Tribute to Mayor Brian Baptiste

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The special edition of Wala’au with Dickie Chang covering the passing of Kauai Mayor Brian Baptiste is available for viewing. Mayor Baptiste will be sorely missed. He was a sweet man whose aloha for Kauai was apparent in everything he did. A hui hou Mayor.

Click here to view Wala’au.

Aloha Coco Palms…

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Well it seems the investors, Coco Palms Ventures, LLC are taking their toys and going home. Those of us hoping to see the Coco Palms Hotel returned to its former grandeur as promised for years now by this investment group have come to an end. The group’s interest fizzled after the Kauai Planning Commission’s decision to not allow a previously approved spa/fitness facility by the old tennis courts. They felt this was a key component to be able to compete with other resorts. I really feel both sides are being selfish and stubborn in not thinking of all of the good this place could do for helping Kauai heal after the hotel was damaged by Hurricane Iniki in 1992. That is the last building still reminding folks of the natural disaster. This investment group really did jump through a lot of hoops to make sure that the cultural aspect and respect for the land was preserved. They were doing it right. I can’t believe after the time, money and passion they put into this project they’re throwing their hands up at the final sticking point. I almost wonder if it’s a power play. It’s a pretty big gamble to take with the future of a cultural and pop culture icon that people just want to see restored. As many know, Coco Palms was featured in the Elvis Presley movie “Blue Hawaii.” The property will be auctioned off by the end of the year to another developer.

Why is Pu’u O Kila still closed?

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If you live in or have ever wanted to visit Hawaii, or specifically Kauai, then there’s no doubt you’ve seen this picture. This is the Kalalau Valley on Kauai’s west side. Past Waimea Canyon and Koke’e State Park lies the Kalalau Valley overlook, which most people mistakenly call this picture. This picture was taken from the Pu’u O Kila lookout which is about 1 1/4 mile from the Kalalau Lookout. The Pu’u O Kila lookout has been closed since 2003 citing bad roads as the reason. Have you driven on Hawaii’s roads? Half of the roads are a complete mess and the more you get thrown around, the better the reward in most cases! (ie- the drive to Polihua Beach on Lanai, the drive to Polihale Beach on Kauai, the road around the top of Maui (340 I believe…Hana Highway’s got nothing on 340!), parts of the Big Island’s Saddle Road which has an outdated ominous reputation)

In early 2006 all of the local papers were gleefully reporting the money being allocated for improvements to the Koke’e area which included handrails for the physically handicapped being installed along the path from the parking area at Pu’u O Kila Lookout. That work was supposed to be completed by the end of 2006. I don’t know if it was or not but I’d love to know how you suggest the physically disabled get to use those brand spankin’ new handrails when their transportation can’t get to the lookout. The last time we were up there was in May and some of the roads have been sporadically closed but Pu’u O Kila Lookout was still closed. Sure, you can park at the road closed sign and walk for a mile if you want to but why when there’s no real reason the road should still be in disrepair after 4 years of being closed??

The Kauai Visitors Bureau still uses this image to entice visitors to come see this beautiful sight and while they can look into the valley from the Kalalau Lookout, it’s not the same view. Almost seems like false advertising to me. Don’t get me wrong, I would want to show off my most valuable assets when promoting something but I couldn’t find a disclaimer anywhere saying Pu’u O Kila was closed. Something needs to be done. Action needs to be taken to allow everyone to have access to this famous view that so many have been denied over the past few years.

My suggestion would be to email Mayor Bryan Baptiste at mayor@kauai.gov and ask what plans there are to get this beautiful overlook opened back up again. Maybe with enough emails it’ll get bumped up on the list of things to do.

Together, we can make a difference!

Keeping fingers crossed for Coco Palms

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Many know Coco Palms Resort on Kauai as the idyllic setting at the end of the movie Blue Hawaii starring Elvis Presley. Few know that the area is actually steeped in rich cultural history. The ancient home of Kauai’s royalty since the 13th century, the area surrounding the Coco Palms Resort was home of Kauai’s last reigning queen, Queen Deborah Kapule. In the 1950’s Grace Guslander was made manager of the Coco Palms Hotel and was credited with giving the hotel a grandiose, larger than life Polynesian feel. She was a smart businesswoman with a sense of what made the visitors and locals happy. She celebrated Queen Kapule’s birthday every year and started the torch lighting ceremony that became a trademark of the hotel. On September 11, 1992 Hurricane Iniki did a number on the hotel and it has been closed ever since. The one thing that always remained was the chapel donated by MGM Studios from the movie “Miss Sadie Thompson” has been used for at least 1-2 weddings per week by couples wanting to recreate the Blue Hawaii experience. Original Coco Palms entertainer Larry Rivera has been granting this wish for many couples over the years and so can you.

Talks of resurrecting the hotel have always swirled around but had come up empty in the past. I even contacted Lisa Marie Presley and president of Elvis Presley Enterprises, Jack Soden about our willingness to help in whatever capacity to restore this hotel and with the Elvis connection, should EPE be interested in backing the project. I got a nice letter back from Mr. Soden explaining it had been suggested in the past but just wasn’t feasible for them. Eh, the worst he could say was no, right? My biggest concern was preserving the bungalow Elvis used in Blue Hawaii. Our thought was it could be turned into a museum or memorial to the King and not be demolished when it had such pop culture history attached.