KAILUA-KONA » A Big Island development project that has gone through multiple delays spanning two decades could lose permits that would have allowed six 18-hole championship golf courses on the property.

Hawaii County Planning Director Duane Kanuha said the construction delays and a zoning change have put the Aina Lea project in violation of conditions set during its approval.

Kanuha is recommending the Leeward Planning Commission revoke the permit for the golf courses that was issued in 1991, West Hawaii Today reports.

When Aina Lea was first approved for the courses and a golf academy, the county zoning for the land was unplanned. By 2005, the area had an agricultural designation and the Legislature passed a law preventing golf courses and driving ranges from being built there.

The courses could have been grandfathered in if construction on at least three courses had been completed by 2011. But the 3,000-acre development project, which once included plans for hundreds of townhomes and time shares, continued to stall.

Robert Wessels, CEO and manager of DW Aina Lea, said development plans are now “actually moving forward.” Infrastructure work is being done on a 1,060-acre tract, and construction on The Villages at Aina Lea could start in April, Wessels said.

The property will have 2,000 homes built over several years, with housing constructed for the local population first, followed by high-end golf course homes, he said.

Wessels deferred to an attorney for comment on Kanuha’s recommendation for the golf course permits, but he did say DW Aina Lea would likely be able to build at least one golf course on the land.

The commission is set to consider the recommendation Thursday.