Facebook’s billionaire CEO and his wife have nearly doubled their land holdings on Kauai with a recent purchase of 597 acres stretching from the mountains to the sea.
A company owned by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan recently bought the tract of agricultural
and conservation land
for $53 million from Waioli Corp., a nonprofit established by descendents of historic Kauai sugar plantation firm Grove Farm, started by the Wilcox family.
The land borders roughly 700 acres Zuckerberg and Chan bought around 2015 for about $100 million to establish a secluded estate in an effort that later angered numerous Native Hawaiian families and other residents when Zuckerberg had lawsuits filed a year later to force the owners of several small parcels within the larger property to sell their land at auction.
Zuckerberg in 2017 apologized for the attempted forced sale via a legal action known as quiet title, and withdrew as a plaintiff. Still, a local resident who was working with Zuckerberg and had family ties to a few of the small parcels completed a forced auction and acquired about 2 acres within the Zuckerberg and Chan estate from numerous relatives.
The social media mogul, who Forbes ranks as the fifth-richest person in the world with a fortune valued at about $118 billion, had one home built on the property a few years ago and has filed more recent permits to build a dwelling valued at about $35 million, according to Kauai County property records.
The new land acquisition by Zuckerberg and Chan covers the mountain-to-sea land division of Lepeuli, which fronts Larsen’s Beach, includes historical sites and is largely leased to cattle producer Paradise Ranch, which will continue its use of the property.
Samuel Pratt, Waioli Corp. president, said in a statement that the organization sold the land to carry on its land conservation and historical preservation missions, which include maintaining sugar plantation locomotives and operating the Waioli Mission House in Hanalei, the Grove Farm sugar plantation museum in Lihue and the historic Mahamoku beach house museum in Hanalei.
“We have seen Mark and Priscilla’s dedication over the years to land conservation, protecting native species and working to preserve the natural beauty of Kauai,” Pratt said. “We know that this land will remain in their trusted hands and that Mark and Priscilla will act as responsible stewards of Lepeuli today and in the future.”
Zuckerberg and Chan said in a statement that they are mindful of the land’s legacy and are grateful for the nonprofit’s conveyance of trust to care for the property.
“We have been working closely with a number of community partners to promote conservation, produce sustainable agriculture and protect native wildlife at our ranch and in the surrounding areas and look forward to extending that effort to Lepeuli in the months ahead,” they said.
