CONVENTION REPORT AND BOD SLATE – ZOOM SUNDAY, NOV. 17
Aloha e nā hoa makamaka o Kailua alo lahilahi,
We are currently caught up in the throes of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubsʻ annual convention which is now in session (Wed. morning through Saturday afternoon) at the Alohilani Hotel. The main business of the convention – resolution vetting and voting – takes place on Thursday afternoon, all day Friday, and Saturday morning. Our club's delegation (Kapalai, Mapuana, Kihei, Kalani, Kaʻolu, ʻIlima, and Ku'ehu) is still in the process of reviewing those resolutions and deciding on who will attend the overlapping committee meetings that lead up to the plenary voting that follows. Although we expected a relatively tame convention this year, there are a surprising number of hot-issue items on the reso agenda including a property tax cap, OHA election reform, and military land lease negotiations. The resolutions and a matrix overview are posted on the Members' Essentials page of our website for your review; please don't hesitate to contact us if you have strong opinions that you would like reflected in our committee discussions and plenary voting.
You will remember that our club's 2023 Sand Berm resolution for the protection of our iwi kūpuna was passed unanimously at last year's convention. It has since been reviewed and revised by the Oahu Historic Preservation Commission, and I am now working with the commission to apply for a grant that will fund an update of the woefully incomplete SHPD inventory of Kailua burials, establish the boundaries and rules for what might become a special archeological district overlay, and oversee City Council legislation that would make for a much-improved permit application and review process for construction projects in our beach communities.
Because of the ongoing work required by the iwi kupuna effort – we are only equipped to take-on one big deal issue at a time – we refrained from advancing anything heavy-duty in 2024, although we have submitted a beautifully put-together resolution that congratulates the leaders of the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts (many of them civic club members) for their work in making that event a resounding success. Kudos to Pili MacKenzie for assembling all of those names, venues, and accomplishments into the confines of a no-more-than-three-page document.
The convention ends on Saturday; we meet on Zoom on Sunday at 3:30 (BOD) and 4:00 (General Membership) to: 1) share our convention highlights and impressions, and 2) introduce our slate of nominees for next month's board elections. The usual necessaries (agenda, minutes) will be posted to our website, and the zoom link will be sent out via mailchimp on Saturday night.
me ka haʻahaʻa,
Kihei
We are currently caught up in the throes of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubsʻ annual convention which is now in session (Wed. morning through Saturday afternoon) at the Alohilani Hotel. The main business of the convention – resolution vetting and voting – takes place on Thursday afternoon, all day Friday, and Saturday morning. Our club's delegation (Kapalai, Mapuana, Kihei, Kalani, Kaʻolu, ʻIlima, and Ku'ehu) is still in the process of reviewing those resolutions and deciding on who will attend the overlapping committee meetings that lead up to the plenary voting that follows. Although we expected a relatively tame convention this year, there are a surprising number of hot-issue items on the reso agenda including a property tax cap, OHA election reform, and military land lease negotiations. The resolutions and a matrix overview are posted on the Members' Essentials page of our website for your review; please don't hesitate to contact us if you have strong opinions that you would like reflected in our committee discussions and plenary voting.
You will remember that our club's 2023 Sand Berm resolution for the protection of our iwi kūpuna was passed unanimously at last year's convention. It has since been reviewed and revised by the Oahu Historic Preservation Commission, and I am now working with the commission to apply for a grant that will fund an update of the woefully incomplete SHPD inventory of Kailua burials, establish the boundaries and rules for what might become a special archeological district overlay, and oversee City Council legislation that would make for a much-improved permit application and review process for construction projects in our beach communities.
Because of the ongoing work required by the iwi kupuna effort – we are only equipped to take-on one big deal issue at a time – we refrained from advancing anything heavy-duty in 2024, although we have submitted a beautifully put-together resolution that congratulates the leaders of the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts (many of them civic club members) for their work in making that event a resounding success. Kudos to Pili MacKenzie for assembling all of those names, venues, and accomplishments into the confines of a no-more-than-three-page document.
The convention ends on Saturday; we meet on Zoom on Sunday at 3:30 (BOD) and 4:00 (General Membership) to: 1) share our convention highlights and impressions, and 2) introduce our slate of nominees for next month's board elections. The usual necessaries (agenda, minutes) will be posted to our website, and the zoom link will be sent out via mailchimp on Saturday night.
me ka haʻahaʻa,
Kihei
GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING, SUNDAY, SEPT. 15
Aloha e na hoa makamaka o Kailua alo lahilahi,
We'll be holding our BOD and General Membership meetings – via Zoom – this Sunday afternoon, September 15, from 3:30 to 4:00 (BOD) and 4:00 to 5:00 (GM).
We'll send out the agendas, minutes to review, and Zoom link by Saturday. Items for discussion will include:
Kihei
We'll be holding our BOD and General Membership meetings – via Zoom – this Sunday afternoon, September 15, from 3:30 to 4:00 (BOD) and 4:00 to 5:00 (GM).
We'll send out the agendas, minutes to review, and Zoom link by Saturday. Items for discussion will include:
- An update on the Oahu Historic Preservation Commission's progress in negotiating, with SHPD, a set of revised Kailua burial protocols that has evolved from our club's 2013 Sand Berm Resolution
- An AOHCC 2024 convention update including a motion to approve of our club's resolution acknowledging the success of FestPAC 2024 and commending the many civic club members (KHCC's included) who contributed to that effort.
- A recent activities update including our scholarship fundraiser at Hoʻolauna Pu Kakou, our continued participation in the Kailua Houseless Service Care project), and our burial preserve clean-up at Waiʻauia.
Kihei
EARLY AUGUST UPDATE
Aloha e nā hoa makamaka o Kailua alo lahilahi,*
There’s lots of stuff to catch-up on after the craziness of June and July. In the words of Hiʻiaka after barely surviving the dangers of Panaʻewa: ua lana ma ka ʻauwae. We floated on our chins. We barely escaped drowning. In more contemporary parlance: We were up to our necks in crocodiles.
Bottom line: we are much better and, hopefully, more careful of our health. As for the updates; we’ve got five:
1. KHCC Sand berm resolution. The Oʻahu Commission for Historic Preservation recently passed a modified version of our 2023 Civic Club resolution requesting protection for the iwi kūpuna of our beach communities. The OHCP will seek to have the SHPD (State Historic Preservation Division) declare the Kailua sand berm (everything ma kai of the Kawainui and Kaʻelepulu ponds, and Kaʻiwa ridge) as a single burial ground and thus require careful monitoring of all ground-disrupting construction there. It’s more complicated than this sounds and will involve considerable discussion and tweaking before we can hope to mālama our iwi kūpuna without making it too expensive for our kānaka to live above them. Although we prefer the stipulations of our original resolution (we asked that the involved agencies be required to follow existing law), we are hoping for the best and will keep you posted as conversations unfold between the commission, the C&C’s Department of Permitting, and SHPD.
2. Hawaiian Homes on the Kalāheo hillside. We thought this would be a no-brainer, an absolute yes – but we have learned from a long-time KHCC member that the land might not be suitable for construction because of the same unstable clay content that has cracked the slabs and damaged the foundations of the Kalāheo hillside/canal residents for the last half-century. “I am all for Hawaiian housing in Kailua, but the DHHL had better build homes that will last.” We have since talked to Councilwoman Esther Kiaʻaina about these concerns, and she has indicated that ground testing will be conducted before any decisions are made. Our concern-raising member thinks the core-sampling plan isn’t extensive enough, so we (meaning the club leadership) are in wait-and-see mode and would appreciate any information that the rest of our membership might want to contribute.
3. KHCC Silent Auction at the hālau’s Hoʻolauna Pū Kākou on Sunday, July 28. We raised almost $4000 for our scholarship and convention accounts which means that we are good for the ʻ24-ʻ25 school year (three $1000 scholar awards) and will have a little extra to help with delegate expenses to the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs’ annual convention in November. Our alakaʻi and fund-raising chair Pualani Steele deserves our profound thanks, as do the many contributors and helpers who came to her aid. And not to be overlooked: Kalani Kaʻanāʻanā and the guys spent the same morning cleaning the Mauna ʻAla Chapel before showing up at Hoʻolauna to help with all the signage and heavy lifting.
4. Sue Pignataro reminds us that "August is our month to prepare and serve lunch to our houseless neighbors. A few volunteers would be much appreciated to help prepare and serve at the Daybreak Church August 27, 9am-12 noon. Please contact Sue at 808-421-8713.
4. Calendar reminders. August 18: We will be cleaning Moanihi (the Waiʻauia burial preserve) on Sunday afternoon (3 to 4:30). We hosted Maya and Kaleo’s mob (the Keiki Aʻe Kū) there two weeks ago, so a second effort in less than a month should really help to improve the grounds. Sept. 15: BOD and General Membership meetings on Sunday afternoon, 3:30 and 4 pm, via Zoom, unless there is a ground swell of interest in a live meeting at either Ulupō or Kaʻōhao Park. Let us know.
That should do it for now except for the usual reminder: if you haven’t yet paid your $25 membership fee for 2024, please do so asap. Our roster is due to the association at the beginning of next month and will determine the number of voting delegates we are allowed at the November convention. Please email Kaʻolu Luning (charluning@gmail.com) if you are not sure of your status.
me ke aloha nui,
ka ʻohana de Silva
*"Kailua alo lahilahi "is an epithet used by Samuel Kekoʻowai (the same Kekoʻowai who, between 1922 and 1924, recounted the moʻolelo of the Mākālei in the Hawaiian language newspaper Kuokoa) in his headline for a separate article describing his visit to our ahupuaʻa and the hospitality of Solomona (probably Solomon Mahoe) at what is now the Kalapawai Market area of Kailua Beach Park. "Alo lahilahi" can be understood to mean "of delicate of appearance" – a compliment to the beauty of our ʻāinā and its people.
There’s lots of stuff to catch-up on after the craziness of June and July. In the words of Hiʻiaka after barely surviving the dangers of Panaʻewa: ua lana ma ka ʻauwae. We floated on our chins. We barely escaped drowning. In more contemporary parlance: We were up to our necks in crocodiles.
Bottom line: we are much better and, hopefully, more careful of our health. As for the updates; we’ve got five:
1. KHCC Sand berm resolution. The Oʻahu Commission for Historic Preservation recently passed a modified version of our 2023 Civic Club resolution requesting protection for the iwi kūpuna of our beach communities. The OHCP will seek to have the SHPD (State Historic Preservation Division) declare the Kailua sand berm (everything ma kai of the Kawainui and Kaʻelepulu ponds, and Kaʻiwa ridge) as a single burial ground and thus require careful monitoring of all ground-disrupting construction there. It’s more complicated than this sounds and will involve considerable discussion and tweaking before we can hope to mālama our iwi kūpuna without making it too expensive for our kānaka to live above them. Although we prefer the stipulations of our original resolution (we asked that the involved agencies be required to follow existing law), we are hoping for the best and will keep you posted as conversations unfold between the commission, the C&C’s Department of Permitting, and SHPD.
2. Hawaiian Homes on the Kalāheo hillside. We thought this would be a no-brainer, an absolute yes – but we have learned from a long-time KHCC member that the land might not be suitable for construction because of the same unstable clay content that has cracked the slabs and damaged the foundations of the Kalāheo hillside/canal residents for the last half-century. “I am all for Hawaiian housing in Kailua, but the DHHL had better build homes that will last.” We have since talked to Councilwoman Esther Kiaʻaina about these concerns, and she has indicated that ground testing will be conducted before any decisions are made. Our concern-raising member thinks the core-sampling plan isn’t extensive enough, so we (meaning the club leadership) are in wait-and-see mode and would appreciate any information that the rest of our membership might want to contribute.
3. KHCC Silent Auction at the hālau’s Hoʻolauna Pū Kākou on Sunday, July 28. We raised almost $4000 for our scholarship and convention accounts which means that we are good for the ʻ24-ʻ25 school year (three $1000 scholar awards) and will have a little extra to help with delegate expenses to the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs’ annual convention in November. Our alakaʻi and fund-raising chair Pualani Steele deserves our profound thanks, as do the many contributors and helpers who came to her aid. And not to be overlooked: Kalani Kaʻanāʻanā and the guys spent the same morning cleaning the Mauna ʻAla Chapel before showing up at Hoʻolauna to help with all the signage and heavy lifting.
4. Sue Pignataro reminds us that "August is our month to prepare and serve lunch to our houseless neighbors. A few volunteers would be much appreciated to help prepare and serve at the Daybreak Church August 27, 9am-12 noon. Please contact Sue at 808-421-8713.
4. Calendar reminders. August 18: We will be cleaning Moanihi (the Waiʻauia burial preserve) on Sunday afternoon (3 to 4:30). We hosted Maya and Kaleo’s mob (the Keiki Aʻe Kū) there two weeks ago, so a second effort in less than a month should really help to improve the grounds. Sept. 15: BOD and General Membership meetings on Sunday afternoon, 3:30 and 4 pm, via Zoom, unless there is a ground swell of interest in a live meeting at either Ulupō or Kaʻōhao Park. Let us know.
That should do it for now except for the usual reminder: if you haven’t yet paid your $25 membership fee for 2024, please do so asap. Our roster is due to the association at the beginning of next month and will determine the number of voting delegates we are allowed at the November convention. Please email Kaʻolu Luning (charluning@gmail.com) if you are not sure of your status.
me ke aloha nui,
ka ʻohana de Silva
*"Kailua alo lahilahi "is an epithet used by Samuel Kekoʻowai (the same Kekoʻowai who, between 1922 and 1924, recounted the moʻolelo of the Mākālei in the Hawaiian language newspaper Kuokoa) in his headline for a separate article describing his visit to our ahupuaʻa and the hospitality of Solomona (probably Solomon Mahoe) at what is now the Kalapawai Market area of Kailua Beach Park. "Alo lahilahi" can be understood to mean "of delicate of appearance" – a compliment to the beauty of our ʻāinā and its people.
