Molokai’s Kawaikapu Ranch Considered for Conservation Funding

A meeting to discuss a $480,000 grant application by the Molokai Land Trust has been rescheduled to Tuesday, August 25, 2009.  The requested funding form the county’s open space fund is designated for the acquisition of 196 acres of real property at Kawaikapu Ranch on Molokai.

The county funds are intended to be used as a match with a separate $768 thousand in funding to come from the state’s legacy lands conservation program.  If approved, the county will hold a perpetual conservation easement on the property.

The County of Maui Department of Parks and Recreation will be accepting public comments on the grant application. Molokai Land Trust is seeking $480,000 in funds from the County of Maui’s Open Space, Natural Resources, Cultural Resources, and Scenic Views Preservation Fund.

The requested funding is designated for the acquisition of 196.4 acres of real property at Tax Map Key No. (2) 5-7-005:021 at Kawaikapu Ranch on Molokai. The County of Maui’s funds are intended to be used as a match with the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources funding of $767,976.00 from their Legacy Lands Conservation Program for the purchase of this specific property.

The new meeting date will be Tuesday, August 25, 2009 at 6 p.m. at the Kilohana Community Center, located at 334-A1 Kamehameha V Highway, Kilohana, Molokai.

A copy of the grant application from Molokai Land Trust can be obtained online by visiting the County of Maui’s website at www.mauicounty.gov/parks and click on “”Planning & Development.” The document is also available at the following locations:

• Molokai District Permit Office, Department of Parks and Recreation; 90 Ainoa Street (Mitchell Pauole Center), Kaunakakai, Molokai, HI 96748.
• Molokai Public Library, 15 Alamalama Street (P.O. Box 395), Kaunakakai, Molokai, HI  96748

Oral or written comments on the grant application may be submitted at the public meeting; written comments also may be submitted by mail to the Grants Coordinator at 700 Halia Nakoa Street, Unit 2, Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii, 96793, on or before August 25, 2009. Any person requesting accommodations due to disabilities must call the Department of Parks and Recreation at (808) 270-7949 at least six (6) days before the date of the scheduled public meeting.

(Posted by Wendy Osher, Friday, August 14, 2009; information courtesy County of Maui)