HONOLULU STAR-BULLETIN / 2002
Kona resident Dennis Hart looked over land in February at Kiilae in South Kona where his ancestors lived.
Big Isle historical park KIILAE, South Kona >> Dennis Hart wants to see his ancestral land in South Kona preserved from development and cultural sites safe from destruction.
to get more acreage
By Rod Thompson
rthompson@starbulletin.com
The land includes the former village of Kiilae, inhabited until the 1930s, and numerous archaeological sites.
It was controlled in the 1790s by John Young, advisor to Kamehameha I, and was the home in the early 1800s of Kekela-0-Ka-Lani, mother of Queen Emma, plus generations of Hart's ancestors on his mother's side.
Wayne Leslie wants Kiilae preserved. His family is from Napoopoo to the north, but they have traditional fishing rights offshore from Kiilae passed along for generations.
Jimmy Medeiros wants preservation. Forebears on his mother's side are buried there. Medeiros wants protection for the place called Queen's Bath and for the underground stream through a lava tube that provided water for Kiilae.
"Hawaiian culture is so rich (here) because it was never 'dozed. These lands are like virgin and very rich," Medeiros said.
The three Hawaiians are going to get their wish.
Congress recently authorized addition of about 400 acres at Kiilae to Puuhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park, formerly known as the City of Refuge.
President Bush is expected to sign the bill authorizing park expansion.
The next step is under way, getting money to buy 238 acres owned by the Trust for Public Land, said trust spokeswoman Teresa McHugh.
As an interim measure, the trust bought the land in October from Kiilae Estates LLC, a project of CMI Inc. of Maui which had planned 5-acre house lots on the site.
To buy the land from the trust, the U.S. Department of the Interior needs $4.1 million to add to the $500,000 it already has.
The Puuhonua park consists of 181 acres. Besides buying 238 acres, congressional bills introduced by U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) and U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink (D-Rural Oahu, Neighbor Islands) leave room for possible donation of additional acreage.
Akaka spokesman Paul Cardus expressed long-term optimism.
"The money will be there, whether it will be there this year or next year," he said.
But if Congress does not approve money this year, that extends the burden on the Trust for Public Land, which took out a loan to buy Kiilae, McHugh confirmed.
Hart is patient.
"We've got time," he said.
But he also noted that some sites at Kiilae have been damaged by vandals, and protection is needed.
Hart, Leslie and Medeiros all said Hawaiian control of the land would be preferable to federal control, but that is not possible now. Noting the limited power of individuals like himself, Hart quipped, "I can't take care of it."
