Hawaiʻi County postpones vote on using eminent domain to widen rural road in Puna

Wayland Lum told the Hawaiʻi County Council on Wednesday that he and his family were unaware that the county was pursuing an eminent domain case for part of their property along Government Beach Road in Pāhoa until a friend read about it in the newspaper following a May 19 Council meeting.

The Hawaiʻi County Council has already passed the first reading of Resolution 567-26 which would allow the condemnation of 3.74 acres of land by eminent domain to widen the rural road in Puna for public safety.

But on Wednesday, Wayland Lum, his brother Erland Lum, and several friends showed up for the second reading to provide testimony.

“Our property is not simply real estate. It is our family heritage,” Wayland Lum told the Council.

After hearing directly from the property owners, the Council voted 8-0 to postpone a vote to get more information.

Wayland Lum explained he is a third-generation farmer and rancher. He inherited the land in the Keonepoko ʻIki subdivision from his grandparents, Eric and Mary Mydell. They bought more than 300 acres in the 1920s.

The Lums said when their grandfather built Government Beach Road, he made it winding on purpose.

“We grew up on this land and learned everything on this land,” Erland Lum said during his testimony. “We learned from our parents and grandparents the value of stewardship. My grandfather used a pickaxe to carve [Government Beach Road] along its natural terrain. He sold or gifted some portions of the property to friends and family, but a majority of the land has been cared for by our family for nearly a century.”

Government Beach Road is an 8-mile stretch of a 10-foot-wide, dirt road that connects Hawaiian Shores to Makuʻu Point in Hawaiian Paradise Park. Along the stretch are six private properties and the Nanawale Forest Reserve.

“The 10-foot-wide road has served the area for over 100 years, and with 20 cars on this road a day, there is no main purpose to widen this road,” Erland Lum said.

In 2014, a complaint for immediate occupation and exercise of eminent domain was made on the property for a volcano egress road, a designated roadway for safe exit during a volcanic eruption.

The County of Hawaiʻi had domain over the roadway until 2020 when it was determined to be null and void, reverting back to Lum Family Enterprises.

“I just have one question,” Wayland Lum asked during his testimony. “Why did the county continue to widen and improve this roadway after the property reverted to the family in 2020?”

In the past six years, County of Hawaiʻi crews have graded, paved and improved the roadway, which is now 18 to 19 feet wide for about 1.5 miles, according to Wayland Lum.

During Wednesday’s meeting, multiple testifiers noted that the other portion of the 8-mile Government Beach Road has remained 10 feet wide.

“If this is to serve the public, then I question why this section requires widening when most of the Government Beach Road will remain 10 feet wide,” said family friend Robert Nash during his testimony. “If this is to serve in the public interest, then the entire road should be widened, not just 1.5 miles.”

During prior meetings, Melanie Demello, Deputy Chief for the Public Works Engineering Division, mentioned that there have been no discussions with other property owners along Government Beach Road.

Since the County began widening the road in 2020, Wayland Lum has noticed an increase in criminal and unauthorized activities in the once quiet, secluded area, a main reason the family has resisted the County’s efforts to acquire part of the land.

According to Wayland Lum, he has experienced increased theft, vehicle stripping, abandoned vehicles, discarded rubbish, trespassing, property damage, and impact on their livestock’s safety.

“If the county acquires a total of 55 feet of the property, that would put the road next to my cattle fence line, which would only increase the amount of crime we’ve experienced in the last six years,” Wayland Lum said.

Erland Lum said: “It has been difficult to witness the dumping, trespassing, and the real impact and damage that has occurred in the last few years. This has reduced security for our livestock and our family and employees. It feels much heavier because our grandparents established this farm long before any homes or vacation rentals were in the area. It feels like a failure on our part.”

Wayland Lum stated that the widening of Government Beach Road was ongoing during former Mayor Mitch Roth’s administration and, during this time, he had been meeting regularly with the Public Works Department to find a solution together.

“We were very close to resolving this before the transition to the Mayor Kimo Alameda administration. I did not realize that this had suddenly become a legal issue of eminent domain until I read it in the paper,” Wayland Lum said.

During the Hawaiʻi County Council meeting, council members Ashley Kierkiewicz, Matt Kanealiʻi-Kleinfelder and Jenn Kagiwada apologized on behalf of the county to the Lum family.

Upon learning more details about the eminent domain case, Kierkiewicz, along with Neil Azevedo, Director of Public Works, got in touch with Wayland Lum to see if it was possible to begin meeting again to come to an agreement.

Kierkiewicz moved to postpone the vote on the resolution until the County Council meeting on Aug. 5 to give all parties time to reach a solution.

“I think this is a big lesson in the importance of getting things done,” Kierkiewicz said. “When an agreement is reached during a prior administration, the next administration has to honor it as a promise from the county. I would love to be involved like an accountability coach to make sure we meet the Aug. 5 deadline.”