Here we go–another round in the developing war over housing rights in Hawaii. First there was the Kailuan, where Kaneohe Ranch evicted apartment owners early last year after allowing the building’s lease to simply expire, circumventing a state law that requires landowners to give current lessees the “right of first refusal” if the leased fee interest is sold.

The Kailuan was the opening round of a social issue impacting some 19,000 remaining leasehold condominium and cooperative units, according to an analysis by Mike Pang of Monarch Properties.

Now Iolani School is stepping up as the second major landowner to provide notice that it is looking at development of an area that is now home to nine cooperative apartment buildings after purchasing the leased fee interest in 5.5 acres adjacent to the school.

Homeowners–and we’re talking homeowners here, not only renters–could eventually end up being evicted as a result of the school’s future expansion, although Iolani has soft-pedaled that reality.

The Advertiser reported the area purchased by Iolani includes nine coop apartment buildings and two apartment buildings.

Included in the property is a private roadway (La’au Street), four vacant lots, two individually owned apartment buildings and nine cooperatively owned apartment buildings: Diana Apartments, Lani Home, Laau Gardens, Iolani Gardens, Princess Anne Apartments, Canal House, Hale Laau, Hale Laau II and Iolani Banyan.

I haven’t looked up data on the number of owner-occupants in these buildings, although the area offers relatively low-income housing for both renters and owners.

This is not the first time the Date-Laau area has been at the center of controversy. Date-Laau was the rallying cry for housing rights and anti-development activists 25 years ago, when the landowner proposed replacing the existing low-rise structures with high density condominiums and apartments. The protests against the plan led to a voter initiative that downzoned the area, a move that was later upheld by the State Supreme Court.

I don’t yet understand whether Iolani’s purchase of the fee interest in the Date-Laau property complies with Section 514C, which appears to require a landowner to give existing condo or coop lessees the right of first refusal before selling its fee interest.

§514C-2 Right of first refusal. When the leased fee interest in land under a condominium project or cooperative project or any part thereof is to be sold to any party other than the association of owners or the cooperative housing corporation, the seller shall first provide the board of directors of the association of owners or the cooperative housing corporation with written notice delivered or mailed by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, to any two of the president, vice-president, or managing agent (if any), of its intent to sell that interest, together with a complete and correct copy of the purchaser’s written offer, which offer shall contain the full and complete terms thereof. The association of owners or cooperative housing corporation shall have a right of first refusal to purchase that leased fee interest for the same price as is contained in the written purchase offer

News reports have not indicated whether the coop buildings were offered the right to purchase the land prior to the deal with Iolani. And looking at Iolani’s own press release, it’s interesting to see how closely most news reports followed its narrative.

With several years before the current leases expire, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this mushroom into a significant political issue.

We hadn’t gotten very far yesterday morning before it started raining. Not “very far” translates into three houses to the corner of Olohu Road, a couple of houses down to the next corner (Lihimauna Road), and then maybe a couple of hundred feet towards the fire station. Then the big drops started falling. I fumbled around under my umbrella to set the camera to video and record a bit of the rain. This is the result. Just click to play the video. Nothing special. Just a wet morning in Kaaawa.

I was a little surprised to see how much it looks like “country”, narrow road, no sidewalks, lots of plants on all sides. We get so used to it that it usually doesn’t register.

And I wanted to call attention to Joan Conrow’s musings this week on blogging, prompted in part by my thoughts about the advertising issue and that “why are we doing this?” question.

She writes, in part:

I’ve learned a lot about myself, and even more about people, by blogging. Several friends have remarked on the “really weird people” who seem to read my blog, but I don’t mind, because I like quirky people, although there have been times, fortunately in the more distant past, when I was almost afraid to look at my blog because of the unruly comment section.

But that, too, taught me valuable lessons about setting appropriate boundaries and not taking things personally and letting stuff go rather than stewing.

I’ve also learned a lot about writing. Like any craft, it gets better with practice, and practice is best when it’s fun, which blogging usually is, and it’s helped me free up my public writing from the constrictive forces of mainstream journalism that shaped it.

I figure the educational aspects alone are worth plenty, and would cost a good bit if one could even find such curriculum at a university, so I keep blogging, even though it takes a good bit of time and doesn’t earn me any money.

And so it goes on this 4th of July.