Historic Hawai‘i Foundation
680 Iwilei Road, Suite #690, Honolulu, HI 96817
Phone: 808-523-2900 Fax: 808-523-0800
Email: webmaster@historichawaii.org
Copyright 2003-2009 Historic Hawaii Foundation unless otherwise noted
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Photo by PacificStock, Courtesy of Honolulu Magazine
What is it?
For 70 years, Lana‘i City was a close-knit community united by a common purpose: pineapple. After buying the island in 1922, James Dole engineered a small plantation town perfectly suited to the new agricultural industry—small enough to have no stoplights, but complete with churches, businesses, entertainment and housing.“I’m continually amazed at the way that original design fostered a sense of community, a sense of place,” says Kepa Maly, a cultural historian and Lanai native.
HISTORIC HAWAI‘I FOUNDATION
What threatens it?
Lanai’s last pineapple crops were harvested in 1992, and Castle & Cooke, which owns almost 98 percent of the island, has turned to tourism and real estate. Change is inevitable, but local community groups, such as Lanaians for Sensible Growth, worry that the company is putting profits before preservation. Even Nani Watanabe, Castle & Cooke’s own cultural resource manager, has concerns about the oversight of the town’s historic structures. The old firehouse and the old post office have been demolished already; she says the jailhouse looks to be next in line.“There’s so much history here, and every time a building is torn down, that’s another piece of history gone,” Watanabe says.
What can be done?
Watanabe would like to see Lanai City registered as a historic district, to ensure that the town’s iconic buildings get the protection they deserve. But she’s afraid that her employer doesn’t have as much enthusiasm for the idea, citing the company’s past failures to bring development plans for review by Maui County’s Cultural Resource Commission, on which she also sits. “I really feel that [Castle & Cooke] doesn’t want to register it, because it’s going to cost them too much money when they want to do something profitable,” she says. “If it’s registered, there will be limitations on the company, but I think down the line it will be a benefit.”
Lāna‘i City
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Story by
Michael Keany, Honolulu Magazine
