LIHU‘E — A Kaua‘i judge has ordered a contractor to provide 2,200 cubic yards of rock for a breach in historic Hapa Trail in Po‘ipu. District Court Judge Trudy Senda ordered the unique “fine” Tuesday to be provided by Goodfellow
LIHU‘E — A Kaua‘i judge has ordered a contractor to provide 2,200 cubic yards of rock for a breach in historic Hapa Trail in Po‘ipu.
District Court Judge Trudy Senda ordered the unique “fine” Tuesday to be provided by Goodfellow Brothers, a contractor working on The Village at Po‘ipu residential project adjacent to the historic trail, as part of a plea agreement, said Sherman Shiraishi, attorney for the contractor.
A Goodfellow equipment operator conducting grubbing and grading work broke through the wall, and it was repaired the same day, said Shiraishi.
The operator committed the misdemeanor offense of taking, appropriating, excavating, injuring, destroying or altering any historic property upon land owned or controlled by the state or any of its political subdivisions.
The contractor could have faced a fine of up to $25,000.
County Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho prosecuted the case, but did not respond to an e-mail request seeking comment.
Shiraishi said no appeal is planned, as the plea was reached through mutual agreement.
“We want to make a donation to that preservation effort,” a goodwill, good-faith gesture, and Goodfellow was going to donate rock anyway, said Shiraishi.
Combined with 2,000 cubic yards that will be donated by the Eric Knudsen Estate, that should be enough rock to reconstruct rock walls on both sides of Hapa Trail from Po‘ipu Road mauka to St. Raphael’s Church, as it looked back in 1975.
