Petition calls for Grove Farm to reopen road to Maha‘ulepu Beach on Kaua‘i

PO‘IPU — More than 750 people have signed a petition calling on Grove Farm to reopen the road leading to Maha‘ulepu Beach.

The dirt road has been used for decades as a way to easily access the beach — a popular fishing spot with cultural and historical significance. A largely undeveloped stretch of coastline, the beach is home to ancient burial sites and submerged petroglyphs along with several endangered species.

Though it can still be reached by a trail near CJM Country Stables, the rugged path makes beach access difficult for many.

“Our main concern is for our kupuna and our families with small children and our fishermen with a lot of gear to carry,” said Kaylie Nakamura, who began the petition with the group Malama Maha‘ulepu. “They’re the ones that aren’t able to access that beach.”

Bridget Hammerquist, president of Friends of Maha‘ulepu, another South Shore nonprofit, described current access to the beach as “very limited.”

Hammerquist is partially sighted, and said she could only access the beach with assistance. Even with help, she described it as a slow and difficult process.

“It’s hard work for anybody to take me there,” she said.

Why was the road closed?

The reason the road was closed remains a matter of contention.

Grove Farm said last week the closure was intended to “mitigate the substantial criminal activity that was taking place on our property along the roads that lead to the beach.”

The corporation — owned by AOL billionaire Steve Case — described several incidents involving drug use, theft, campfires, property damage, dumping and trespassing.

“Ultimately, the decision to close the gate became unavoidable and was necessary due to the danger posed to the community, the damage being done to the environment, and the unsustainable financial burden for the large security needs on top of costly road maintenance and repairs,” said Shawn Shimabukuro, a Grove Farm vice president.

But Nakamura, who has been in discussions with Grove Farm about reopening the road, said it had been closed in December 2019 for repairs after a flood, and that they hadn’t mentioned anything about security threats. In 2020, she said the company attributed the continued closure to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nakamura had a series of meetings with Grove Farm representatives, but those conversations petered out about a year ago.

“They stopped returning our phone calls and emails,” said Nakamura. “That’s what led to the petition.”

Beryl Blaich of Malama Maha‘ulepu also said Grove Farm had said in conversations that COVID-19 was the reason for the closure, though she mentioned they had talked about vandalism being a problem in the past.

“We are empathetic about management challenges, but we think that what you have to do is address those specific challenges and figure out systems that work better,” said Blaich. “Just saying ‘there’s vandalism so we’re going to close the place’ — It’s just regressively primitive.”

Previously, Blaich said, Grove Farm had employed a strategy of keeping the gates open during daylight hours, occasionally having a guard stationed at the entrance, and towing cars that remained after sunset.

Malama Maha‘ulepu said they plan to take the petition to Grove Farm, in hopes it reconsiders the decision.

“They’re the one’s who have the kuleana,” said Blaich.

Grove Farm said last week there are no plans to reopen soon.

“We will continue to examine potential scenarios for reopening, and we will keep the community informed if the situation changes,” said Shimabukuro.

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Guthrie Scrimgeour, reporter, can be reached at 808-647-0329 or gscrimgeour@thegardenisland.com.