Kahalu'u residents say billionaire Genshiro Kawamoto has failed to address safety concerns about overhanging trees and a blocked stormwater drainage swale, and they are seeking relief from the city.

Kawamoto owns about 130 acres on a hillside overlooking Kane'ohe Bay that abuts about 20 neighbors. He's made headlines in the Islands since the 1980s, when he bought 180 O'ahu homes and condos, allowing many of them to fall into disrepair. Most recently, his Kahala neighbors were trying to force him to maintain his properties there.

Kawamoto did not respond to a request for comment on this story submitted to his office in Japan.

Richard Pang, 85, went to the Kahalu'u Neighborhood Board after a 50-foot branch from one of Kawamoto's trees snapped but did not fall. The branch remains attached to the tree by vines and continues to hang over Pang's Kamehameha Highway yard.

Gregory Pang, Richard Pang's son, said the trees on Kawamoto's property and the hanging branch are a nuisance and a safety hazard.

"If the tree fell toward my parents' house it would fall into my parents' house," Pang said.

Richard Pang said he and his son tried to pull the broken branch down but it would not budge. Gregory Pang also said his father can't afford the $8,000 to $10,000 it would cost to cut the tree down.

At the neighborhood board's meeting on January 14, the Pangs learned that other people have had similar problems with Kawamoto.

Art Machado, a Kahalu'u Neighborhood Board member, said part of a tree fell on a bedroom of another neighbor of Kawamoto, and about 20 other neighbors face similar problems. Machado said he feels threatened by a tree looming 200 feet above his Iuiu Street home. No one has been hurt so far, but as the trees grow and maintenance is neglected, the prospects are scary, he said.

Before Kawamoto bought his land in Kahalu'u, neighbors used to go on the property to clean out a drainage swale that diverted stormwater to two catchments, Machado said. After Kawamoto bought the land, he put up signs warning off trespassers, and the swale has become filled with vegetation and debris, Machado said.

"Every time it rains, it's like a waterfall on our area because there's no drain-off," Machado said.

Runoff has eroded the ground and exposed the roots of the tall trees next to his property, Machado said. And, he added, the recent high winds had him worrying about the trees falling.

"It's a scary situation and that's what the rest of the neighbors are afraid of," he said.

City Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz said he is working on legislation to address the problem. Current law doesn't allow the government to take action, even in dangerous situations, Dela Cruz said.

"The interpretation of different law doesn't give any one specific responsibility to go in and fix this problem," he said. "It's frustrating because we're saying it's coming to the point where it's not just a nuisance, it's public safety."

Another option is to change state law to allow greater latitude in these types of situations, but Dela Cruz said that meanwhile he'll try to get a measure passed by the City Council.

State Rep. Jessica Wooley, D-47th (Kane'ohe to La'ie), said she advised Pang to write a letter to Kawamoto.

"Put in writing to Kawamoto that there is a potential liability, there is imminent danger to my house and my family's health and safety," said Wooley, an attorney. "Once that's done, then it can go to the next step."

Wooley said she's not introducing any bills on the issue this year because she wants to see if the letter or existing laws could resolve the problems first.

The Pangs could pay for the tree removal, then seek payment from Kawamoto, she said.

Gregory Pang said he doesn't know where to send the letter and hopes he gets help before someone is injured or a house is damaged by a falling tree.

"To me it's a definite safety issue, which is what government is there for," he said.