"It's awful," agreed Benson.

"It will make traffic terrible," chimed in Ho.

When passers-by stepped up to join in, Ho immediately inquired: "Are you for it or against it?"

No one asked what "it" meant. They knew. "It" was the proposed $17 million Pupukea Village project — a 53-store shopping complex with underground parking for 220 cars that developers want to build across from Sharks Cove, a popular North Shore swimming and diving location, and a state marine life conservation district.

Folks on the North Shore last week were consumed with the coming of the shopping center. They were talking about it on the street, at bus stops, and around the corner at the health food store.

Opinion was divided along two lines — a very vocal majority eager to reel off a litany of criticisms, and a smaller group of indeterminate size more or less in favor of the center but reluctant to say so above a whisper for fear of being branded a traitor to the North Shore's cherished country lifestyle.

"These petitions are all over town," said clerk Hi'ilani Staken last week. "We've had hundreds of signatures just in here."

"We've only had one guy come in who was for it," added clerk Gitte Gonzalez. "And he was having a mental breakdown. The developers say they want to know what the public wants. Well, we don't want this."

Tom Applegate, president of Honu Group, the project's developer, said his company is committed to making sure the project is environmentally responsible. He said the concept fits the North Shore Sustainable Communities Plan because those were the guidelines used to design Pupukea Village.

"We're going to take time to look at the development over and over again to make sure it is economically responsible and responsive to the community — there's no doubt about that," said Applegate.

One thing that rankles Honu Group is the fact that Pupukea Village opponents call it a mall.

"It's not a mall," said Mona Abadir, Honu Group chief operating officer. "That's a negative connotation that they've applied to it. They're making it a very emotional issue. And there are other aspects to it — how it benefits the economy and positively affects the community."

The night before Benson, Ho and Kanaiaupuni met by the post office, some 300 residents packed the North Shore Neighborhood Board meeting at the Hale'iwa Beach Park Surf Center.

The majority had come to spout concerns about Pupukea Village. Old-timers were calling it the largest neighborhood board crowd in memory.

This row of small shops and a diner in Pupukea Village may be replaced by the proposed 53-store shopping complex. Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser

Before the meeting ended, the board passed a resolution recommending the government require Honu Group to complete a full environmental impact study. Honu Group maintains it is in compliance with requirements, which call for the company to do an less stringent environmental assessment.

For some, the controversy was more troubling than the center. Following the meeting, Judy Fomin said as president of the Sunset Beach Community Association, she must remain neutral about the issue. But she expressed fears that Pupukea Village was driving a wedge between the townsfolk.

"There were people who spoke to me about going to the neighborhood board meeting who were in favor of the project," she said. "And I truly encouraged them not to speak out. Because I thought it would turn into a yelling match.

"I don't want to see people standing up and calling each other names. I want our community to remain considerate of each other."

The company plans a number of other public meetings in which to hear and address community worries about the center.

Abadir said she's confident that "most of their environmental concerns will be answered to their satisfaction."

Applegate, the Honu Group president, said that all development in the area is governed by land-use rules that specify that commercial developments be "relatively small areas which serve the daily . . . needs of the surrounding population."

In other words, projects aren't supposed to attract additional tourists. Opponents at the board meeting were quick to point out that the number of restaurant seats slated for Pupukea Village exceeds the total number of all the restaurant seats on the North Shore.

Applegate described Pupukea Village as "a compact, low-rise, small-scale commercial area — a rural community shopping center."

When completed it would consist mostly of free-standing one-story buildings about 40 feet apart and set back 60 feet from the highway, he said. It would have tree lined landscaping, hidden parking, benches for seating, turning lanes off the main drag, and a state of the art, self-contained sewage treatment plant.

Abadir, the Honu Group COO, called Pupukea Village smart growth. She said it would provide economic opportunities not available for local small businesses and student job seekers. At the same time it would partner with the community to preserve and enhance Sharks Cove, she said.

One person who didn't mind offering a positive view of the project was Linda Robb, proprietor of the North Shore Underground and Kalani's Kloset clothing shop.

"I don't have any objection to it," said Robb, who won't be moving her own shop to Pupukea Village because she said she can't afford the fees, which would cost about three times the North Shore average of $2 per square foot plus common area maintenance.

"But I would rather see something that's got some class to it than some of these eyesores we see pop up and nobody says a word about. I think we need to change our attitudes and work towards having a much nicer look for this community, and still keep it country."

North Shore surf contest promoter Randy Rarick said he's spoken with residents who think the project is simply too large, but who wouldn't object were it scaled back.

"I'm not talking about the hard core types who don't want any changes," said Rarick, who was out of the country when the controversy surfaced and said he wasn't familiar with the particulars of the issue.

"I would say in its current form the density is way too high. But a practical, redesigned plan that provided businesses that are unavailable in that stretch right now would be acceptable. We don't need another sarong shop or ticky-tacky fruit stand."

The promise of options and convenience might be the best hope for Pupukea Village.

When noted big-wave surfer Ken Bradshaw wandered past Blanch Benson, Joeine Ho and Leslee Kanaiaupuni, he was asked outright: "Do you want the mall?"

Bradshaw paused and pondered.

"A mall, no," he finally said. "But a shopping area with a bank and a post office — hey, that would save me 10 miles a day."