Here we go again. The owner of ‘Aina Le‘a, the 1,060- acre tract of land in the Big Island district of South Kohala slated since 1989 for an enormous housing, commercial, and golf-course development, is now suing Hawai‘i County and … Continued
Chalk one up for the state. A big one. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has shredded the takings claims of Bridge ‘Aina Le‘a, LLC, over the state Land Use Commission’s decision in 2011 to … Continued
Last month, Hawai‘i County asked the state Land Use Commission (LUC) to rule that transient vacation rentals aren’t allowed in farm dwellings within the state Agricultural District. In November 2018, the county adopted Bill 108, which regulates short-term vacation rentals on … Continued
Another Whale Death: For the second time this year, a Hawai‘i deep-set longline vessel killed a false killer whale while fishing for bigeye tuna. The first incident occurred in January within the 200-mile exclusive economic zone around the state and … Continued
Back in 2005, when Waikoloa Land Co. and Waikoloa Cattle were working out a deal to sell off most of the undeveloped land they held, one of the key parties in the negotiations was Michael Miroyan. When the sellers learned … Continued
On May 23, the dozen or so members of the state Land Use Commission gathered in a conference room in Kona, just south of the airport most had just flown into, to hear updates on several Hawai`i island projects that, … Continued
In the coming weeks, the state Board of Land and Natural Resources is expected to decide whether or not to allow the non-profit Kua`aina Ulu `Auamo (KUA) to replace native Hawaiian educator and cultural practitioner Henry Chang Wo, Jr., as … Continued
Posted 10/05/2011 Koa Ridge, the 767-acre development proposed for Central O`ahu by Castle & Cooke Homes Hawai`i, Inc., is back before the Land Use Commission. In August, 1st Circuit Judge Karl Sakamoto sided with the Sierra Club, Hawai`i Chapter, finding … Continued
Posted 12/01/2010 “So, I’m a little perplexed,” said Donna Mercado Kim, chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means after a lengthy interrogation of Karen Seddon, head of the Hawai`i Housing Finance and Development Corporation over terms of the agency’s … Continued
(Posted 5/1/09) When it comes to meetings of the state Land Use Commission, high drama is in short supply. More often than not, you need to mainline caffeine to stay awake through the tedious witnesses and cross-examination. But the … Continued