Question: What is the status of the condemned properties at 5839 and 5841 Kalanianaole Highway? They appear to be abandoned.
Answer: At this point the vacated homes are secondary to the historic Kalauha‘iha‘i Fishpond on the two residential parcels that had been condemned and purchased by the state Department of Transportation in the early 1990s as part of its Kalanianaole Highway widening project.
One of the property owners, whose home sat atop the fishpond and who had cared for it over the years, went to court to prevent the condemnation but eventually was forced to sell.
During the highway project, workers damaged the freshwater spring that fed into the fishpond, which resulted in the pond drying up and the fish dying.
For years the DOT planned to auction off the properties, but nothing ever transpired.
Finally, in May 2012 it transferred “the ownership, jurisdiction, maintenance, liability and operation” of the two parcels to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.
“DLNR accepted the parcels as an opportunity to preserve the historic fishpond and present education in the community,” said spokeswoman Deborah Ward.
In November 2012 the Maunalua Fishpond Heritage Center requested a right-of-entry to conduct activities on the fishpond, including biological and hydrological monitoring, weed and graffiti control, a free public education program on the cultural and biological values of the fishpond, and ongoing maintenance.
On Feb. 22 a right-of-entry permit was issued to the center for the scientific study, education and conservation of the fishpond area. The permit is good for two years, beginning last July.
Because the center’s purposes are not commercial, DLNR is not charging rent.
The center and its volunteers will have access to the fishpond but not to the structures. No decision has yet been made on the vacant structures, either to demolish or use them.
“We are waiting on the plan from the fishpond group” before making any kind of long-term decision on the area, Ward said.
The nonprofit Maunalua Fishpond Heritage Center recently began initial scientific monitoring work, as well as community workdays at Kalauha‘iha‘i Fishpond to clear invasive vegetation at the site, said center President Chris Cramer.
The next workday is Saturday. Go to the center’s Facebook page for more information: www.facebook.com/MaunaluaFishpond.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries also has a historical overview of the fishpond in a 2010 report “intended to provide a starting point for interested parties as they begin to tackle the issues surrounding the restoration.” (See sanctuaries.noaa.gov/library/pdfs/fishpond.pdf.)
Restoring ponds
Meanwhile, a concerted effort is underway statewide to streamline permits for “the repair, restoration, maintenance and operation of traditional fishpond systems in Hawaii,” Cramer said. “These valuable systems have been damaged, but they are resilient and can be restored.
“Threats continue, which is why it’s important for the community to find ways to protect fishponds, springs and other groundwater-dependent systems.”
DLNR will be holding public hearings on all the major islands on the proposal to streamline the permitting process for the restoration of traditional Hawaiian fishpond systems.
The first hearing will be held on Oahu at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Windward Community College’s Hale Akoakoa Room 107, 45-720 Keaahala Road.
Mahalo
To the military, for providing free parking at Ford Island during the Pro Bowl on Jan. 26. A bunch of people, standing in the drizzling rain, guided drivers to the designated parking area. One person provided me with a plastic bag to protect my headphones from getting wet. Roberts Hawaii buses were provided to take us to our drop-off point. Most amazing was the organization to properly cone the exit lanes, providing swift bus service back to our cars and also preventing a massive gridlock. In times of painful federal budget cuts to many areas of government service, I would like to send my warmest aloha to whoever had a hand in providing this public service. — Stewart Chun
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