Here’s a bit more information about the Kahala Hotel’s request to gain approval for expanded use of state-owned beachfront property around the hotel site, and to make this use permanent.
Since posting about this yesterday, I’ve received additional questions.
The photo below shows the area in question. Click on the photo to see a larger version.
The area bounded by the dotted yellow line shows the state-owned property that the hotel wants to control through a permanent easement. You can see that it’s substantially larger than the area bounded by the solid line and marked as TMK 3-5-023-041.
On the far right, just barely within the dotted yellow boundary of the expanded area, is a small white square. That’s actually a small gazebo used for weddings, although it is outside the area covered by the hotel’s existing revocable permit. A second gazebo, covered by the permit, is shown below.
I took the following photographs this morning.
The first shows the wedding gazebo built within the state-owned property covered by the existing revocable permit. The hotel’s oceanfront ground-level dining room is in the background.
A small sign, circled in yellow, shows where the state-owned parcel ends and the hotel’s property begins. There is no other signage to inform visitors they are on public property.
A staff recommendation in 2014 to prohibit the hotel from performing weddings within this area was rejected by the state land board.
The beach cabana tents shown in the photos below are all in the state-owned area. They have concrete foundations, have room for two beach chairs, and rent for $115 per day.
The blue beach chairs spread on the beach, and on the grassy area above the beach, are all within the state owned land.
The hotel rents lounge chairs for $65 a day.
In its filings with the state, the hotel’s consultants state that lounge chairs are available for public use on a nondiscriminatory, first-come-first-served basis. However, there is no signage indicating that these are available for public use.
Is public access really “public” if it’s a secret?
Even this semi-permanent bar area along the beach is well within the state-owned land.
State records show the hotel pays the state $1,244 per month for its use of the public beach and surrounding area.
Several years ago, a friend inquired about holding her son’s wedding at the hotel. At that time, the hotel was charging $5,000 to use the hotel property, plus fees for all the necessary wedding services.
More to come….
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Great photos and followup Ian!
Glad to know I can spend $65 to use a beach chair on public land! Can I bring my own drinks and snacks?
Thank you so much for pursuing this. At the same time these sweet-heart deals flourish, the public is experiencing exploitation of public spaces by commercial entities around the island, increases in parking fees to go to public beaches, other restrictions to public access to public spaces, and lack of investment in infrastructure at public parks. This example is sadly typical of the type of “public-private” partnerships the powers that be consistently push. Public expense for private gain.
Thank you Ian! I hope to be able to share this with others on Facebook. This private use of public land has to stop.
Mahalo Ian for beginning to shed some sunshine on this Enviromental Assessment DEAL between DLNR (Department of Land and Natural Resources) and the Kahala Resort Hotel. The last day for comments (30 day comment period) closed without proper notifications to the public as the Kahala Neighborhood Board did not have a Presentation much less a proper PowerPoint presentation with handouts and with questions and answers from the Community. This is hopefully yet to come with the agreement from the KAHALA Resort. The press was not notified by The Kahala Resort either. Mahalo!