeale coalition, along with community groups Friends of Mahaulepu, HAPA and the Sierra Club, said KIUC and Grove Farm are illegally using 30 million gallons or more of water per day for the hydroelectric plants, and on days when there’s no rain, the streams are dry.

The BLNR approved the KIUC request.

Their will be a debriefing of the BLNR meeting Thursday 12/14 from 11:00am-1:00pm at the Kapaa Neighborhood Center.

WHAT:
Debriefing on BLNR decision in favor of KIUC and Gloves Farms to continue diverting Wailua River forks.

WHEN:
Thursday December 14th from 11:00am to 1:00pm

WHERE:
Kapaa Neighborhood Center
4491 Kou Street Kapaa, HI 96746

Summary of BLNR Meeting
Friday was an exciting day and I have to say that we did shine a bright light on a big issue that has received little public coverage. For those who may not have seen the news coverage of the Board meeting, here are a couple links to TV and newspaper coverage.

http://www.thegardenisland.com/2017/12/09/hawaii-news/kiuc-wins-water-fight/

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/37029649/land-board-approves-permit-to-continue-diverting-waialeale-waters-for-hydropower

For those who want to listen to the meeting Friday, here is a link to download the audio recording of Friday's BLNR meeting:

https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/15e8a4fc-0d4b-4223-8c90-a96c83b92c04

My big take away/summary is:

1. The Board was arbitrary when it denied the request for a contested case hearing.
2. The denial gives us the right to go directly to the State Environmental Court.

Based on the facts and illuminating power points presented, Kiai Wai O Waialeale may be well positioned now to file a State Court lawsuit against KIUC on the merits of BLNR's renewal of the Waikoko and Blue Hole/North Fork Wailua diversion permits while simultaneously suing Grove Farm for its 4 100% base flow stream diversions (Iliiliula, Iole, Waiaka and Waiahi) in violation of the following water use law.

The testimony offered by KIUC established that Grove Farm is also taking 100% of the base flow from four streams fed by Mt Waialeale which waters are mixed into the waters from Waikoko and Blue Hole, diversions on State land.

Grove Farm has no permits to divert those streams and should have permits because the water is no longer used to grow sugar and pursuant to Hawaii State Supreme Court decisions, when the purpose for the diversion ends, the diversions have to be taken down and stream flow restored as mandated by Hawaii's Constitution.

Most importantly, DLNR staff and KIUC admitted the water use at issue is consumptive, because the waters diverted are never returned to their stream of origin. If you read the statute below, it doesn't appear that BLNR has any authority to approve, permit or lease State waters when the use is consumptive.

§171-58 Minerals and water rights.
(a) Except as provided in this section the right to any mineral or surface or ground water shall not be included in any lease, agreement, or sale, this right being reserved to the State; provided that the board may make provisions in the lease, agreement, or sale, for the payment of just compensation to the surface owner for improvements taken as a condition precedent to the exercise by the State of any reserved rights to enter, sever, and remove minerals or to capture, divert, or impound water.(c)(3)

After a certain land or water use has been authorized by the board subsequent to public hearings and conservation district use application and environmental impact statement approvals, water used in nonpolluting ways, for non-consumptive purposes because it is returned to the same stream or other body of water from which it was drawn, and essentially not affecting the volume and quality of water or biota in the stream or other body of water, may also be leased by the board with the prior approval of the governor and the prior authorization of the legislature by concurrent resolution.

When you read the statute, Grove Farm's diversions are illegal. Grove Farm is directing water through KIUC's hydro plants and in return, KIUC releases that water back to Grove Farm and also adds the water from its State land diversions.

Not only did we have 3 solid votes against RP renewal, with each no vote the voting board member spoke directly to KIUC's CEO, David Bissel, and told KIUC to:

1. Complete their environmental studies (171.58 call for an EIS... did not understand why attorney's like Chris Yuen were speaking in terms of an EA when the statutory requirement is clear that any authorized use of State water can be permitted only "subsequent to" the acceptance of an EIS),
   
2. Restore uninterpreted stream flow as soon as possible and
   
3.  Meet with DHHL staff asap to achieve water distribution for its beneficiaries. One of the yes votes, from Chris Yuen, also made it sound like he wouldn't support them if they were not substantially along in the process by this time next year.

The other aspect that I didn't understand was why Suzanne Case did not recuse herself once it was clear that water from four Grove Farm stream diversions (IliIliula, Iole, Waiaka and Waiahi) mixes with the KIUC diversions and all runs through KIUC's power plant before being delivered to Grove Farm's infrastructure: the upper Lihue ditch (which is piped), the lower Lihue ditch and the Wailua South Fork that is 100% diverted by Grove Farm into the Hanamauulu ditch. 

Those four diversions were not part of the RP but the water from them is being used by the permittee and in return the permittee supports distribution back to Grove Farm. If you read 171.58, I can't find anything that exempts Grove Farm from a permit for their use of waters of the State. It is not right that Grove Farm directs this water to their surface water treatment plant before selling it to the County.

They claim they're charging for the delivery of water which is certainly splitting hairs because their charge is a fixed annual fee for 3 mgd.BLNR's arbitrary and capricious denial of the request for a contested case hearing, is a huge gift because we may now advance an Environmental State Court claim, having had our administrative remedy curtailed and having been deprived of due process. So rather than having the cost of an administrative hearing, I think we get to go right to State Court.

Note: Bridget Hammerquist is President of Friends of Maha’ulepu
P.O. Box: 1654
Koloa, HI 96756
friendsofmahaulepu.org
(808)742-1037

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: Waialeale Water Lease 7/18/17
Ea O Ka Aina: Kauai's Hydro Battle 7/31/11
Ea O Ka Aina: Notice of Objection 6/3/11
Ea O Ka Aina: Special KIUC/FERC Meeting 5/28/11
Island Breath: Kauai Water Diversion - as a way of life 4/9/04

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Good news for Mahaulepu ecosystem

SOURCE: Ken Taylor (littlewheel808@gmail.com)
SUBHEAD: Friends of Mahaulepu have gained standing in case against Hawaii Dairy Farm.

By By Bridget Hammerquist on 3 December 2016 in Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2016/12/good-news-for-mahaulepu-ecosystem.html)


Image above:  Dramatic view from Mahaulepu shoreline hike with the Sierra Club. Photo by Juan Wilson.

Friends of Mhaulpe (FOM) was interviewed for coverage tonight by both KGMB-Hawaii News Now and KITV. Apparently we are going to be covered several time this evening and here's why:

Judge Kobayashi finally issued her ruling, an Order on the Summary Judgement Motions that were argued 9/12/2016. As you may recall, each of the Defendants (Ulupono Initiative, Hawaii Dairy Farms and Grove Farm's Mahaulepu Farms LLC) filed a Summary Judgement Motion seeking a Court Order to Dismiss FOM's Clean Water Act Complaint on the ground that FOM had no standing to file such a claim.

Judge Kobayashi denied the Defendants' Motion and found that Friends of Maha'ulepu does have standing and our Clean Water Act Case was validly filed.

FOM filed its Summary Judgement Motion on the ground that the evidence of Clean Water Act Violations is sufficiently clear that the court could make findings of fact in favor of FOM by way of  Summary Judgement, saving the need to prove those facts at trial. In fact, the Judge did just that.

Attached is a copy of FOM's Press Release with a link to Judge Kobayashi's Order/Decision. Watch for us on TV tonight. For those who are unable to view it, we will try to capture a link and forward it in our next hui news letter.

We will be going to trial but the issues to be proven are limited to the likely discharge as a result of their violations and the damages. The Judge found for us on three quarters of our complaint.

Thanks to all of our generous supporters who have funded this effort. Our attorneys did an exceptional job. Any donations you can make between now and the end of the year will make certain we are adequately funded (see GoFundMe/Mahaulepu link) for the upcoming trial, attorney fees and expert witness fees and costs.

Contact:
Bridget Hammerquist
Friends of Mahaulepu
P.O. Box: 1654
Koloa, HI 96756
www.friendsofmahaulepu.org
(808)742-1037

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: Mahaulepu Dairy Farms Draft EIS 5/26/16
Ea O Ka Aina: Hawaii Dairy Farm faces lawsuit 6/3/15
Ea O Ka Aina: Fed up with factory farming 3/25/15
Ea O Ka Aina: NZ dairy model isn't Mahaulepu 3/10/15 
Ea O Ka Aina: Ugly show at the Cow Palace 3/1/15  
Ea O Ka Aina: Dairy polluted groundwater 1/17/15
Ea O Ka Aina: No Moo Poo in Mahaulepu 10/27/14
Ea O Ka Aina: Hawaii Dairy Farm Factsheet 10/11/14 
Ea O Ka Aina: Disquiet over CAFU in Mahaulepu 9/16/14
Ea O Ka Aina: Kauai Grassfed Dairy Fraud 4/13/14 
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Ugly show at the Cow Palace

SUBHEAD: What did we learn from Hawaii Dairy Farm open house? How guile, disinformation, issue avoidance works.

By Diane de Vries on 27 February 2015 in TGI -
(http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/guest/what-did-we-learn-from-hdf-open-house/article_a46ced8e-be4b-11e4-bf8f-73d0a52e287a.html)


Image above: A herd of cattle pause in the Cow Palace parking lot after their arrival for the 63rd annual Grand National Rodeo, Horse & Stock Show in Daly City, California on Thursday, April 3, 2008. From (http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Cow-Palace-won-t-be-sold-after-all-3218092.php).

[IB Publisher's note: Been through this on many occasions when the development speculators bring in their consultants to do a smoke-and-mirror show for the "public".  It's all public relations and eye-wash. They are merely there to grease the skids on the next big ugly thing coming our way. This is another mess to blame on Pierre Omidyer.]


I don’t know about the rest of you but Thursday night’s dairy farm meeting at Koloa School cafeteria left me angry, disappointed and completely frustrated.

I went with the hope that some of my concerns would be answered or that I would feel reassured the dairy personnel or their contractor, Group 70 International, had things under control and knew what they were doing. Instead, we received no new information but were asked to break into groups and walk to tables set up around the periphery of the room where we could have our questions “addressed.”

Were they addressed? Not at all. Instead, Group 70 personnel stood with sharpie pens in hand, next to large white note pads and wrote down the questions people were asking. There were no answers at all. In fact, the engineer supposedly responsible for the dairy’s Waste Management Plan (WMP), was not even able to say how many cows would be grazing per paddock. How could he have been the person who “designed the WMP” as the head of Group 70 told the audience?

A copy of the dairy’s current WMP is on friendsofmahaulepu.org. That plan specifies the number of acres in each paddock, the herd size and the plan’s design to rotate 105-115 cows per paddock. When asked the question about how many cows HDF plans to graze per acre, the engineer told all who were clustered around that he would have to “look into that.” And so it went.

The only thing that happened was that people with black sharpies wrote down questions to be addressed, hopefully, in the draft Environmental Impact Statement at some future unspecified date.

So no one heard any confirmation of the total cow waste to be produced, how the surrounding streams and nearby ocean are to be protected from contamination by runoff with irrigation or rains or storms, and we heard nothing about how this farm meets any sustainable criteria when the dairy plans to import grain and export the milk to be processed elsewhere by another company before it is fit for consumption by the public somewhere.

The most unsettling aspect of this meeting was the fact that the Group 70 International architects and engineers seemed to be unaware of the concerns people were voicing as they made remarks like, “Oh, you’re concerned about contamination of the drinking water in the Koloa Wells, we’ll write that down.”

As I traveled from station to station watching the faces of so many concerned members of our community I found myself wondering, “Is their ignorance feigned or real?” Neither was comforting.
So folks, I don’t know about everyone else but the reactions I saw and experienced myself, I’d say the night was a complete bust! I invite others to do the same. We need our editor and the public to know.

[IB Publisher's note: Below are three recent letter in the Garden Island on the issue of the HDF Cow Palace.]

Dairy a Risky Proposition As a frequent visitor to Kauai and the Koloa/Poipu area, we urge the citizens of this beautiful island to really ask the tough questions. We are former natives of Wisconsin, our families have roots there and some are still involved in the dairy business. We have witnessed firsthand the inception of these huge, futuristic “modern-agriculture” practices to rural communities. This is not advanced thinking, as Susan Fukumoto so aptly stated at the Koloa meeting last Thursday evening. First, there are thousands and thousands of gallons of waste that has to be dealt with on a daily basis! Where will it go? Will it be spread over unoccupied land in the guise of “fertilizer?” In your back yard? Shipped as sea cargo for the ocean? Second is the smell. Trust us — our parents still live in their 145-year-old farmhouse and it’s unbearable when the wind shifts to the northeast. Instead of a valuable property that could be sold at a comfortable profit in their golden years, now it doesn’t have a prayer on the real estate market. These are only two of many, many issues. Kauai would be the loser in this proposal. Ken and Laurie Hartwig Mayville, Wisconsin 1 March 2015

Perhaps a Dairy is Not End Goal Thirty years ago our family was invited to a tour of the Koloa Mill by the manager John Hoxey. We met John at the mill offices. On the wall was a map of the entire area. The map showed all the area under cultivation for sugar from Koloa to Mahaulepu and the amount of rain that each section had annually. What was really interesting was all the roads that were on the map. Mr. Hoxey explained that it was Grove Farm’s 50-year plan for development of Mahaulepu. The map was about 10 to 15 years old at that time. Now why would a man (Pierre Omidyar), who is a developer of high-end resorts, Hanalai Plantation Resort, want a dairy? Is the long-term goal really a dairy? Kathie Bedwell Koloa, Kauai 28 February 2015

Dairy Farm History Raises Questions Regarding HDF Does HDF want to consider relocating their eventual 2,000 dairy cow herd now, before having to move it later? The history of milking cow dairies on Kauai is one of relocating here and there until they all moved off the island of Kauai. In 1905, Mr. HP Faye started the Waimea Dairy as a part of his Waimea Sugar Mill Co. His in-laws had a dairy in Moloa’a prior to his marriage. He suggested to the Lindsay family they relocate their dairy to Waimea, which they did. Over many years, Waimea Dairy flourished through the late 1960s when the milk was delivered by milkmen as far as Hanalei. The dairy herd was about 278 milking cows. As a young teenager, through high school, I worked many dairy hours. We mulched sugar cane tops and mixed this with pineapple bran skins that were dried. We even picked keawe-tree beans as school kids during World War II for 10 cents a burlap bag! There was no “milk-flo” feed coming during the war. Keawe-tree beans kept cows cleaner, along with sugar-cane tops and pineapple bran. Waimea Dairy was always very careful about cleanliness of the cows, pastures and pasteurizing plant. Near the end of 1969, the Faye family faced a required major expense to update the pasteurizing plant. The decision was made to accept an offer from MeadowGold Milk Co. of Honolulu. They would buy the herd, take over operations, and lease the facilities. All went well until MeadowGold stopped control of nauseous odor and biting flies. Waimea Sugar Mill Co. closed operations and Kikiaola Land Co. then owned the Waimea Dairy facility. After Hurricane Iniki, Kikiaola converted the many sugar plantation homes into the Waimea Plantation Cottages. Now came the problem of dairy causing a problem with guests at the Waimea Plantation Cottages; a resort. Kind of like HDF being near the Hyatt Resort, hey? As a result, Kikiaola evicted MeadowGold, who then moved their dairy to Moloaa; not to process milk, but to produce milk from the cow herd and send to Honolulu for processing and selling. It was not very long that the local residents of Moloaa managed to evict MeadowGold, claiming bad odors and dirty runoff that polluted Moloaa Bay. This begs the question: Why not relocate the HDF now? There are many parcels that should not result in eventual eviction. Example: Kahili Mountain area. This location is away from residential complainers and business ventures. The special New Zealand grass will flourish there. The higher the elevation, the better the growth. The soil is more porous and less likely to generate major runoffs. Surely, Mr. Case and his 16,000 acres of former Grove Farm lands can find a more suitable location that is still “ag” than historical Mahaulepu. I rest my case. Alan Faye Princeville, Kauai 26 February 2015

See also:

Ea O Ka Aina: Another Pierre Omidyer Screwup 2/24/15 
Ken Silverstein resigns from Omidyer's First Look Media, slams company's 'Incompetence'.

Ea O Ka Aina: Hawaii Dairy Farm Factsheet 10/11/14
HDF's sole owner is Pierre Omidyar, through his venture capital company Ulu'pono Initiative.

Ea O Ka Aina: The Hail Mary Pass 8/27/14
Pierre Omidyar, the founder of Ebay who has his telescopic sights set on Kauai.

Ea O Ka Aina: Omidyar - NSA - Snowden 12/17/13
Pierre Omidyar's PayPal corporation said to be implicated in withheld NSA documents.

Ea O Ka Aina: Beach Blockage Push Back 6/8/12
Montage Resorts, an ultra luxury hotel developer owned by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar.

Ea O Ka Aina: Preserving What's Left 1/15/12
Billioniare Pierre Omidyar  to develop an uberluxe sites along the the Hanalei River ridge.

Ea O Ka Aina: Hawaii's Farm Future 9/27/10
Speakers such as Kyle Datta, a founding partner with Pierre and Pam Omidyar's Ulupono Initiative


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The jig is up!

SUBHEAD: Kauai's population is expected to grow by over 30 percent to 85,200 residents. Mostly on the southside.

By Juan Wilson on 8 April 2014 for Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-jig-is-up.html)


Image above: CH2M Hill Project Manager Kathleen Chu, flanked by CH2M Hill Project Consultant Paul Luersen and Hawaii Department of Transportation Head Planning Engineer Ken Tatsuguchi, present the findings of a DOT long-range plan for Kauai during a public meeting Thursday at the Kauai Peace & FreedomConvention Hall. From TGI article below.

'The jig is up" In Elizabethan times the word "jig" became slang for a practical joke or a trick. 'The jig is up' phrase derives from this obsolete slang use of 'jig'. It means your trick or game is finished, has been exposed, we're onto you now.


The state Department of Transportation is using CH2M Hill, a 26,000 person consulting firm that:

"...partners with clients in energy, water, environment and infrastructure to design integrated solutions that deliver lasting value.From major sewerage programs in London and Abu Dhabi to super cleanrooms in China, from nuclear cleanup in Scotland to major highways and airports in the United States" (http://www.ch2m.com/corporate/about_us/default.asp)

Why would little old Kauai need this firm to provide infrastructure support way out here in Hawaii, on a rural outer island?

Because there are big plans afoot. Consultant CH2M Hill says:

"Challenging times lie ahead for Kauai. The Garden Isle is expected to face a nearly $2.2 billion shortfall in transportation project funds at a time when it will also face a significant population and economic boom." (http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/more-traffic-ahead/article_f9a8e514-bd52-11e3-bfc3-001a4bcf887a.html)

Transportation departments like to spend lots of money on consultants for studies about projected population growth. This justifies ever larger budgets that dovetails nicely with the large land owners need to monitize land. Needless to say, the highways built for projected population explosions enables and enhances the realization of that very projection.

This TGI article repeated the veiled threat of large population growth by 2035 to justify a need for over $3 billion dollars in federally funded highway improvements to justify an increase of over $2 billion expended to expand our highways -  particularly on the southside. The consultants state:

"During that same time, the island’s population is expected to grow by over 30 percent to 85,200 residents by 2035. The most significant growth, according to the report, is expected in the Lihue and South Shore areas of the island."

That leads us to Grove Farms and Alexander & Baldwin (A&B). These two companies operating on southside of Kauai are land rich and cash poor. They are chafing at the bit to monitize the land in their hands by transforming thier acreage into dairy feedlots, GMO fields, resorts, and suburban sprawl.

Anything to make a buck. Well we didn't want the Superferry, we don't want the GMO companies and we will not accept the sprawl.

This kind of public meeting, conducted by the state of Hawaii and private consultants in favor of development, and with skin in the game, are in effect threats to the public welfare. This is a pithy quote by the CH2M Hill consultant at the meeting:

"whenever you pick something you must not pick something else"

 This cause reader "Eagle6" to make this comment to the paper:

I demand to know what we paid consultants for that infinite wisdom. The jig is up. I don't want to see any campaign signs, disingenuous waving, or give up one cold tax dime to this incompetent ship of problem makers and takers. Your all fired.

Advice to young people without a soul, become a consultant,spend a year at the Marriott playing golf and getting your pathetic story straight with soulless politicians.
Advice to young or old with a soul, you got my vote.

If Kauai it will not do a sad imitation of a cargo-cult by paving over the island efforts to bring on commercialization, growth, more real estate speculation. If we can hold down our population and consequent need for more food, energy and material from off-island, we will have a better chance of thriving in the aftermath of the fall from grace America is going through now.

More of the same old crap won't make it better. The jig is up!



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Koloa Camp Meeting

SUBHEAD: Meeting on Koloa Camp future with state senator Hee. Please join the community by participating. By John Patt on 10 March 2012 in Island Breath - (http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2012/03/koloa-camp-meeting.html) Image above: Kauai residents meet to discuss saving Koloa Camp neighborhood. From Joan Conrow article below. WHAT: Community meeting on ways to save Koloa Camp with state senator Hee. WHEN: Sunday on 11 march 2012 at 1:30pm
WHERE: Koloa Kauai Canoe Club This evening we finalized our plans for tomorrow's meeting with Senator Hee. We are going to gather at the canoe hale around 1:30pm. The Senator is bringing several of his staff people, and it is important to have him meet as many of the tenants, family members, and Wailani Road residents as possible. Friends and members of the KCA are welcome to help show the senator that we have community support. It is also our chance to ask the senator questions, and to firm up our plans. JoAnn Yukimura is supposed to attend. She is going to introduce her resolution this Wednesday to the County Council. Also, those that can bring food/drinks, please do so. See you tomorrow.

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Neighborhood in Crisis By Joan Conrow on 6 March 2012 for Kauai Online - (http://www.forkauaionline.com/article/Local_News/Cover/Koloa_Camp_A_Neighborhood_in_Crisis_a_Neighborhood_in_Change/3325072)

Ask folks what they like most about living in Koloa Camp, and they'll answer without hesitation: the tight-knit community.

They also speak about the sense of history, and of place, that comes from living in century-old homes that previously housed Japanese field workers on the first sugar plantation in Hawai`i. As they see it, the boxy, metal-roofed relics from a bygone era do more than provide shelter. They also reflect a local lifestyle that is fast disappearing on Kaua`i.

So when Koloa Camp residents learned, via 120-day eviction notices sent out on Nov. 8, 2011, that their landlord, Grove Farm, planned to tear down their homes and build 50 new ones, they quickly banded together.

Families living in eight homes are affected, along with tenants renting five agricultural lots. They've been given until March 8 to vacate.

Camp residents began meeting every Sunday afternoon in the canoe hale that is also slated for demolition, and soon word of their plight spread to all points of the island. Folks showing their support for the residents packed the Koloa Neighborhood Center for meetings in December and January, when Grove Farm representatives detailed the company's plans to develop Waihohonu, named after the stream that flows near the camp.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for April, with construction expected to take about three years. Company officials said the project would provide affordable homes that are in big demand on Kaua`i.

Though Grove Farm offered to give Koloa Camp tenants the first chance to buy — the two- and three-bedroom houses range from 800 to 1,300 square feet and are tentatively priced at $230,00 to $485,000 — residents said they couldn't qualify for loans at those prices.

But mostly, they didn't want to see their neighborhood destroyed, leave homes where some had lived their entire lives, say goodbye to neighbors who felt like family.

“It's historically relevant and a valuable asset to this community,” says Kepa Kruse, who grew up in the camp. “It's what makes it old Koloa town.”

Eager to find an alternative, camp residents suggested the company instead build on land it owns on nearby Ala Kinoiki Road. But Grove Farm rejected the idea, saying the 6.5-acre proposed site was about half the size of Koloa Camp. Furthermore, it would take extensive time and money to change the zoning of the land from agriculture to residential.

Residents were beginning to get discouraged when developer Peter Savio stepped forward.

He had previously helped the residents of Poamoho Camp on O`ahu buy their houses when the Del Monte pineapple plantation shut down, and he thought a similar approach would work in Koloa.

“I'm here to give Grove Farm and everyone a way out,” says Savio, who offered to buy the camp at its appraised value, which is currently unknown, for the purpose of selling it back to the residents. “We're not asking for a discount or anything less than the market value. I really would love to see some of this history preserved. That's what excites me about these plantation camps.”

Grove Farm, which did not respond to a request for comment, formally rejected Savio's offer in mid-February.

But Savio, like the residents he represents, remains hopeful.

“I believe there's a lot of support on Kauai for saving the camp,” Savio says. “I do not see a local company strong-arming the community when there's an option like this.”

Added Kruse: “The camp residents are not moving.”

In keeping with that vow, they're making plans that center around staying, not leaving. They want to apply for assistance to preserve the historical structures, plant trees to stabilize the stream banks, create a community garden that will double as a hands-on learning place for sustainable living, and share their neighborhood with others.

“I see it as a chance to pass on a community, a historic camp, an `ohana, to the next generation,” says Koloa resident John Patt.

Update...

Residents of Koloa Camp have gotten the support of Hawai`i State Legislators in their bid to remain in their homes. On March 2, the State Senate approved a resolution calling upon Grove Farm to immediately put the evictions on hold and allow the Koloa Plantation Camp tenants to remain in their homes until alternative solutions are developed. The residents are supposed to be out by March 8.

The resolution also urges Grove Farm to engage in meaningful discussions with the tenants of Koloa Plantation Camp regarding the future plans for the plantation property and the development of alternative solutions.

The resolution, which is non-binding, now goes to the state House of Representatives for a vote.

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Hawaii Senate & Koloa Camp

SUBHEAD: Senate resolution attempts to give Koloa Camp tenants a stay of eviction.  

By Vanessa Van Voorhis on 2 March 2012 for The Garden Island - 
 (http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/senate-tries-to-give-koloa-camp-tenants-stay-of-eviction/article_7a196bf8-6515-11e1-866d-001871e3ce6c.html)

 
Image above: View down the road in Koloa Camp. The way Kauai used to be. See poem below "Eviction Notice" by Rhiannon. From (http://collectionsfrommyheart.blogspot.com/2012/01/eviction-notice.html).

 Hawaii State Senate passed a resolution Friday urging Grove Farm Company to place an immediate stay of eviction and engage in meaningful formal discussions with the 13 tenants of historic Koloa Camp, who are scheduled to be evicted by the company on March 8 to make way for a 50-unit housing development called Waihohonu.

The purpose and intent of the measure is to urge Grove Farm to allow Koloa Camp tenants to remain on the property past the eviction date and assign the tenants affordable housing units once the company’s proposed development project is complete, the measure states.

“We’re just asking Grove Farm to see if there’ s potential to resolve the situation with the tenants,” said Sen. Ronald Kouchi, D-Kaua‘i, Ni‘ihau.

Koloa Camp residents have suggested Grove Farm move its planned 12-acre project to its undeveloped property on the opposite side of Ala Kinoiki (Koloa bypass road).

“It’s zoned ag,” Kouchi said, “but we can help them in that regard. It seems like an interesting opportunity because the project is less than 15 acres, so they can go through county. If it was more than 15 acres, they would have to go through state.”

The resolution was introduced by Kouchi and Sen. Clayton Hee, D-Kahuku, Kane‘ohe.
“Senator Hee talked to me about his concerns and asked if I would sponsor the resolution,” Kouchi said.

Kepa Kruse, son of Koloa Camp resident John Kruse, said Hee was instrumental in getting the resolution passed and giving Koloa Camp “a legislative voice.”

Some camp residents, such as 83-year-old Catherine Fernandez who has lived in Koloa Camp for 57 years, have said they’re not moving despite the March 8 eviction order. Others have said they plan to barricade themselves in their home.

Grove Farm spokeswoman Marissa Sandblom on Friday said in an email that most of the tenants are cooperating and that Grove Farm is working with them toward transitioning elsewhere.

“For the tenants who have taken the initiative to find housing, we have offered to reimburse them for moving expenses up to $3,000,” Sandblom said. “We offered to rent one of our Lihu‘e rental units to multiple Koloa Camp tenants. We are also working with one tenant to move their existing house to another property they own.”

Asked what Grove Farm will do if residents refuse to leave, Sandblom said, “We hope that they honor their agreement with us.”

The resolution will now go to the House for approval.

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Eviction Notice By Rhiannon on 7 January 2012 for From the Heart - (http://collectionsfrommyheart.blogspot.com/2012/01/eviction-notice.html)

 

I grew up in the town of Koloa on the island of Kauai.

I feel very fortunate to be able to have been raised the "old style".

We lived in a Plantation Camp.

Life was simple.

We had no traffic.

We knew EVERYBODY in our town.

(and EVERYBODY knew our parents/grandparents)

We never had to lock our doors. Some of us took a bath in outside bathhouses.

Going outside to play marbles meant we would go to the cane field up the road and dig marbles out of the ground to play with.

Baseball was played with a stick from the mac nut tree and rocks from the road.

The road was (and still isnt) paved. It's a gravel road made out of crushed coral.

We rode our bikes and stuck playing cards or our grandpa's old beer cans to the spokes of our bikes to make loud noises.

We played in our neighbors tree houses and knew it best to be home before it got dark or we would get 'lickens'.

Back in November, Grove Farm notified the last of the residents to live in the camp they had 120 days to vacate as they would be demolishing their homes, their lives, all their memories and making room for development and so called 'affordable housing coming from China. China? Really? We have a struggling local economy and they want to bring in prefab homes from China?

The first article came and this article followed. The neighborhood has received amazing support from the community even more so proving we are an Ohana. This past Sunday Lee Cataluna wrote an article in the Honolulu Star Advertiser posted here. Lee Cataluna's parents lived in this very camp. This neighborhood is where I lived up untill I got married. I spent majority of my life there. 

 I work in the construction industry and so I understand very well the importance of development and new construction. Change is inevitable, I get that. What I don't get is how they are evicting these people whom majority of the residents are elderly, who have never lived anywhere else in their life, who live on very strict and limited incomes to make way for development. Money Hungry. For years the camp has been so called 'shut down' so no new residents could move there. 

 At any point if someone would move out or pass away (which remember these are mostly elderly people) the house would be demolished and the lot left empty or leased for agriculture reasons. (Most lots are used to raise fighting chickens) Why they cannot continue to do this, I have no idea. But Grove Farm has decided in this tough economy they want to develop. 

To read more on the issues surrounding everything please take the time to read this blog post and the website Save Koloa Camp which was created by another lifelong resident and my childhood neighbor Kepa Kruse.

 

My question to Grove Farm is touched upon in this article written by Lee Cataluna, who's parents as I mentioned were also residents of the camp. And I have to add the photo in the post, that's my grandparents house where my mom lives till today.

 
The window on the far right was my bedroom I shared with my grandmother.

Grove Farm is proposing this new development and offer affordable homes and the residents that they are evicting will be given first chance at those affordable homes.

Published reports put these affordable homes at around $400,000.

I have two points to make regarding this:

ONE
My husband and I got suckered into purchasing 'affordable housing' 6 years ago at the height of the big real estate boom.

We purchased our home for $420,000 and took out a 30 year mortgage for $400,00 at 5.75% interest.

Our monthly mortgage payment is $2,900. 

My husband and I both have very good jobs and it's a struggle to pay our mortgage every month and make ends meet. We tried to refinance our mortgage but we cannot, why?

Because the market has shifted extremely downwards and now our brand new ocean view home is worth only $320,000 on the HIGH side.

So how is it they figure that $400,000 is fair market value of 'affordable housing' pricing? 

TWO
The rent that these residents are paying currently is $600 & $700.

The residents there are my mom's age and older up to in their late 80's.

Do they think at their age and income these residents are going to first of all qualify for a mortgage and secondly how are they going to afford it? 

Needless to say, my mom and the other residents of Koloa Camp didnt have a great Thanksgiving or end of the year.

It has been however, very encouraging to see the community come out to show their support. Thankfully my mom does have a plan and a place to move when the time comes.

Until then the residents and community is asking for Grove Farm to find another location for their planned development.

(Grove Farm does only own half the friggen island!!)

Ok, I know its been a long post I hope you've stuck around and read all the way through.

Please do take the time to read all the articles I posted links to and also check out Save Koloa Camp.

See also:
Ea O Ka Aina: Koloa Camp Petition 2/23/12
Ea O Ka Aina: Help Preserve Koloa Camp 2/16/12
Ea O Ka Aina: Losing Lifelong Koloa Homes 12/13/11
Ea O Ka Aina: Saving Koloa Camp 1/8/12

 .

Koloa Camp Petition

SUBHEAD: You can help preserve the culture of old Hawaii and hold back the Californication of Kauai. By John Pratt on 23 February 2012 in Island Breath - (http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2012/02/koloa-camp-petition.html) Image above: Photo of road in Koloa Camp from Garden Island artice stylized by Juan Wilson. From (http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/koloa-camp-residents-to-be-evicted/article_5979483c-26ea-11e1-8d4f-0019bb2963f4.html#2). IB Editor's note: Island Breath has been asked to provide access to a petition form for John Pratt. His PDf file can be accessed below. Those interested in helping save Koloa Camp can download the petition, print it, and, hopefully, obtain 10 signatures by March 3rd. The text of the petition is as follows. Aloha All, we are looking for another 2,300 signatures for our "Support Koloa Camp" petition. Each page has room for 10 signatures, and it takes about 15 minutes to fill the page. Can you please help us with the petitions? If you e-mail me, jsclyde@aloha.net, I will send you a copy. Please try and get it filled out and returned to me by the end of next week. Most of the tenants here are seniors to elderly, and the stress of the eviction is taking its toll. If we are going to prevail, we will need the help of many others in the community, and support with this petition will be very important. We, the undersigned residents and voters of Kaua’i support the Koloa Camp Tenants in their request to continue living and to purchase their homes at Koloa Camp, the location of some of the original plantation housing for the oldest sugar plantation in the state. Even as Kauai develops and changes, we must honor and sustain the people who, by their blood, sweat, tears and talent, have created Koloa Town and its sense of place. We call upon Grove Farm to withdraw their eviction notices and to work with the tenants, Peter Savio and the county to seek a win-win solution for Koloa Camp. We pledge to stand with the tenants in their fight to save their homes. Image above: A jpeg image of the petition. Please click on it for this link (www.islandbreath.org/2012Year/02/120224SupportKoloaCamp.pdf) to obtain a PDF file for signatures. .

Help preserve Koloa Camp

SUBHEAD: The residents of historic Koloa Camp are threatened by Grove Farms development plans. From Ken Taylor on 16 February 2012 in Island Breath - (http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2012/02/help-preserve-koloa-camp.html) Image above: Community members, including County Councilman Kipikai Kualii, gather to support historic Koloa Camp residents. From original email. Please join the Koloa Camp tenants and Wailani Rd residents Sun, Feb. 19 for sign waving at 4 pm near the monument on Maluhia Rd in Koloa. This is a great chance to show public support for the tenants' efforts to preserve some Inland history and to purchase their homes and halt the Mar 8 evictions. Also, come by, and sign-help distribute our petition. We need 3,000 Kaua'i resident signatures by Fri, Feb 24. See also: Ea O Ka Aina: Losing Lifelong Koloa Homes 12/13/11 Ea O Ka Aina: Saving Koloa Camp 1/8/12 .

Saving Koloa Camp

SUBHEAD: John Kruse, who was raised in Koloa, toils to save plantation rental houses for kapuna.  

By Lee Cataluna on 8 January 2012 for the Star Advertiser - 
  (http://www.staradvertiser.com/s?action=login&f=y&id=136899108)


Image above: One of the rental homes in Koloa that Grove Farms plans to tear down. From (http://thegardenisland.com/news/local/koloa-camp-residents-to-be-evicted/article_5979483c-26ea-11e1-8d4f-0019bb2963f4.html#2).

The houses aren't much to look at. Most are at least 90 years old, held together by peeling paint, rusty nails and the magic that keeps old houses going when there are people inside who love every creaking board. To some eyes, those old homes stand for all that is good about small town life.

Residents of the eight plantation homes in Koloa Camp on Kauai were given 120-day eviction notices in November. The landowner, Grove Farm, plans to knock down the houses to make room for a new subdivision with 50 prefabricated modular homes made in China. This story of old-timers fighting to stay in their humble homes is a classic Hawaii tale, but this one has an unusual character taking a lead role. Kepa Kruse, 29, has become a spokesman for the camp residents, many of whom are elderly and not given to protest signs and public meetings. Kruse set up the website savekoloacamp.com and has asked pointed questions on behalf of the old folks at community events and in the media.

"Maybe I've emerged as a voice, but it's only out of respect for the elders here. They shouldn't have this done to them," Kruse said. Kruse grew up in the camp. His father, John Kruse, a crew member of early Hokule'a voyages, has lived there for decades. When Kepa Kruse entered Kamehameha Schools in the seventh grade, the little wooden house on the end of the unpaved road was where he returned for holidays and summer breaks from the dorms. When he later left UH-Manoa to pursue a career in Hollywood, Koloa camp became a spiritual home base for him. The rain on the metal roof, the doors with the skeleton keys that were never locked -- Kruse could handle the city craziness if he thought of the quiet, starry nights back home.

 A photogenic and well-spoken surfer, Kruse won roles in the television series "North Shore" and "Off the Map" and most recently was in the Danny Glover film "Age of Dragons" and the independent film "Knots." His album "Coconut Wireless" won a Hoku award in 2011. As a protester and activist, he has taken an unusually diplomatic position on the Koloa Camp issue. "I'm not just throwing stones. I'm more for coming up with innovative solutions. One thing we want people to know is we're not against the project.

The project itself is a good idea. Just not here. Energy-efficient, a sense of community ... we want what they want. I'd love to make this community better." Rent for the camp houses is about $700 a month. Though the residents have been offered first chance at purchasing one of the affordable units in the new development -- to be called Waihohonu -- Kruse worries that none of the families could cover mortgages, which he figures would be close to $1,700 a month. "How is a 70-year-old going to qualify for a 30-year mortgage?" he asks.

Residents of Koloa Camp have been meeting every week to discuss the situation. The next meeting with representatives of Grove Farm is scheduled for Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Koloa Community Center. Kruse has postponed his return to Hollywood so he can see this situation through. "Maybe there's a way for the community to work together so that everybody gets what they want," Kruse said. "Every year they have the Koloa Plantation Days celebration and there's crowds of people spending money. And here, this old plantation camp, one of the last, they're destroying the very thing they're celebrating."

See also:
Island Breath: Save Koloa Monkeypod Trees 1/11/08
Island Breath: Stacy Wrong's personal touch 3/12/08
 .