Dead tree threatens historic site
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KAILUA — A 120-foot dead hoop pine is threatening historic sites in Maunawili Valley, and several community groups want the tree removed before it falls on a cottage where Queen Li-li'uokalani wrote her famous song "Aloha 'Oe."
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There also is concern that if it falls the tree might destroy other historical plant specimens.
Paul Brennan of the Kailua Historical Society is worried that a dead hoop pine tree might fall on the Boyd House, a historical cottage in Maunawili Valley where Queen Lili'uokalani wrote "Aloha 'Oe."
The hoop pine, 5 feet in diameter at the base, most likely was part of a $200,000 investment at the turn of the last century that brought exotic trees from around the world to the site. The tree could do extensive damage if it fell in the wrong direction, said Paul Brennan, member of the Kailua Historical Society. Brennan, an anthropologist, has documented many of the sites in Maunawili during the 24 years he's lived in Maunawili Valley.
The tree stands in the midst of a 10-acre site that contains unexplored archeological sites including the queen's bath, petroglyphs, a heiau, two vintage homes and taro lo'i, Brennan said. The site is owned by HRT Ltd., the business side of the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation.
"The Kailua Historical Society believes that there is no equivalent acreage on the Windward side with as great a historical significance as this one," he said. "When you think about the buildings, the rock walls, the trees and the heiau nearby and when you think about the royalty who came frequently, we believe it adds up to quite a historic gem."
By the 1870s, Maunawili had become a hub of entertainment on the Windward side, where businessmen and high-ranking officers lived and hosted such dignitaries as Queen Lili'uokalani and King David Kalakaua. The queen used the cottage there, where in 1887 she penned "Aloha 'Oe."
Should the tree fall on the cottage, it would most likely damage it beyond repair, Brennan said, adding that if the tree falls into a row of royal palms that delineate a carriage path to the house, the palms would be knocked over.
HRT Ltd. did not return calls for comments. Land manager Bill Dornbush could not be reached.
Nathan Napoka of the state Historic Preservation Division of the Department of Land and Natural Resources said government can't force the private landowner to maintain or preserve historic sites, unless public money is involved. However, Napoka said he would be willing to speak to the landowner on behalf of the community.
"We don't have the authority to tell the property owner what to do," he said.
David Cheever, interim executive director for Historic Hawai'i Foundation, said he, too, would be willing to work with the owners and the preservation groups.
"So much of Hawai'i's history is disappearing and it's very disturbing to a lot of people," Cheever said.
At one time as many as 15 buildings dotted the 10 acres. Only two remain. A third structure had been renovated but it has since been abandoned and sits among the overgrown weeds and brush. Many of the exotic trees remain and heliconia and other plants thrive on their own, nourished only by nature.
The dead tree, with bark peeling away from its midsection, stands over the queen's cottage just feet from its trunk.
Steve Nimz, a tree specialist, said the tree has been dead for at least a year and that it could fall any time but he wasn't sure when it would come down.
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Because of the height of the tree, a person would have to climb it to cut the upper portions, and the sooner that's done the safer it will be for the climber, Nimz said. "It's become a high risk for the person climbing the tree."
Anthropologist Paul Brennan stands beside the queen's bath, one of the historical sites in the shadow of a dead pine in Maunawili Valley.
The cost of cutting the tree, if the material is left on the property, would be between $3,000 and $5,000, he said.
The Kailua Historical Society has sent a letter to the landowner asking that the tree be cut down before it falls. Other groups including 'Ahahui Malama I Ka Lokahi and the Kailua Hawaiian Civic Club support the request, said Chuck Burrows, who belongs to both organizations and has been instrumental in preserving and restoring historical sites in Kawai Nui Marsh.
If HRT doesn't want to remove the tree, the organizations would enlist the help of the community to do so, Burrows said.
Removal of the tree is only a small part of the groups' concerns for the site, he said. HRT has a restoration plan for the queen's retreat and the community wants to see that implemented.
Ideally the site, part of more than 1,000 acres owned by HRT, should be placed in the hands of a nonprofit group that can care for it, raise funds to restore buildings and then use the area educationally, Burrows said.
Vandals are destroying what remains of the two homes, and homeless people have tried to move in, he said. But the tree is the most urgent concern and Burrows hopes other arrangements can be worked out with HRT.
"We'd like them to turn over the care to a nonprofit group," Burrows said. "We'd be willing to come in any time at least to maintain the vegetation."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
