Kauai County’s planning director filed a petition Tuesday to revoke permits issued to the property owner of Coco Palms Resort, citing inaction to restore and redevelop the historic site.

Michael Dahilig filed the petition Tuesday with the county Planning Commission against Coco Palms Ventures LLC. In April 2009 the commission granted the owner a three-year extension to complete the project by Jan. 25, 2013.

Several permits for the project were first issued to the owner in 2005. The county granted the extension with the understanding the project would be completed by the deadline, but the property remains "in limbo with no foreseeable action in sight," Dahilig said in a news release.

In his petition, which will be on the agenda for the commission’s Feb. 12 meeting, Dahilig is requesting a hearing with the commission’s hearings officer on March 28.

Attorney Laurel Loo, who represents Coco Palms Ventures, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Phillip Ross, president of Petri Ross Ventures, based in Annapolis, Md., which has owned the resort since 2006, also could not be reached for comment.

The resort gained recognition as the filming site for "Blue Hawaii" starring Elvis Presley. Coco Palms was closed after it was damaged by Hurricane Iniki, which devastated the island in September 1992. Since then the property has fallen into further disrepair.

The resort along Kuhio Highway is a gateway to the North Shore, said Dahilig in a phone interview. "Having a reminder of Hurricane Iniki that continues to deteriorate along a very busy corridor doesn’t reflect well on the image of our island," he said.

"We just want something done with the property. It’s a continual reminder of the devastation of the island that has been healing since Hurricane Iniki. To have that perpetuated by the inaction of the developer cannot be tolerated any longer," he said.

Former Mayor Maryanne Kusaka, a Realtor who has been a consultant in the resort’s redevelopment, said she is saddened by the filing to revoke the permits. "I really had hoped that it would come back to its former glory," she said. "I don’t know what’s going to happen now. We’re just going to have to wait and see."

It has been difficult to put together a conglomerate of investors and funding before the expiration date, said Kusaka. "We certainly tried hard."

In an email statement, Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. said Coco Palms has been missed and could have been contributing to the island’s economy if it had reopened.

Carvalho said he was hopeful in 2009 that the owners could revive the historic property. "However, at this time, with the expiration of the permit extension and virtually no progress, it appears unlikely that anything will happen any time soon," he said.