Ka'u News Briefs Dec. 3, 2011

The Ka`u High Gym, built in the 1930s, will continue to serve the school for events and athletics after the new
shelter and gym is completed. Photo by Julia Neal

HAWAI`I IN THE ASIA-PACIFIC CENTURY is the latest report from University of Hawai`i Economic Research Organization, which predicts more tourism for Hawai`i as economies grow in such places as Japan, China and Korea. As Asia-Pacific economies strengthen in coming years, it could mean more visitors coming here. 

     Tourists from Asia will be older and richer, the report states. Visitors from Asia-Pacific are valuable, the report says, with more of these visitors staying in hotels rather than timeshares and spending nearly 2.5 times more while shopping compared to visitors from the mainland. Retirees from Japan, China and South Korea “are likely to remain active and possess both the time and the financial resources needed to benefit Hawai`i tourism,” the report concludes. See more at civilbeat.org.

STATE-FUNDED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS are touted by Gov. Neil Abercrombie as examples of improving the financial management in state government, and two projects are expected to get underway in Ka`u next year. One is the raising of Hwy 11 at Kawa Flats, where flooding can make the road around the island impassable. The other is the disaster shelter and gym for the Ka`u High School and Pahala Elementary School campus for which the state has released more than $16 million to the county. Public meetings are coming up for both projects.
     The Kawa meeting on the Environmental Assessment for the road improvements will be this coming Thursday, Dec. 8 at 6 p.m. at Na`alehu School Cafeteria. The plan is to raise Hwy 11 some ten feet above grade to 46 feet above sea level. An 84-feet wide culvert, eight feet high, would be placed beneath the highway.
     The draft Environmental Assessment is available at Pahala and Na`alehu public libraries, and online at http://hawaii.gov/ health/environmental/oeqc/index.html.
     Preliminary public comments on the new Pahala gym and shelter are due next Tuesday, Dec. 6 at the county Department of Public Works. A charrette, where community members can talk to planners of the facility, will be held Dec. 19 and 20 at the Pahala school cafeteria from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
     The gym and shelter is being designed by Mitsunaga and Associates, of O`ahu. Examples of their other projects can be seen at mitsunagaassociates.com. The design is expected to be completed and the project put out to bid to construction companies by next March.

The THINK LOCAL, BUY LOCAL campaign is off and running. Mayor Billy Kenoi launched the promotion this week, saying the backbone of Hawai`i County’s economy has always been local businesses. He said buying from locally owned businesses and purchasing locally owned products only helps the local economy. Local businesses can join the campaign at www.ThinkLocalBuyLocal.org. 

CONCERTS THROUGHOUT KA`U offer holiday music today and tomorrow. The Ka`u Community Chorus, the Ka`u `Ohana Band and Hannah’s Makana `Ohana perform at free concerts at 2:30 p.m. today at Ocean View Community Center and tomorrow at Discovery Harbour Community Hall.
     The Volcano Festival Chorus Concert takes place this evening at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Military Camp Chapel in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Kilauea Drama and Entertainment Network and the chorus offer this free concert as a gift to the community. Park entrance fees may apply.

Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park's Kahuku Unit

HIKERS CAN LEARN ABOUT the People and Land of Kahuku tomorrow. This two-mile, three-hour hike, which explores pastures, a quarry, an airstrip and the 1868 lava fields, begins at 9:30 a.m. Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s Kahuku Unit is between the 70- and 71-mile markers on Hwy 11. 

THE NA`ALEHU THEATRE presents free `Ukulele Classes with Moses Espaniola from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. tomorrow morning in the Old Pahala Community Clubhouse. Lessons for persons of all ages will also be on Sundays, Dec.11 and 18, and on Sundays, Jan. 1, 8, 15 and 22. Snacks will be included. The lessons are sponsored in part by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts. The venue is provided by the Edmund C. Olson Trust. To attend, please come by and bring an `ukulele. For more information, contact Espaniola at ekolu23@yahoo.com or 345-6917 or Chelle Pahinui at chelle@cyrilpahinui.com. 

Santa and his helpers parade through Pahala Sunday, Dec. 11.

THE ANNUAL PAHALA CHRISTMAS PARADE is gearing up, with Eddie Andrade organizing the decades-old event for next Sunday, Dec. 11 at 1 p.m. Among the organizations participating are the Filipino Community Association, The Boys & Girls Club, the Catholic Church, Keoki Kahumoku and his `ukulele students, Ka`u Coffee Mill and many others who are planning their floats and their marching groups. The parade, with Santa in a sleigh and candies for keiki, travels up and down the streets to Pahala homes and makes a stop at Ka`u Hospital to visit with patients before finishing with refreshments at the Catholic Church. To participate, call 928-0808. 

CHRISTMAS IN PAHALA is being planned for Sunday, Dec. 18 at 5:30 p.m. on the corner of Ohia and Kamani Streets. “Our rural community of Ka`u has many families in need this Christmas,” said organizer Keala Kailiawa. “This will be a chance to come together as a community to talk story and enjoy one another.” The event will include Christmas tree lighting, caroling, a lucky number giveaway, beverages and light snacks. Donations of food, toiletries, toys and gift certificates will be distributed. To coordinate pick up of donations for the event, contact Kailiawa at 928-0500 or Pahala Plantation Cottages at 928-9811.

Ka'u News Briefs Dec. 2, 2011

COUNTY COUNCIL DISTRICTS were finalized last night by the Redistricting Commission, pitting Council members Brittany Smart and Brenda Ford against one another should they both decide to run and keep their current residences. Only Lee McIntosh, of Discovery Harbour, has announced running for County Council next year in District 6.

Lee McIntosh

     The final plan removes Kurtistown and Mountain View from District 6 and adds Napo`opo`o, Captain Cook and Kealakekua. Kahaualea Road in Volcano is the northeastern boundary, and the border between Kealakekua and Honalo, on the mauka side of Hwy 11, is the northwestern boundary.   

     The primary election comes early, on Aug. 11, 2012. Candidates can file between Feb. 1 and June 5. Smart is expected to decide soon whether she will run and said she would wait until the final maps were drawn.
     Open council seats will be available all around the island, including in North Kona, where Angel Pilago has said he won’t run again for Council and also not for mayor, and in Kohala, where Pete Hoffmann can’t run because of term limits. In Hilo, Dennis Onishi is finishing his last term, and South Kona is available since Ford has been pushed into District 6 with Smart. Puna also has a district opening up with the redrawing of the voting district maps.

GENERAL OBLIGATIONS BONDS totaling $1.28 billion have been sold by the State of Hawai`i, replenishing the state’s rainy day and hurricane emergency funds and refinancing its debt at a lower interest rate.
     This restructures debt and creates “a solid financial foundation,” Gov. Neil Abercrombie said last night. “What this means to you, the taxpayer,” said the governor, “is that we are lowering the amount of debt that the state has in the future. Gone are the days where we kick the fiscal can down the road. We are picking it up and facing our financial obligations to make our economy better and ensure economic stability and growth. We are lowering the state’s deficit,” proclaimed Abercrombie. 

Gov. Neil Abercrombie with Department of Ag chair Russell Kokubun, of
Volcano, Rep. Dwight Takamine and Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz in Pahala
almost a year ago for inauguration ceremonies. Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

     He said the state can be confident in moving forward on projects that were on hold because the economy was not looked upon as a favorable place to invest. He said decisions to help correct the debt situation “have attracted major investors, and the resounding success of our recent historic bond sale is the result.”
     Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Service and Fitch Ratings have affirmed the state’s credit ratings of Double A/two, Double A and Double A. Standard & Poor’s cited the governor’s “willingness to implement aggressive solutions, totaling $1.32 billion, to balance the fiscal 2011-2013 biennial budget in light of a projected budget shortfall that had reached $1.25 billion for the biennium.”
     Moody’s called the recent actions “historical fiscal conservatism,” noting that all of Hawai`i’s General Obligation debt is issued at a fixed rate, and repayment is relatively rapid with 95 percent of principal repaid in 15 years. Fitch concluded that the State’s “financial management is sound.”
     The governor said he “made the commitment to invest in education and rebuild our economy, sustain our Hawai`i for future generations and restore public confidence. We are sticking to our game plan, and it is working.”

Matson Navigation will spin off from A&B and move its headquarters back to Hawai`i. Photo from ILWU

ALEXANDER & BALDWIN, the sugar plantation owner and one of the Big Five firms which became the oligarchs during Hawai`i’s territorial years, is breaking up. Its shipping firm, Matson Navigation, will become a separate corporation, operating under its own name and moving its headquarters back to Honolulu from California. Alexander & Baldwin will continue operating agricultural and land development business, much of it on Maui and Kaua`i. 

     Other Big Five companies are either sold off or dissolved. They were American Factors, C. Brewer, Theo H. Davies, and Castle & Cooke.
     Over the years, these once all-powerful sugar companies owned much of the land across the islands to grow pineapple and sugar, before they diversified.
     Amfac diversified into Liberty House department stores, which was absorbed by Macy’s. Amfac sold land across the state, went bankrupt and reorganized as Kaanapali Land Co., with more than 5,000 acres on Maui. 

C. Brewer, which once operated sugar companies with large land holdings
in Ka`u, was one of the Big Five companies that have broken up, with the
latest split announced by A&B. Image from U. Minnesota Law Library

     C. Brewer diversified by starting Mauna Loa Macadamia, Superior Coffee, a guava plantation on Kaua`i, building the resort at Punalu`u and opening a Brewer chemical company. Mauna Loa Macadamia is now owned by Hershey’s, and Brewer’s land is sold off. Its stockholders voted to liquidate more than a decade ago.
     Theo H. Davies had a long history of owning sugar companies here and abroad, diversified into Taco Bell and Pizza Hut franchises in Hawai`i and owned the Jaguar and Mercedes Benz auto franchises. It was sold to Jardine-Matheson in Hong Kong, which sold off its assets. Theo Davies remains active only in the Philippines.
     Castle & Cooke and its Dole pineapple company and lands were purchased by David Murdoch and his Flexi-Van Corporation. It owns Dole Cannery, Dole Plantation, as well as large tracts of land on O`ahu, and almost all of Lana`i, where it built two resorts and subdivisions.

A RECEPTION AND OPEN MIC NIGHT opens Volcano Art Center’s exhibit called Occupy Art tonight at 7 p.m. at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Acts up to five minutes long can sign up on a first-come, first-served basis. It is billed as a Zero Currency Trade Event, with no admission or entry fee. Bring pupus, snacks and drinks or items to share or trade. The exhibit, which provides a venue for creative and peaceful responses to the Occupy Wall Street movement, continues through next Friday. 

CONCERTS THROUGHOUT KA`U offer holiday music this weekend. Free concerts featuring the Ka`u Community Chorus, the Ka`u `Ohana Band and Hannah’s Makana `Ohana take place at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at Ocean View Community Center and Sunday at Discovery Harbour Community Hall.
     The Volcano Festival Chorus Concert is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Military Camp Chapel in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. This free concert is a gift to the community from Kilauea Drama and Entertainment Network and the chorus. Park entrance fees may apply.

MANAGING NON-NATIVE UNGULATES including pigs, goats, sheep and cattle is the topic of public meetings sponsored by Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park next week. The park seeks comments on its draft plan and EIS to protect and restore native ecosystems. The meetings are from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday at Kilauea Visitor Center and Tuesday at Na`alehu Community Center.

Ka'u News Briefs Dec. 1, 2011

George Kahumoku, Jr. (l), seen here at the Pahala workshop last month, has been nominated for a Grammy Award
for his album Wao Akua: The Forest of the Gods. Photo by Julia Neal

QUINCE MENTO, Hawai`i County Civil Defense administrator, has retired. Mento became head of the department in 2008. “I’ve spent 29 and a half years in public safety, and it takes a toll on you,” Mento said. “This job is 24 hours a day, and I need to start thinking about my health.” 

Quince Mento

     Mento has been on the job during vog emergencies in Ka`u that began when the vent at Halema`uma`u opened in 2008. He also implemented the City Watch phone and text messaging service.
     “He is going to be sorely missed, and it’s going to be tough to fill his shoes,” said Mayor Billy Kenoi.

SEN. GIL KAHELE and state Board of Education member and vice chairman Brian DeLima will host an education forum and Q&A session tomorrow, Friday, Dec. 2 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Waiakea High school Cafeteria. He invites Ka`u parents and other interested citizens to attend. Brian DeLima, one of the nine members appointed by Gov. Neil Abercrombie, will give an update on current Board of Education issues that will include the recent NAEP assessment, finance and infrastructure, and future plans for education on Hawai`i Island. The forum will also present an opportunity for those attending to voice their concerns about the HSTA contract and any other education-related issue affecting Hawai`i Island. 

Brian DeLima

     Kahele said, “This forum will give me an opportunity to hear the concerns and issues that are affecting our teachers, parents and students on Hawai`i Island and throughout the State. As the 26th legislative session approaches in January, the feedback I hope to receive will help shape the legislation and discussions that my colleagues and I will have and introduce in the Senate. This is also an opportunity for members of the community to engage in thoughtful discussion with the vice chairman of the BOE, Brian DeLima.” 

“KA`U IS THE PERFECT ENVIRONMENT to raise many crops, including a new crop of science lovers,” reports Julie Williams, of Ka`u High School. Her story in The Ka`u Calendar this month invites the public to a Ka`u High Science Fair open house from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Dec. 14. Students have been putting in hours to develop original projects, which will be judged by local science and technology experts. Winning projects will be entered into the East Hawai`i Science Fair. It will be held in the science rooms M-101 and M-102 next to the band room on the Ka`u High School Campus. Also on hand will be advisors to help parents understand how to finance their students’ post-high school education. 

GEORGE KAHUMOKU, JR. has been nominated for a Grammy Award for his album Wao Akua: The Forest of the Gods in the new category called Regional Roots that includes Native American, polka, zydeco and Cajun artists. 

     Kahumoku has taught and performed at Pahala Plantation House over the last seven years during the Kahumoku `Ohana Hawaiian Music and Lifestyle Workshop, where his son, Keoki, brings masters to teach `ukulele and slack key guitar to visitors and local students.

A RECEPTION AND OPEN MIC NIGHT opens Volcano Art Center’s exhibit called Occupy Art tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Acts up to five minutes long can sign up on a first-come, first-served basis. It is billed as a Zero Currency Trade Event, with no admission or entry fee. Bring pupus, snacks and drinks or items to share or trade.

TUTU & ME TRAVELING PRESCHOOL offers free transportation as part of a pilot program from January 9 to 31. Transportation will be offered from Ocean View to Na`alehu Community Center, where the school meets on Mondays and Wednesdays and in Pahala to the Pahala Community Center, which meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In both areas, the program runs from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. To continue the free transportation past the pilot period, the number of program participants must increase significantly. To take advantage of the free transportation, sign up prior to Jan. 9 by calling 929-8571.

HOLIDAY MUSIC FILLS KA`U this weekend. Free concerts featuring the Ka`u Community Chorus, Hannah’s Makana `Ohana and the Ka`u `Ohana band take place at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at Ocean View Community Center and Sunday at Discovery Harbour Community Hall.
     The Volcano Festival Chorus Concert is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Military Camp Chapel in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. This free concert is a gift to the community from Kilauea Drama and Entertainment Network and the chorus. Park entrance fees may apply.

THY WORD MINISTRIES - KA`U holds its eighth annual Christmas in Ka`u Outreach on Saturday, Dec. 10 at the Na`alehu Hongwanji Hall from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. There will be singing, hula and other dance, prizes, and free Hawaiian plate lunches while supplies last. Everyone is invited. Vendor spaces are available by donation. Interested parties can call Pamela Taylor at 937-3386. This is a drug and alcohol free event. “Pack your beach chairs and bring your family for some great fun and fellowship,” said Pastor Bob Tominaga.

NA`ALEHU SCHOOL’S WINTERFEST will be on Thursday, Dec. 15 at 12:30 p.m. Principal Darlene Javar will perform a dance routine as a reward for students selling 1,000 bags of cookies to raise money for prizes for the kids.