Former Uncle Billy’s Hotel is now under 24-hour surveillance

The former Uncle Billy’s Hilo Bay Hotel now has 24-hour security as the state continues to deal with trespassers on the property.

The Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources officers with the Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement started the round-the-clock patrols on Wednesday. While no one has been caught at the once iconic 146-room hotel, state officials say the newly installed perimeter fencing has been fixed several times as there have been multiple breaches.

Uncle Billy’s permanently closed in 2017. A fixture of Banyan Drive for more than 50 years is now a condemned building riddled with suspected asbestos. Chairperson Dawn Chang for the Department of Land and Natural Resources said the state has asked people repeatedly not to enter or occupy the former hotel for their own safety.

State officers haven’t removed anyone from the former hotel property recently. However, those who are caught, face criminal trespass and/or trespass onto state property charges.

Gov. Josh Green signed a second Emergency Proclamation Friday, that extends the first disaster emergency relief period for the area, designated in the July 18, 2023, proclamation, until November 13, 2023.

The proclamation said the condition of the property and hotel, under the jurisdiction of the Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, has attracted trespassers, enabled drug use, fighting and other illegal activities and experienced numerous fires.

In data provided to the Hawai‘i County Council in July, from September 2018 to April 2023, Big Island police responded to 157 incidents at 87 Banyan Drive (former Uncle Billyʻs); and from May 2018 to May 2023, the Hawai‘i Fire Department responded to 28 calls at the property.

No demolition work can happen until hazard materials are remediated.

The state is working closely with Hawai‘i County to schedule and plan each phase of the demolition. Asbestos remediation is not expected to significantly delay previous timelines.