LIHU’E – The Kaua`i County Council unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday supporting the preservation of Maha`ulepu. Not developing the wildly pristine area on Kauai’s southern coast has been the focus of a Sierra Club campaign for years. David Chang, one
LIHU’E – The Kaua`i County Council unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday supporting the preservation of Maha`ulepu.
Not developing the wildly pristine area on Kauai’s southern coast has been the focus of a Sierra Club campaign for years. David Chang, one of the leading preservation proponents for at least 15 years, praised the council’s action.
“The life of the land is preserved in righteousness,” Chang said, handing over a petition supporting preservation with 3,385 signatures.
“You guys have done something to be proud of,” he told the council, adding he hopes voters “remember it two years from now.”
Beryl Blaich, another force in the preservation movement, also expressed her gratitude to the council. Many more speakers repeated the sentiment.
Before the vote, the council watched a video of the Maha`ulepu area. Among the many narrators on the video’s soundtrack extolling the coastal area, and commenting on its prominent part in the history of ancient Hawai`i, was Councilman Ron Kouchi.
Grove Farm, owners of the land for almost 60 years, was commended for its stewardship of the Maha`ulepu area, and all the speakers Wednesday noted that they hoped the company’s new owner, Steve Case, of America Online fame, would do the same.
The preservation campaign has reached Governor Ben Cayetano, who late last year expressed support for keeping Maha`ulepu out of developers’ hands. He indicated the state’s willingness to obtain the land.
Staff writer Dennis Wilken can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) and mailto:dwilken@pulitzer.net
