WAILUKU — The Maui County Council's Policy Committee on Thursday opened discussions on whether to condemn the Molokai Ranch in a forced sale, The Maui News reported today.

Committee members took no action after hearing from Molokai residents and their own attorneys on their options, but they said the discussions are a first step.

If the county moves forward with the complicated eminent domain process, it would require independent assessors to determine a fair market value for the properties and compel ranch owner Molokai Properties Ltd. to sell. But the county is required to establish a clear public purpose and would need to put up what it estimates the land is worth when it files its petition to a court.

A group of Molokai residents put together a $120 million offer for the properties with alternative energy company First Wind and other investors. MPL has rejected their overtures.

Molokai Properties owns nearly 60,000 acres including the ranch, hotels, the Kaluakoi golf course and much of the watershed in the central Molokai highlands. It shut down the ranch and hotels this spring after failing to win an initial approval for its proposed master plan to develop 200 luxury homes at Laau Point.

When asked what the county could use for justification for condemnation, Karen Holt, executive director of the Molokai Community Services Council, said that the island is dying. For more than 100 years, Molokai Ranch has mismanaged the land, she said.

Cattle grazing and other failed agricultural programs have killed the dryland forest on west Molokai. The hillsides are eroded and the coastal waters are muddy, Holt said. Three of five west side drinking wells are going salty, she said.

MPL also abandoned its businesses and laid off workers in favor of land banking, said Kaluakoi resident Steve Morgan.

The committee on Thursday voted unanimously to defer the matter.

"We are asking the county of Maui to condemn the property, so the people of Molokai can take care of the land they love," said Holt at a press conference prior to the meeting. "We are demanding courage of our elected officials to save the last Hawaiian island."

Mayor Charmaine Tavares' spokeswoman Mahina Martin said that the administration does not have an position yet on the request to condemn the ranch. She said they do have concerns about the potential cost and making certain the county's justifications for condemnation are clear.

"We need to know what the value of this land is," said Molokai activist Walter Ritte Jr. "We have gone out to find people to buy it, but these guys are coming back to us with ridiculous prices."

A county official said that MPL President Peter Nicholas and its parent company, Guoco Leisure Ltd. of Singapore, may have inadvertently provided the county with some ammunition to shoot down MPL's documented $300 million asking price.

Scott Teruya, acting county property tax administrator, said that MPL has filed dozens of property tax appeals recently, including for the ranch and lodge. For one lot assessed at more than $5 million, MPL said it is worth only about $300,000.

However, Corporation Counsel Brian Moto said that a state judge would also likely consider a lot more evidence in placing a fair market value on the property, such as the testimony of numerous appraisers.

DeGray Vanderbilt of Molokai said that in 2006 MPL's Molokai holdings were valued at $200 million. But with recent court and state decisions that set up barriers to MPL's access to its main water source and water transmission system, as well as the poor real estate market, he thinks the total value will be lower than $160 million.

"With eminent domain on the table at least it gets their (MPL's) attention to take these buyers seriously," Vanderbilt said.

Committee Chairman Danny Mateo, who holds the Molokai residency seat, introduced the issue for council discussion. He said that his community can come up with a litany of reasons to buy the ranch that go beyond the law.

However, he said he was bothered by how complex and burdensome the process is. Still, Mateo said all options must be considered, including eminent domain.

Committee Member Gladys Baisa said that Thursday was probably just the first step in a long process.

Ritte also presented a petition to the committee signed by 500 island residents to pursue that process aggressively.

He was joined by about 10 Molokai residents who came over for Thursday's meeting, members of Hui Ho'opakele 'Aina, a community group saying it hoped to purchase the properties with a package that involved private investors, donations and county support.

Moto advised councilors that the condemnation process usually takes a great deal of research, including building and utility inspections, archaeological and ecological studies, and land surveys. It could take a lot of time and money as well, he said.

"The main thing is that you know what you're getting into," Moto said.

If the numbers don't work and the county withdraws after initiating condemnation, it could be held liable for attorney's fees and other costs paid by MPL, Moto said.

Molokai residents pointed out that there is very recent government precedence for condemnation of private lands to deal with community concerns.

Earlier this year, Gov. Linda Lingle called for using eminent domain to acquire the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu's North Shore to block resort expansion plans and to provide public park and open space.

The Maui County Council signed off earlier this year on using similar measures to purchase a third segment of the Montana Beach condominium project in Paia for $4.1 million in order to preserve the natural environment, Vanderbilt said.

The appeal drew sympathy from council members, even if there was no action.

"It's obnoxious how they've let it (the island) fall apart like that," said Committee Member Michael Victorino.

Pilipo Solatorio, who used to be cultural interpreter for the lodge, said that, at age 69, he is back on family land in Halawa Valley working the taro patch.

"It would be pono to condemn the ranch," he said. "We need to teach them a lesson. … We need to do this for the future of my family."

Cheryl Sakamoto, a Kaluakoi resident, said that her property value was reduced by 20 percent when MPL informed island dwellers that it has water-access issues and wants to hand over its utilities.

Holt said that another worthwhile reason for condemnation is MPL's threats to shut down its utilities that serve about 1,200 west side residents. It is a matter of public health, she said.

The committee also discussed ongoing litigation with MPL over the company's three utilities.

County special counsel Margery Bronster was hired to sue MPL to make certain that it does not shut down its private water and wastewater utilities and force Maui County to take over the facilities.

Bronster said the company last week appealed orders to MPL by the Public Utilities Commission and the Department of Health to continue operating, calling the state's demands "illegal" without supporting information, she said.

Bronster said that the county will now pursue documents through the legal process to determine the condition of the utilities and that say what MPL's long-term plans are. She said the PUC made the surprise decision to deny the county's requests for subpoenas on those issues.

Meanwhile, the company now has three law firms working on the cases, Bronster said.

Kaluakoi resident Morgan, who does subsistence farming, said his water rates jumped in September from $400 a month to $650.

"I don't think we can even afford to grow our own food now," he said.

More Maui News at www.mauinews.com.