Kamehameha Schools is advancing plans for a resort development on lands above Keauhou Bay, following the county Planning Department’s acceptance of the project’s final environmental impact statement.
This approval marks a significant milestone as the proposal continues to move through the state’s regulatory process, amid mixed reactions from the community.
The current proposal includes 43 two-story lodging structures spread across about eight acres of gently sloping land. Most would be four-plexes, with about 10% as duplex suites, totaling 150 guest units. The buildings would be designed with a low profile and native landscaping to preserve panoramic views of Keauhou Bay and reduce visual impact on neighboring properties.
In addition to accommodations, a proposed resort is intended to function as a cultural hub. Plans call for a main reception building with a lobby, food and beverage venue, meeting rooms, a wellness pavilion and administrative offices.
Native Hawaiian artists will be invited to exhibit their work, and guests can participate in cultural and educational programming. The design emphasizes indoor-outdoor flow and natural materials.
Outdoor features include a 4,500-square-foot pool, a 3,000-square-foot deck and an event lawn surrounded by native gardens, designed to host cultural events, hula performances, family gatherings and arts and crafts workshops.
As part of the broader site plan, Kamehameha Schools also is proposing a new retail area to the south of the bay near the entrance to the existing hotel on the property. This space would accommodate the relocation of existing commercial operators and provide space for ocean recreation businesses that currently lack formal retail, office or check-in areas.
Retail and restaurant uses would be supported, along with infrastructure improvements such as parking for retail users and a potential bus drop-off area for educational programs.
The county’s Planning Department accepted the final EIS, which outlines development on approximately 29 acres in Keauhou Bay. The plan aims to transform the region into a place where culture and education are emphasized alongside viable commercial activity.
It includes relocating existing commercial operations and parking away from culturally sensitive areas and establishing a new place-based cultural and educational center. The plan also supports low-impact lodging on the resort-zoned plateau above the bay, focusing on cultural stewardship, improved bayfront access for kama‘aina and kupa‘aina, and promoting quality educational experiences.
Kamehameha Schools believes the project will provide long-term economic benefits for the region.
“We’re super proud of this project,” Marissa Harman, director of planning and development for Kamehameha Schools, told the Tribune-Herald. “We could be proposing 745 units — we’re proposing 150.”
Harman emphasized that the project aligns with county goals.
“The county is supportive of our project. They see it as improving conditions of the bay, providing more and better public access and parking,” she said.
Harman also noted the resort remains a proposal at this stage.
“If and when we choose to pursue it … we don’t even have a developer on board,” she said. “We’re just proposing to the county, ‘Hey, county, you know what, if anything, we might do in the next 20 years?’”
Crystal Kua, Kamehameha Schools senior consultant for communications strategy, told the Tribune-Herald, “We have SMA permit and building permits to get, so it’ll be two to three years before we break ground on anything.”
Supporters of the housing option say it could help address the county’s projected need for more than 10,000 new homes in the next decade.
However, others have raised concerns about affordability, noting the site’s coastal location and development costs might put the units out of reach for local families.
Some residents strongly oppose the resort proposal, saying it disregards the land’s original purpose and fails to meet the community’s needs.
Hawaiian activist and musician Maka Gallinger expressed strong opposition to the project.
“Keauhou Bay is historically invaluable to our moku and people,” she wrote to the Tribune-Herald.
“It is the birthplace of our ali‘i and one of the last open spaces available for our ohana and community to gather and recreate freely. At a time when several of my peers, friends and family are currently houseless and displaced due to lack of housing, it’s hard to understand the insensitive nature of this plan to further develop our land for money.
“The bay is already overdeveloped,” she continued. The waters are already polluted with run-off. The current impact of tourism is clearly evident today. Once KS met opposition to their development plan, they have since changed the name from ‘Bungalow Resort’ to ‘Low-Impact Lodging.’ Neither of which is planned to house displaced Hawaiians, but visitors instead. Low impact to whom? Certainly not to our ‘aina, our water, our community, our limited resources.
“On several occasions, multiple representatives have stated that this development needs to move forward to make money and create much-needed revenue for Kamehameha Schools. Is this true? Does Kamehameha Schools really need more money? Or is this just another example of pockets getting lined while kanakas get left behind?”
Rebecca Melendez, creator of BigIslandSupport.com/Savekbay, also criticized the project.
“The profits of these lands were supposed to be used to educate the Hawaiian people for free. They (Kamehameha Schools) charge the Hawaiian people tuition. … They are operating illegally,” Melendez said. “I’m asking for legal help, because this is like David vs. Goliath.”
Melendez launched a petition opposing the development that has gained more than 7,200 signatures. However, Kamehameha Schools questions the validity of those numbers.
“It’s really one person driving that. That petition went global,” Harman said. “So, my question was, how many of those 7,200 signatures are people actually connected to the Big Island, let alone connected to Kona?”
State Sen. Dru Kanuha, who represents Senate District 3, which includes the bay, told the Tribune-Herald: “My office will continue to closely monitor how the county proceeds with this project. I have strongly emphasized to Kamehameha Schools the importance of transparency and maintaining open lines of communication with our community throughout this process.”
Email Daniel Farr dfarr@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
