The county’s opportunity to blaze a trail forward on the eyesore that is the former Coco Palms resort may have passed many months ago when permit extensions were granted to the current owners, but Kauaians got two stark reminders in
The county’s opportunity to blaze a trail forward on the eyesore that is the former Coco Palms resort may have passed many months ago when permit extensions were granted to the current owners, but Kauaians got two stark reminders in recent weeks of what could have been.
First, as Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. made his controversial decision to push forward with the makai alignment of the multi-use path on Wailua Beach, some opponents argued the county should try a more mauka route, adjacent to the canal behind Coco Palms.
There has been idle talk of turning the Coco Palms property — leveled to its embarrassing, derelict state nearly two decades ago by Hurricane ‘Iniki — into a park and cultural center as a way to preserve the heritage of the coconut grove, the fishpond (already recognized on the National Register of Historic Places) and the hotel site itself, once a vacation home to visiting royalty from Hawai‘i and Hollywood.
Last week, a fire — possibly started by squatters trying to stay warm — torched the retail annex at the property’s north end.
County officials said the blaze caused $80,000 in damage, but with costly demolition the impending next step for developers, it’s hard to imagine that the fire had much of a negative impact.
If anything, the fire damage moved the dump one step closer to non-existence, and we are sure we were not alone in wondering if the Kaua‘i Fire Department could have done us all a favor by letting it burn a little while longer. We’re not suggesting arson is the correct approach here, but after 17 years of gradual, depressing decay, any noticeable change feels like progress.
While those fresh reminders of Coco Palms’ sad situation had Kauaians talking this month, developers still have three years to finish work on a new condo-hotel project — and to hear owner Phil Ross talk about his goals when the Planning Commission granted the permit extensions in late April, wooing investors is the first objective.
That might take a while with the economy continuing to struggle, so it may be a while before we see anything positive happen at Coco Palms.
There have been rumors of a philanthropist swooping in to purchase the property for a public purpose, and the Kaua‘i Public Land Trust and Friends of Coco Palms continue to tout ideas for some sort of restoration.
Senate Majority Leader Gary Hooser has tried to secure state funding, but in these tight economic times — things are so dire that they’ve sent our children home an extra 17 days this school year, lest we forget — it seems unlikely that Gov. Linda Lingle will release those dollars for such a gratuitous project.
We would love for the county to condemn the property and claim it for the public good under eminent domain, but with the current owners having invested so much time and money on the beachfront acreage, they would be loathe to let it slip away. Action would either require a heap of cash or a team of lawyers hungry for a lawsuit — and we don’t think the county has either.
So, what then can we hope for?
With the permit extensions, the landowner has a responsibility to maintain the area — that means cleaning up the broken glass, removing the air conditioners hanging out of windows, and keeping match-wielding vagabonds out.
The county’s weak-kneed granting of the “entitlements” earlier this year was a missed opportunity to clamp down on an absentee permit-holder who has exhibited poor stewardship of an important landmark, and set a dangerous precedent for the Coco Palms developers and any other wealthy landowner.
And worse, those “entitlements” are keeping the property value high and out of reach for those who might have other, more attainable plans for it. But it’s not the end of the road. Next time, our county leaders need to get tough and enforce their permits.
Until then, as we drive past the once-majestic Coco Palms every day, we can’t help but lament what a monstrosity it has become.
