A proposal to develop more than 1,300 acres in King’s Landing on Hawaiʻi Island is being considered by the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.
The project has been a goal for a handful of Native Hawaiian families who settled in the area more than 40 years ago.
King’s Landing is the general term for the off-the-grid community at the end of the road in Keaukaha. That’s where ʻĀinaaloha Ioane was born and raised, and where she now raises her own keiki.
“As a keiki, it was beautiful. That’s what I knew. I knew ocean and I knew forest and I knew small-knit community. But it is hard. It’s outhouse. It’s catchment. It’s Paloma hot water, you know?” Ioane remembered.
“Dad guys hand-cleared the ʻāina. There was no bulldozer. Dad built the house with recycled material slowly. Then as the ʻohana grew, the house grew.”
Ioane’s dad, Skippy Ioane, secured a short-term land disposition for the property in 1982 from DHHL. Around the same time, families in King's Landing organized their own homestead community association known as Mālama ka ʻĀina, Hana ka ʻĀina, or MAHA.
Over the years, the community grew to about two dozen mostly Native Hawaiian families. But they still did not have a long-term lease on the land.
“We had to search for a homesteading product that could best represent who we were as a community. When we found out kuleana homesteading already existed, I think I was shocked,” Ioane said. “Because I was like if it already existed then why didn’t the (Hawaiian Homes) Commission just offer it to King’s Landing in 1999 when they offered it to Kahikinui on Maui?”
The kuleana homestead model was developed by DHHL in the late 90s. It offers a long-term lease to unimproved lands, which is cheaper for the department but requires more work from beneficiaries.
Fortunately for the ‘ohana in King’s Landing, kuleana has been their way of life.
“This is something that my dad and kūpuna in the village started over 40 years ago,” Ioane said. “And this is an opportunity for us to make sure that King’s Landing is not only my home, but it's my keiki home and is the future home for other beneficiaries who want to live that King’s Landing lifestyle.”
The King’s Landing Kuleana Homestead Settlement Plan Project will offer nearly 80 kuleana homestead lots to Native Hawaiian beneficiaries interested in the King’s Landing lifestyle.
A 30-day public comment period for the draft environmental assessment is ongoing until July 8, 2024.
Comments can be submitted via email to klkhs@g70.design.
