Kona’s oldest subdivision moved one step closer to having its park more than four decades after the first promise was made.
Kona’s oldest subdivision moved one step closer to having its park more than four decades after the first promise was made.
Hawaii County officials broke ground on the 1.6-acre North Kona neighborhood park Wednesday. The $2.7 million project, Alii Kai Park, is located within walking distance of Kahakai Elementary School off Royal Poinciana Drive between Lehua and Pakalana roads and is expected to be ready for use in March 2016.
Kona-Ka‘u Construction Services and Supplies Inc. will build the playground, restrooms and parking lot. Other work to develop the area into a park will include installing concrete sidewalks, lighting, fencing and a security gate. Workers also will install an irrigation system and landscaping. The park will have paved on-site parking and will be closed during nighttime hours.
Developers of Alii Kai pledged to build the park more than 40 years ago. However, in 1991, the county found it could not force the park to be built because the construction was not made a condition of subdivision approval.
The county held public meetings in 2009 to gather input for a plan, and an environmental assessment completed in 2010 found no significant impacts to the land from building the park. In 2013, the Leeward Planning Commission approved a special management area permit stipulating Hawaiian hoary bat habitat must be maintained by retaining vegetation above 15 feet during the animal’s summer breeding and pup-rearing season.
Email Laura Shimabuku at lshimabuku@westhawaiitoday.com.