Kauai Real Estate News and Reviews! March 10
Thank you for joining me for another Monday Morning Blog session. The weekend was picture perfect here. Our trade winds are suppose to be picking back up but the temperature has been so perfect we haven’t been needing them. Lots of news here this week: Coqui Frogs; Monkeypod Trees; Ni’ihau Bill Banned and more! But first…..
*****Kauai Real Estate*****
Have you thought about buying or selling here in Kauai? Give me a call or email for a free market analysis of your property here. If you are in the market to buy contact me to be put on an automatic email update list for defined properties that meet the criteria of what you are looking for. For a list of what has come on the market and what has sold in the last week CLICK HERE
*****Coqui Frog Caught At The Poipu Grand Hyatt!*****
One loan Coqui frog was caught on the grounds located at the Poipu Grand Hyatt by workers. Having no idea how it got there the Hyatt turned the 1.5 inch frog with the mighty croak over to the Kauai Invasive Species. How can a 1 inch frog command so much attention? Here on Kauai we have not had the infestation to the extent that the other islands have and we are dedicated to keeping it that way given the fact that the Coqui Frog has no known predators and will endanger native insect populations and compete with Hawaii native birds for food. In also has a larger than life croak which is extremely annoying to residents. Ongoing eradications of the Coqui Frog are being done in Lawai where there is an infestation. To read more about Coqui Frogs and to hear a sound clip of their mating calls go to www.hear.org and click on the Coqui Frog link.
*****Exhausted? Then You Don’t Live In Hawaii*****
In a survey done by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rated Hawaii as one of the best states to get a good night’s sleep. 8% of our residents report that they are not getting enough sleep and this is below the national average. State such as New York and Delaware have 14% of its residents not getting enough shut eye. How much sleep is enough? Adults need 7 to 9 hours and children require 9 to 11 hours.
*****Koloa Monkeypod Trees Bulldozed*****
Protestors were caught off guard when and unannounced demolition of several monkeypod trees took place on Wednesday. The developer took out 4 trees on Wednesday and more are to follow. Of the 37 monkeypod trees 12 will be taken out, 5 will be relocated and 20 will stay put. A lawsuit had been filed against the Knudson trust asking the court to permanently stop the developer from removing or damaging the trees but fifth court circuit Judge Randall Valenciano instead set a March 13th hearing
to consider an injunction until final ruling on the case can be heard.
On Monday the developer had filed a police report after discovering their equipment had been broken up over the weekend. Windshields, broken headlights and cut wires had been done to the heavy machines sometime on Saturday or Sunday.
On the day of the tree felling a memorial was held and a protest organized at Kapaa Foodland whose parent company owns four soon to be tenants of The Shops Of Koloa. An email was sent out by Carol Ann Davis-Briant asking those protestors in attendance to respect the property and police and to refrain from using libelous signage.
*****Poipu Sheraton and Union Agree to 3 Year Contract*****
The new agreement between the Poipu Beach Sheraton and Union Local 5 has been reached. The new contract puts the Kauai workers at the same wage rate and benefit package as Waikiki workers. The last time the Kauai workers wages were on par with the other islands was before hurricane Iniki. The new contract also put Kauai, Oahu and Maui under the same time frame for contract expiration. Sheraton General manager Angela Vento and Local 5 representative Daniel Kerwin both endorsed the new contract and are looking forward to working together under the new terms.
*****Ni’ihau Coastline Bill Shot Down*****
In response to the public’s concerns over recreational use by
beachgoers and fisherman leaving debris behind this pristine coastline has been shelved. Non-residents of the “Forbidden Isle” have been taking advantage of the public’s legal access to public beaches and leaving their trash behind when they scoot over by jet skis. Social impacts have been expressed by local Ni’ihau residents whose island is inhabited by native Hawaiians who still speak the Hawaiian language and rely on generators for power. Some of the Ni’ihau children were scared of the new recreational activity on their previously deserted beaches. At that time a bill was hurriedly drawn up by State Reps. James Tokioka, Roland Sagum, Hermina Morita and Ken Ito on January 23rd and is now going to the Finance Committee for review instead of heading to the Senate so the public can get involved and lawmakers can
get their community feedback. Stating the bill was “too much too
fast” it’s now headed through the proper channels and both the
community and lawmakers are happy to have killed the bill and do a pull back.