A Letter From the Defend Oahu Coalition

Here's a letter sent out to the public informing of upcoming pending hearings for the State House. Defend Oahu Coalition is asking the public to voice their opinion and support of SB 851:

SB 851 (SD1) will ensure that any future development in the Koolauloa District respects current cultural preservation rules and regulations. It also requires a new cultural assessment of the area. It will not effect existing buildings and structures. In fact, we believe that even though the wording has been changed in the latest amendment (SD1), it is still limited to the Turtle Bay Development since it is the only development that we know of in Koolauloa that got its permits before the changes in the law.

DOC believes that developers should respect Hawaii's host culture, and, given the communication between the owners/developers of the Turtle Bay Resort and the Department of Land and Natural Resources, the respectful and responsible thing to do is to follow DLNR's suggestion of a 750 foot setback for the Turtle Bay Resort expansion project. Such a setback would ensure the preservation of the sand dunes and other areas which are thought to have more Native Hawaiian burial sites.

http://www.defendoahucoalition.org/DLNR_letter_Oct_2006.pdf

NOTE: This bill does not prevent the Turtle Bay Resort expansion from going forward. It merely "strongly encourages" the developer to follow the suggestion of DLNR to set the project back and additional 100-150 feet from what their permits already require to keep the sand dunes and other areas that are suspected to have burial sites in tact, to follow the suggestions of the Oahu Burial Council, the Historic Preservation Division, and other agencies in the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

DOC does not support the Turtle Bay Resort expansion - especially given the fact that the permits are over twenty years old. Many changes have occurred over the last twenty years and we have a better understanding of environmental issues now than we did when the project was first approved.

While SB 851 (SD1) will not stop the project, DOC believes it is an important step in the right direction - requiring a new cultural assessment for the area and encouraging the developer to respect the iwi of the kupuna who lived here before us.

The bill needs to get a hearing in the House Water, Land Ocean Resources & Hawaiian Affairs as well as the Judiciary Committee and it needs to pass And, then it can be voted on by the entire House.

For more information on SB 851 (SD1) and why Defend Oahu supports it, go to: http://defendoahucoalition.org /index.php

Contact information for State House committee leaders:
Chair: Rep. Ken Ito 808-586-8470 repito@Capitol.hawaii.gov
Vice-Chair: Rep. Pono Chong 808-586-9490 repchong@Capitol.hawaii.gov
Committee Member Rep. Michael Y. Magaoay 808-586-6380 repmagaoay@Capitol.hawaii.gov