Posted on: Monday, November 22, 2004
Community to weigh in on landowner's request for access
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser East Honolulu Writer
'AINA HAINA — A landowner wants access to its landlocked property through a Board of Water Supply road because the property fronts Kalaniana'ole Highway and is too steeply sloped for any other access, but residents in the area worry about more development on the ridge.
What: The Charles Lucas Trust will make a presentation to the community.
When: 7 p.m., Dec. 2
Where: Kuli'ou'ou/Kalani Iki Neighborhood Board meeting at the 'Aina Haina Public Library meeting room The proposal has raised a warning flag for members of the community who fear that access to the property would open the doors to additional development atop the ridge.
The property, on the mauka side of the highway, is near the Niu Valley Shopping Center at 5858 Kalaniana'ole Highway and can be reached off Mahimahi Street through the Board of Water Supply's access road, said Bob Chuck, chairman of the Kuli'ou'ou/Kalani Iki Neighborhood Board.
Water supply officials say they will wait to see what the community has to say about the trust's plans before it grants an easement on its road leading to a water reservoir, said Su Shin, Board of Water Supply chief communications officer.
The Board of Water Supply has granted an easement like this only once before to an 'Aina Haina property owner, Shin said.
Generally easements are not granted because the Board of Water Supply isn't the exclusive user of these roads.
"We want to make sure we're good neighbors," Shin said. "We want to make sure everyone is on board with this before we make a decision."
The trustees of the Charles Lucas Trust have sent letters to 70 adjoining property owners alerting them to their plans.
A meeting will be held Dec. 2 at the Kuli'ou'ou/Kalani Iki Neighborhood Board so the community can hear a presentation by the Charles Lucas Residuary Trust, Chuck said.
When the proposal first came up more than two weeks ago at the neighborhood board meeting, member Sherry Spangler said she feared that the nearly one acre of land could be subdivided into several house lots.
The land initially was accessible off Kalaniana'ole Highway, but when the road was widened from four to six lanes in the 1990s, a portion of the land was condemned, leaving a sheer cliff at the highway.
The trust looked into the cost of engineering and building a driveway from the highway, but determined it would be too costly, according to an e-mail from the trustees to the neighborhood board.
The city Department of Planning and Permitting does not have any application for a building permit for this property, said Carol Costa, city spokeswoman.
Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com or 395-8831.
The landowner is the Charles Lucas Trust and it owns 43,000 square feet of land on top of an undeveloped ridge between Kuli'ou'ou and Niu Valley. The property is zoned R-10, which means a house lot must be a minimum of 10,000 square feet.
Public meeting
