The Kahala Hotel &Resort, which last week withdrew a controversial request to use the public shoreline fronting the hotel for commercial enterprises, has now said it will not resubmit the request unless all stakeholders agree.
Kahala Hotel General Manager Gerald Glennon said he plans to meet with Richard Turbin, chairman of the Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board, on Monday.
Glennon notified Turbin last week that he had asked the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to withdraw a draft environmental assessment filed April 23 by the hotel’s Japanese owner, Resorttrust Hawaii LLC.
Glennon said the hotel has some work to do with its neighbors before it makes a decision on “what direction to go.”
“We want to sit around the table and hear the concerns,” Glennon said. “We all live in the same ZIP code. We want to be good neighbors. If we decide to move forward … it will be with the full cooperation of stakeholders.”
The Kahala Hotel had originally planned to spend $900,000 to improve a 2.65-acre parcel, including leasehold and state beach lands. In return, it wanted to expand its outdoor wedding ceremonies to three state parcels from two as well as carve out enough space to offer torch-lighting ceremonies and rides in
traditional outrigger sailing canoes.
But the Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board, the Surfrider Foundation, the
Sierra Club and some Oahu residents protested the
proposal. Critics said replacing the property’s
revocable permit with a nonexclusive easement would set a dangerous precedent that favors commercial interests over public beach access, which is a hard-won right in Hawaii.
They also criticized the hotel, its owners and consultants for failing to notify key stakeholders before the draft environmental assessment comment period
expired and electing not
to provide updates to standing-room-only crowds gathered at the June and July neighborhood board meetings.
Turbin said he talked briefly with Glennon Thursday and is looking forward to meeting Monday.
“We had a nice conversation today. It sounds like we are on the same page and he is very anxious to establish a good relationship through ongoing talks with the neighborhood board and other stakeholders,” Turbin said. “The signs are auspicious and I’m very hopeful that the community will establish a good relationship with the Kahala Hotel.”
