Molokai

Article Written By: Katrina Valcourt, HONOLULU Magazine What are they? This is the only church in remote Hālawa Valley, and its members used to travel almost 30 miles for services each week. It’s a cute, tiny building, built by the current members’ grandparents in 1948. It’s also a popular tourist stop but doesn’t currently hold services, for safety reasons. What threatens them? Dry rot and termites have done major damage to the building. The congregation wants to rebuild it but discovered the land the church sits on is actually owned by someone else. “Four and a half years ago, the owners of the ranch said we could have the land free of charge,” says Pastor Rey Ayau. But, because of rules and regulations regarding Special Management Area properties, Ayau says they are not allowed to subdivide it. “We’re not a shopping center or high-rise, just a little church minding our own business.” They’re not ready and willing to accept donations to rebuild until they hold the land title and can actually move ahead. However, Maui County planning director William Spence says SMA properties are allowed to be subdivided; the church just hasn’t submitted the paperwork. What can be done? According to Spence, the church needs to get a survey of where the land is to be subdivided, which will be reviewed by the Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands, and it needs to get an SMA permit approved by the Moloka‘i Planning Commission. Ultimately, it’s up to the County to decide. After meeting with the landowner, Ayau, attorneys and others a few months ago, “We pretty much tried to clear the way so they could go ahead and subdivide. We didn’t see any insurmountable hurdles,” Spence says. He says they’re willing to work with the church to get the proper forms filled out so the members can rightfully own the land and rebuild, but no one has approached them for help. The ball is [...]

Article Written By: Katrina Valcourt, HONOLULU Magazine What are they? Named for King Kamehameha V (Lot Kapuāiwa), this nearly 10-acre beachfront grove was first planted in the 1860s with 1,000 coconut trees, one for each warrior in his army. It’s one of the last royal coconut groves and considered by many to be sacred, filled with hundreds of trees and some freshwater springs. Coconut palms usually live for 60 to 80 years, and more than half of the grove has been replanted at least three times, but some of the original trees are still standing. What threatens them? The grove is not tended to on a regular basis, which leads to haphazardly strewn fronds and fallen trees, plus a buildup of litter. On top of general disrepair, many of the trees have become infected with coconut mites and other pests and diseases, according to the Moloka‘i branch of the Maui Invasive Species Committee. What can be done? Some trees have been removed, but “Specific expertise on palms needs to be brought to bear,” says Darcy Oishi, an entomologist with the state Department of Agriculture, including assessments of soil quality and pests. The state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, which owns the area, is currently installing a fence around the grove, mainly to keep out vehicles. “We have to be vigilant in trying to keep the public safe,” says Halealoha Ayau, DHHL Moloka‘i acting district supervisor. “We’re not saying you can’t go in at all, but reasons should be limited to cultural and educational.” As of this writing, people were still entering the grove without permits and safety gear. The DHHL is also considering hiring a company to do quarterly maintenance. The Kalama‘ula Homesteaders’ Association, which has been advocating for the grove’s cleanup for years, wants to help, but president Gayla Haliniak-Lloyd says they need support from DHHL and other state officials to move forward with restoration and preservation.

Photos: Courtesy of Arleone Dibben-Young Article Written By: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? In 1930, when it was built, the Mapulehu Glass House on Moloka‘i was the largest glass conservatory in Hawai‘i. The Hawai‘i Sugar Planters Association used the greenhouse to quarantine experimental strains of sugar cane until the mid-’70s. Since then, the property it sits on has been used as a heleconia and ginger farm and a Nene hatchery. It’s currently owned by Ka Hale Pomaika‘i, a substance-abuse recovery nonprofit. What threatens it? Competing claims have prevented a clear preservation plan for the 8.9-acre property, since human bones were uncovered by a former leaseholder. Ka Hale Pomaika‘i wants to fix up the property’s main residence to house recovering drug addicts, but they’re being blocked by Hawaiian activists such as Raymond Leimana Naki and Alapai Hanapi, who insist that the structures on the property—glass house included—must be razed for a bone repository. “We want the iwi (bones) laid to rest,” says Naki. “Mapulehu has a long history of our kupuna and our chiefs.” Even if the compromise burial plan Ka Hale Pomaika‘i is proposing is approved, the nonprofit has no plans to restore the glass house, as it’s not central to the primary mission of drug rehabilitation. What can be done? As the battle continues, the glass house deteriorates. Vandals have broken out many of the hand-poured glass panes, as have hale koa trees, which are growing up through the structure. Most seriously, the glass house’s foundation is weakening, due to the disintegration of the beach sand used in the foundation concrete. The previous owner, Arleone Dibben-Young of Nene o Moloka‘i, says she got a 1997 estimate of $90,000 to stabilize the foundation [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Richard A. Cooke III UPDATE: SAVED IN 2010 The Friends of Kalaniana‘ole Hall restored the building through grants, the work of volunteers, and Mason Architects. LISTED AS ENDANGERED IN 2007 Article Written By: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? Kalaniana‘ole Hall stands empty these days, among the coconuts of the Kapua‘iwa royal grove in Kalama‘ula, but it was once one of Molokai’s most important community centers. Built in 1937 on Department of Hawaiian Homelands property, it was primarily a funeral hall, but it also served as a general gathering place, a movie theater and a place of refuge for the Hawaiian community. It was named after Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana‘ole, who was responsible for the creation of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act in 1921, and the hall remains an important artifact from that era. “It’s probably the best example of the Hawaiian vernacular in plantation architecture of the 1920s and ’30s on Moloka‘i,” says Abbey Mayer, executive director of the Moloka‘i Enterprise Community. What threatens it? Today, the hall is in almost total disrepair. The building’s footings are sinking, making it sag unevenly. Holes in the roof let the rain in; pillars have dropped as much as a foot and a half from level. Mayer says termites have done so much damage to the wood that they can’t even tent-fumigate the building, for fear of collapse. What can be done? The Moloka‘i Enterprise Community took on the restoration of the hall in 2003, but the project has gone slowly—planning mostly, with no work being done on site. In October, though, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs approved a $500,000 grant for the hall, which Mayer says will jump start the restoration process, [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Richard Cooke, III UPDATE: LOST IN 2010 On February 10, 2010 the church mysteriously burned; demolition of the structure was planned for later that year. LISTED AS ENDANGERED IN 2008 Article Written By: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What was it? Pineapple may have disappeared from Moloka i as an industry, but the small Catholic church built in 1937 to serve the sakadas (Filipino plantation workers) still stands in Kaunakakai. Molokai planner Nancy McPherson says the church is an increasingly valuable artifact from Molokai's plantation era. A lot of significant buildings have been demolished by neglect, she says. St. Sophia is one of the last ones left. Interestingly, the church is named not after a Catholic saint, but after Sophia Cook, the wife of the Molokai Ranch manager. What threatened it? The congregation wants to replace the aging structure with a new one. Maria Sullivan, who is spearheading the fundraising efforts, says it s not meeting the needs of the 300 families who attend. It's termite ridden; it's too small; there are structural problems; people in wheelchairs can't access the building. It is a sad situation. Even the church's name will be lost in the replacement; the new church will be called the Blessed Damien Church, in anticipation of the canonization of Damien. At this point, the church has raised $1.3 million of the $3 million required for the project, and hopes to hold its first service in the new church on Christmas Eve, 2011. What could have been done? Historical preservation advocates such as Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of the Historic Hawaii Foundation, hope that there's still time to find a compromise. The congregation of immigrants worked and saved to build a fitting sanctuary, she points [...]