Court Slows Expansion At Turtle Bay
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Del.icio.usKuilima Resort Company now faces a Hawaii Supreme Court order to supplement its 25-year-old environmental impact statement before it can expand Turtle Bay Resort.
“This is a victory for the North Shore community and the future of environmental protection laws in the state of Hawaii,” said Angela Howe, managing attorney for Surfrider Foundation. The foundation, along with the Sierra Club and Keep the North Shore Country, prevailed in the case when the state’s highest court ruled April 8 that the resort’s 1986 EIS was “outdated” because of changes in traffic, population, hotel demands and new reports of monk seals in the area.
The earlier master plan envisioned five new hotels with 3,500 rooms and condo units at Turtle Bay. Since then, there have been contentious community meetings, changes in ownership and other lawsuits, as sides lined up either to defend the area’s natural resources or to advocate for more development, jobs and housing for Koolauloa and North Shore families.
Attorneys for the developer are considering whether to pursue new action in light of the decision, which runs counter to earlier rulings by the Intermediate Court of Appeals.
Meanwhile, community groups have scheduled a victory party for May 14 at Waimea Valley. (For updated information, go to http://www.keepthenorthshorecountry.org).
“For years, Surfrider’s Oahu chapter has been working with other groups like the Defend Oahu Coalition to stop Kuilima Resort’s massive and unreasonable expansion plans,” said Surfrider Hawaii coordinator Stuart Coleman.
“We were stoked to hear the decision and see justice served in protection out coastal environment.”
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