Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 16, 2010

KAHU Radio manager Demetrius Oliveira gives Hawai`i Island teachers
a tour of the station.

BELOVED KAHU RADIO manager, musician and composer Demetrius Oliveira hosted school teachers from around the island on a tour of historic buildings in Pahala. Big D's Ohana and the Edmund C. Olson Trust  are challenging the community to help raise $20,000 for surgery for Demetrius that is critical to restore his health. Olson will match up to $5,000 in donations raised by December 7. Donations can be made at the Ka`u Federal Credit Union.

Landowners and farmers are looking at easements and other methods
of protecting agriculture in Ka`u.

METHODS FOR PRESERVING LAND for agriculture and nature were explored last night at the monthly meeting of The Ka`u Chamber of Commerce. John Henshaw, of The Nature Conservancy, and Doug Sensenig, of Hawai`i Island Land Trust, explained that buying or donating development rights can make properties more affordable for farming and conservation, as their land value and taxes go down. They said conservation easements have been used in other places to take the pressure off subdividing precious farmlands. The two are working on 8,000 acres in Ka`u to be preserved by the Olson Trust for farming and nature.
     Several people attending the meeting said they are concerned about native rights of access to conserved lands and keeping hunting trails open. Cheryl Torres, of Pahala, said that local people need to be assured that they can hunt and gather in the forests of Ka`u as this is part of their livelihood. Trini Marques, of Pahala, said that she appreciates such efforts to conserve land but wants to make sure that Hawaiian rights are recognized. John Henshaw, of The Nature Conservancy, said they try to achieve a balance of preserving native species while respecting the traditions of people to hunt and use the forest for recreation and food gathering.

The Nature Conservancy preserve at Kaiholena.

     Placing conservation easements, donated by owners of small lots in Volcano, could help preserve the rainforest within in the neighborhoods between Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and state forest preserves. The idea is to keep the trees on the land and place the homes within the forest, instead of clear-cutting the houselots. This gives the birds an overstory - a bridge between the two forest preserves. Caroline Garrett, of Volcano, said she is looking into such easement ideas for her own property. Both The Nature Conservancy and The Hawai`i Island Land Trust are working on the project.

INCOMING COUNTY COUNCILWOMAN Brittany Smart said she supports the conservation easement movement and hopes it becomes contagious around the island.

SEVERAL KA`U COFFEE FARMERS are scheduled to fly to O`ahu tomorrow to oppose putting Ka`u in a quarantine area with Kona to fend off the coffee borer pest. Lorie Obra and Bull Kailiawa, both farmers of award-winning coffee above Pahala, said they hope that one farm in Ka`u that has been infested with the coffee borer will be cleared so that Ka`u coffee farms can have a clean bill of health. It is suspected that the coffee borer pest was brought to Kona by importing cheap green coffee beans from Latin America to blend with Kona coffee.

KA`U COFFEE GROWERS don't mix their beans with foreign coffee and don’t want to be included in the quarantined area. The quarantine would prevent shipping untreated greens beans from here to other islands. Kailiawa is organizing a group of volunteers to help any farmer in Ka`u with coffee borers to clean their orchards. Call 895-6099.

THE COUNTY COUNCIL IS scheduled to vote on borrowing $56 million for projects around the island during its meeting tomorrow at Keauhou. Among the projects are a recycling and waste transfer station at Wai`ohinu which is budgeted for more than $8 million. Mayor Billy Kenoi said the funding will help stimulate the economy and improve the quality of life on this island. Current Council Chair J Yoshimoto and incoming Council chair Dominic Yagong oppose the measure, saying it will increase burden the county with too much debt, costing the county $4.26 million a year for 20 years. Outgoing Ka`u Council member Guy Enriques has supported the measure.

GOVERNOR ELECT NEIL ABERCROMBIE told state Senators yesterday that he plans to help out the Kupuna Care and Healthy Start programs by releasing rainy day funds that have been held up by outgoing governor Linda Lingle. Healthy Start helps many low-income mothers and mothers-to-be in Ka`u. Kupuna Care reaches out to seniors in their homes.

A NEW BOOK ON VOLCANOES will be unveiled tonight at After Dark in the Park at 7 p.m. in the Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Visitor Center Theater. The title is Volcanoes – Global Perspectives. It was written by Volcano resident and volcanologist Jack Lockwood and professor and former Volcanoes park Ranger Rick Hazlett.

THE HAWAIIAN CIVIC CLUB will have its regular third Thursday of the month meeting at Na`alehu Methodist Church at 6:30 p.m. on November 18. Native Hawaiians and non-natives are invited to join. Call President Blossom DeSilva 929-9731 or 936-7262.

Kahuku artwork by Dietrich Varez

THE KAHUKU UNIT of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is hosting more programs to celebrate the history of Kahuku. A guided hike called People and Land of Kahuku is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday and again Dec. 18. The Kahuku gate on the mountain side of Highway 11 near mile marker 70 in Ka'u will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Participants should meet inside the gate by 9:30 a.m. for this hike. Advanced registration is not required, and four-wheel-drive vehicles are not needed. The 2.5-mile hike explores ways people have lived on the vast Kahuku lands from the earliest Hawaiian settlements through the park's current and future projects. For more information, call 985-6011.

Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 15, 2010

Kamaoa Road becomes a trail and may be a right of way connection to Highway 11.

KAMAOA ROAD WEST OF SOUTH POINT ROAD was in existence as early as 1859, according to research by former county planning director Chris Yuen. The 1.5 mile segment was apparently a portion of the road connecting Ka`u to Kona in the mid 1800s. Whether it was sold or given away during the last 150 years is being researched, and this road-in-limbo may be a legal public right of way. Incoming County Council Chair Dominic Yagong opposes selling it off to private interests, saying it could set a precedent around the island. Ka`u’s incoming county council member Brittany Smart agrees. The issue is expected to be handled by the incoming County Council, which takes office on December 6.

HAWAI`I ISLAND’S HOTEL occupancy rate lags behind the other islands in recovering from the recession. The September occupancy rate rose from 40.6 percent to 52.1 percent for the same month in 2009. The other islands saw higher occupancy rates. O`ahu reached 81.7 percent, Maui reached 63.7 percent and Kaua`i reached 58.7 percent. The statewide occupancy rate was 70.8 percent, according to Hospitality Advisors, LLC and Smith Travel Research. The year-to-date rate of 71.2 percent is third highest in the U.S., with New York ranking first and San Francisco second. Hawai`i is also second in room rates, with the average at $172.71 per night. 

A NEW BOOK ON VOLCANOES will be unveiled Tuesday night at After Dark in the Park at 7 p.m. in the Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Visitor Center Theatre. The title is Volcanoes – Global Perspectives. It was written by Volcano resident and volcanologist Jack Lockwood and professor and former Volcanoes park Ranger Rick Hazlett.

Auntie Reha Akoi

FRIENDS OF HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK sponsored a very successful fundraiser last Friday on board Holland American Lines ship Zaandaam, which docked at Hilo Harbor. The cruise line sponsored a three-course meal for everyone who bought fundraising tickets to enjoy hula, music and story telling around the theme of boat days. Falsetto singer Stan Kaina and his halau Na Leo Nahenahe o Pohai Kealoha performed along with Friends President Ab Valencia, who danced hula with his Halau Hula Kalehuaki`eki`eika`iu. Auntie Reha Akoi reminisced about Boat Days in Hilo. Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando said the mantra of the park is “We cannot do it alone.” The park is involved in forest restoration, preservation of cultural landscapes, historic structures and native species. Friends supports the park with educational programs and volunteer support. 

THE SCENIC BYWAYS PROGRAM for Ka`u will be discussed tonight at the monthly Ka`u Chamber of Commerce meeting at Pahala Plantation House at 6 p.m. This federal and state program requires a community committee to help determine the educational and informational materials to be included on signage for the highway through Ka`u. The public is invited to attend.

HOW TO PRESERVE land for nature, culture and community will be the topic of a presentation by The Nature Conservancy and Hawai`i Island Land Trust this evening. Their representatives will talk about easements to conserve more than 8,000 acres between Pahala and Na`alehu. The meeting is sponsored by The Ka`u Chamber of Commerce and will be held at 6 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House. Among the sites to be preserved through this program is the sacred mountain of Makanau. Conservation easements are being used around the state at Ulupalakua, Kuka`iau, and Hokukanu Ranches.

Peter Anderson's Nene

THE DIRECTORY 2011 is reaching its deadline for information about community groups and listings for local businesses. Sponsored by the Ka`u Chamber of Commerce, The Directory has important Civil Defense and community information and promotes local enterprise. The Directory is Ka`u’s very own phone book. This year’s cover features an image of the state bird, the Nene, by Ka`u photographer Peter Anderson. To be included in The Directory, call 928-6471.





IF YOU ARE TRAVELING TO KONA this week, look out for alternating lane closures between Papa Bay Drive and the Yee Hop Ranch Road for painting new stripes on Hwy 11. Drive safely everybody.

Ka`u News Briefs Nov. 14, 2010

Darci Baker, of Kamehameha Schools, taught choir at the Kahumoku Workshop
that culminated with live performances yesterday.

John and Hope Keawe

SLACK KEY GUITAR master John Keawe premiered a new song called Ilima, and his wife Hope created a hula for the composition performed at the Kahumoku `Ohana concert yesterday. Ilima is Hope Keawe’s middle name, and John Keawe wrote the song for her. The concert wrapped up a week of Hawaiian music workshops at Pahala Plantation House. The workshop hosted many young people on free scholarships, studying with such teachers as James Hill, George Kahumoku, Jr., Dennis and David Kamakahi and Ledward Kaapana. See a video of James Hill on YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1jGz2UkmI0.

GOVERNOR ELECT Neil Abercrombie is asking for applicants to fill state jobs. Jobs are in many fields, from Department of Agriculture, to Department of Transportation, Hawaiian Homes Lands, and Department of Health. Anyone interested can go online to http://newdayhawaii.org/apply and find an application. 

THE PRESERVATION OF EIGHT THOUSAND acres in Ka`u for agriculture and nature will be the subject of a public meeting sponsored by the Ka`u Chamber of Commerce tomorrow at 6 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House. John Henshaw, of The Nature Conservancy, and representatives of the Hawai`i Land Trust will be speaking. Establishing easements on such lands has made it possible for ranchers, farmers and other landowners to prevent subdivision of their properties for generations to come.

THE SCENIC BYWAYS Initiative, sponsored by state and federal programs, is being planned for Ka`u, and a theme is being considered - The Southernmost Scenic Byway in the U.S. More about the program will be explained tomorrow at 6 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House as part of the public Ka`u Chamber of Commerce meeting. The program is supported by state Senator Russell Kokubun, and the community is required to put together a scenic byways committee to work on the theme and educational signage.

THE DIRECTORY, the annual publication of The Ka`u Chamber of Commerce, is coming up on a deadline to submit all information on your community group and your businesses. The cover of The Directory for 2011 is the award-winning photograph of the state bird, the Nene, by Peter Anderson. Anyone wanting to be included in The Directory can call 928-6471.

CONTESTANTS FOR MISS KA`U COFFEE can request an application for the February 20 event by calling Pahala Plantation Cottages at 928-6471. Miss Ka`u Coffee Ulu Makuakane recently represented Ka`u Coffee at the Kona Coffee Festival.

THE RIVER OF LIFE Assembly of God in Pahala hosted a free and early Thanksgiving Dinner yesterday at the church, with many volunteers helping to provide the food.