Editorial: Hard times on Kualoa Ranch

Kualoa Ranch, which employed some 370 workers pre-COVID-19, is lamentably among the latest tourism-dependent businesses poised for downsizing due to ongoing economic uncertainty. Following months of furloughs, which affected more than 200 employees, the company is now doing a round of permanent layoffs.

While Kualoa is a working cattle ranch, the largely undeveloped 4,000-acre site is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places — and more than three-quarters of its revenue before the coronavirus pandemic was from tourists taking part in its recreational offerings, such as horseback-riding and jeep and boat tours.