Maui development
blocks resources, traffic

Some residents want the owner
to remove a gate that limits
entry to Paukukalo shores

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By Gary Kubota
gkubota@starbulletin.com

PAUKUKALO, Maui >> Philip Kekona said he and other native Hawaiians have been gathering food and luau stones from the Paukukalo shores for generations and a proposed development threatens to take away their cultural resource.

"That place down there is very, very vital for the perpetuation of our culture," said Kekona, a Paukukalo resident.

More than 80 people attended a public meeting at the Paukukalo Community Center yesterday to discuss conflicts arising from limiting shoreline access across the 65-acre North Shore at Waiehu LLC property.

North Shore at Waiehu installed posts on the southern end of its property and a gate blocking a road on the north end near Lower Waiehu Beach Road about five months ago.

Company officials then asked the Maui Planning Commission to issue an after-the-fact permit for the installation.

Commissioners advised the company that it needed to hold a meeting with the community and discuss the request.

Paul Wenner, who developed the vegetarian "Gardenburger" and owns a majority interest in the company, said the gate and posts were installed to reduce drug use and trash dumping on the property.

He said although he doesn't know the price of homes he will be developing there, he lives in the neighborhood and bought the land to make sure it would have less density than subdivisions mauka of the property.

Wenner apologized for installing the gate and posts without a permit and said the person formerly in charge of the project has been removed as a decision-maker.

A number of residents said he should remove the gate and the posts immediately because they were put up illegally and without a county special management area permit.

"You keep saying you're sorry, but you don't correct the mistakes," said resident Luana Lum.

David Tabion said the gate has forced surfers to park along Lower Waiehu Beach Road, creating a traffic hazard.

Tabion said opening the gate at least during the day would relieve parking congestion.

Kenneth Kekona Sr., who lives on an adjacent parcel of land, said he was worried the development would increase the property taxes on his agricultural land.

Wenner, interviewed after the meeting, said he plans to allow controlled access through the north gate by next week and eventually provide a graveled parking area for 15 to 20 vehicles on his property.

He said he wants to keep the posts on the southern end of the property and install a gate to provide controlled access similar to the northern end.

Wenner plans to obtain approval from county planning officials before installing the southern gate.

The land is designated as open space in the county's Wailuku-Kahului Community plan and would require zoning and land use changes -- a process that could take at least a couple of years.

County planner Matt Niles said the developer has been given two warnings to remove the gate and posts.

Niles said after a third warning, the developer could face daily fines of $1,000 up to a maximum of $100,000.