Senator says he will propose bill
but doubts evictions have cause

By Lisa Asato / Ka Wai Ola

Wednesday, November 5, 2008 - DLNR Chairperson Laura Thielen said today the state will delay the evictions of six families living without leases in Kahana Valley to give state lawmakers time to address the issue in the 2009 session that begins in January.

The action to stay the evictions came several hours after the six families filed a temporary restraining order in Circuit Court asking for the state to stay the evictions, said state Sen. Clayton Hee, who called the DLNR action "a good decision" but criticized the department's intent to evict. It was unclear whether this morning's filing prompted the state's decision.

"We have been working with legislators, some Kahana Valley residents and a member of the original park-planning group to identify solutions that would meet the needs of the six families," Laura Thielen, chairperson of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, said in a statement.

"Although we could not resolve this issue with the six families, we are encouraged it will be addressed during the 2009 legislative session," she added. "We trust the Legislature will continue to respect the basic foundation of the public's right to access state parks, keep residential areas separated from the public areas and make Kahana Valley a public park that welcomes and enriches all residents and visitors of Hawai'i."

Six families living without leases in the front entrance of Kahana Valley state park were notified in June that they had 90 days to vacate or face eviction; a final notice was posted Oct. 22 and expired Oct. 27. DLNR said it based the evictions on a March 2008 opinion by the state Attorney General's office that no new leases could be granted after 1993, according to state law. Under the site's "living park" concept, the state in the 1980s issued 31 leases to families with ties to the valley to live in the mauka portion of the valley, in exchange for volunteering 25 hours per month in service to the valley.

"Up until March 2008 DLNR believed it could issue new leases if one or more of the 31 families lost a lease," DLNR's statement said. "When three leases defaulted, DLNR received applications from 12 families who qualified for leases. DLNR was allowing the six families to stay while it determined if any of them were eligible for a new lease. In March 2008, DLNR was notified it has no legal authority to issue any new leases and instructed all applicants that they could not receive a lease.

"The Legislature had declined to change the law during three separate sessions, in 2005, 2007 and 2008. At that point, DLNR notified the six families they needed to move. Notices to vacate were issued to all affected families once DLNR received advice from the Attorney General in 2008."

Hee, the area senator whose bill has twice died in the House but passed in the Senate, said he will reintroduce a bill this session allowing DLNR to negotiate long-term leases in the valley. But he said he doubted the need for legislative action because DLNR lacks justification for what he called an avoidable situation. "There is no cause to evict," said Hee (D-Kahuku, Lä'ie, Ka'a'awa, Käne'ohe).

"If Miss Thielen believes that evictions should occur, she should ask the court to order the evictions," he said. "She didn't and she won't because there's no court in my opinion which would grant evictions because there's no harm done to the state."

Hee also said DLNR has opposed the bill both times he introduced it, in 2005 and 2007. DLNR could not be reached for further comment.

Resident Lena Soliven said DLNR's decision to stay the evictions while lawmakers tackle the issue is a little late. "That's what we asked (of Thielen) from the first day when they were posting my notice to vacate," said Soliven, whose family of eight faces eviction. "That's what I said would be the pono thing to do, but they had the families running scared for two weeks, which is really cruel."

Soliven said she didn't hear of the decision to stay the eviction from DLNR, but rather through the media, who had called her for comment. Soliven said she wants to see the decision to stay the evictions "in writing with (Thielen's) signature on it," in the same manner that the department posted tangible written notices to vacate on residents' homes.

Soliven said residents did not meet this weekend with DLNR, as the department had hoped because "once (DLNR) posted the notice to vacate – that became a legal matter. Once it became a legal matter, (DLNR) needed to meet with our lawyers."

In today's statement, the department said it "had offered to relocate all six families to the residential area of the park. This offer was refused." It was unclear when and to whom the offer was made, as Soliven said the offer wasn't made to her. She did say the offer might have been made to the families' attorney, George Van Buren. Van Buren could not be immediately reached for comment.