On Top of the Aloha Beat BLOG

When i meet people from the mainland here on island, on of their more popular questions is "Don't you get bored living on an island?" I understand the sincerity of the question, and I have even met people that have gotten island fever. However, rarely is there a time when there aren't tons of things to do.

Like tonight for instance. Malama Pono, the island’s only dedicated prevention and care provider for HIV, infectious hepatitis and other sexually transmitted diseases, is holding a fundraiser at the Hukilau Lanai with Kauai Sings. Local singers will be singing the music of Irving Berlin, one of the most famous American composers. Did you know that Irving Berlin only played on the black keys and that Irving had a custom piano made that would transpose keys while allowing him to play only on the black keys At the same time, there's a huge reggae concert with six different great reggae bands.

But my pick for the evening, is a show at Kauai's leading private school, Island School, where English teacher Jim Bray and 4 of his students are performing the show, Everything i needed to know I learnt in Kindergarden. This is a moving play that underscores the simplicity and innocence of young children and how uninhibited and full of dreams we all are before we "grow-up" and become so sophisticated.

Aside from that, there's live music at about 8 hotels and Trees Lounge in LIhue. No, i don't get bored. In fact, most weekends there are more things going on here on Kauai, than i could possibly have the time to do even if i wanted to.

Here's a small excerpt from the show which traverses the innocence of children to the profound subject of the  meaning of life and death. 

Kindergarden cast from Island School. My friend Marty Whitney
is last on the right

From all I really need to know I learned in Kindergarden. All I really need to know about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarden. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandpile at Sunday School. These are the things I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people. Put your things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don’t take things that aren’t yours. Say your sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Live a balanced life- learn some and think some and draw and paint and play and work everyday some. Take a nap every afternoon. When you go out into the world, watch out For traffic, hold hands, and stick together. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little Seed in the styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that. Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and Even the little seed in the styrofoam Cup. They all die. So do we. And then remember the Dick and Jane Books and the first word you learned- The biggest word of all- look. … think what a better world it would be if we all-the whole world- had cookies and milk about three o’clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all the governments had as a basic policy to always put things back where they found them and to clean up their own mess. And it is still true, no matter how old you are- when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.
 

Today is Earth Day. And while I am sitting open house at a beautiful Lae Nani Condominium in Wailua
my wife Gwen is over at Lydgate Park just a half a mile down the road.

Earth Day is a worldwide opportunity to think globally and act locally by getting out and becoming involved in outdoor activities. Help the planet feel a little better locally in a fun way and make some new friends.

LYDGATE PARK IN WAILUA WITH A BEAUTIFUL ENCLOSED SWIMMING AREA

This year Earth Day is being celebrated with a volunteer workday at Lydgate Park in Wailua on Kaua‘i.  These events help keep the park clean and well-maintained for everyone’s enjoyment. The main task is applying a coat of non-toxic linseed oil wood sealer and doing maintenance carpentry on the playground. 

Although Lydgate Park seems exceptionally clean for such a heavily used park, there is always litter and debris on the beach to be collected. Valerie Sakai, tobacco control specialist with the Kaua‘i Eastside School Complex, will be organizing teens to sweep through the park, collecting cigarette butts.

“We’re hoping to see about 125 volunteers participating,” said John Lydgate, who is one of the park’s most devoted caretakers. John is my neighbor and John spends a lot of time caring for the park that carries his great grandfather's namesake.

The Friends (of Lydgate Park) was formed in 1993 to help coordinate maintenance at Kamalani playground, now a landmark on Kaua‘i. The organization went on to create a master plan for Lydgate Park that included walking and bicycling paths, sports fields, coastal access for fishing and overnight camping facilities. Now there are 2.5 miles of ADA-compliant walking paths completed, three full-size sports fields nearing completion, the fishing access is protected for perpetuity and only the overnight camping is yet to be completed. We sometimes go to full moon parties on the beach led by John and Charlotte Lydgate. Lydgate Park andKamalani Playground is probably the finest area, park and beach for keiki (kids) to play at on the entire island of Kauai. Next time you are here, if you have not already done so, check it out.

Yesterday, about 100 realtors gathered at the Marriot Hotel and Beach Club in Lihue, HI for our quarterly membership meeting. The most lively discussions occurred around the topic of the VDA. Below are some extemporaneous notes that i jotted down, attempting to keep up with the fervent rate of the questions. At the end of the day, after almost eight years of dialogue, the county has finally passed an ordinance in an attempt to manage Transient Vacation Rentals (anything less than 180 days). The mechanics for the management and the actual way the system is going to work, seems like a total mess at the moment. Realtors shared their various experiences about filling out the newly published forms for transient vacation rentals.

The Kauai.gov site has the application and  a press release right on their home page. One of the quirky things the county has done is request that an engineer and architect certify and approve the plans of any VDA outside the VDA area, which non must apply for a non-conforming use certificate AND renew that license yearly. Again, below are my notes from yesterday's meeting.

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Vacation Rental Ordinance is now in effect. No new vacation rentals outside the VDA will be allowed. Existing ones will be allowed as long as they register. That TVR form has sparked a lot of dialogue as to what is required to be non conforming. Everyone is required by 10/15 to apply for the non-conforming use certificate. After that date, no other non-conforming uses will be allowed. You should ask, "do you have a non-conformiing use permit" and that needs to be discussed. Otherwise,  your client can buy a house that is a legal vacation rental now but may not be in the future.

We are in the initial stages of the process. There are more questions on the form. KBR met with planning department and asked how they plan to manage it.
1. They require a stamped engineer's certification. KBR has expressed the concern that planning has the ability to do this.
This may be a big bump in the road. Ordinance also requires that  if you are in the VDA, you must register as well. IT is not the same as being outside the VDA. In order to continue even in the VDA, you must register.  Forms have complicated the matter, because planning department currently wants more information than KBR feels is neccessary.
The ag land use that is being discussed is state-land use ag, the planing department will not accept any applications for grandfather status for rentals. The process will be cloudy until 10/15. From 10/15 to March 30th is the time the planning department has to evaluate the applications.

One agent went to hand in an application for a VDA unit, and the planning department refused to take the application saying that the AOAO needed to submit the forms for the whole complex ( as if the AOAOs had already decided to do this).Planning seems to think that the AOAO is going to do this for every condo. This is part of the initial confusion. If you have any problems with this issue and your clients, let the board know because we are hearing different answers from different people. One thing on the form for non-conforming use is the stipulation that the non-conforming use is recorded on the deed.

We are not sure how planning is going to handle it. Planning seems to think they are going to have more employees to handle it.

Registering inside the VDA  for the VDA is required by September, but if you do not, you can continue to do business and register later. If you sell a property, the registration use should and does run with the land. However, you are required to re-register every year if you have a non-conforming use permit.

The planning department has no intention to change the VDA lines. Some property owners, like on Lawai road, are seeking to get the lines changed. Tell your clients to get legal assistance. You should not wait around to get the forms filed. We, KBR, are communicating that there are a lot of wrinkles in the bill but DO NOT let your clients wait around. If there are any changes, KBR will get the word around as quickly as possible. Planning is not looking at your old plans. They are looking for any changes between when you got the property and now. Planning is hoping to avoid having to do this themself.

B&Bs require a use permit. There are only 8 legal use permits for B&Bs on this island. Technically, all the rest of them are illegal. B&Bs have not been addressed in this ordinance. They have stopped calling it B&Bs and they call it homestays. Guest house is considered part of the house for this use whether it is attached or not. Technically, all those B&Bs are in violation if they don't have a use permit.

There may be impacts to the county regarding lost revenue. The county and planning department don't seem to care at all. Several homeowners who own on agricultural land may be taking legal action. The form just came out on March 30th.

The official source for VDA are dashed lines labeled time sharing. Registration for units in the VDA only has to be done one time. Forms are available on the opening page of Hawaii.gov. Planning is asking architect and engineer  to certify that the use is legal. We are just starting to get a feeling for how architects and engineers are going to react to this. The form has been consolidated into one page for finance and planning. We have proposed three different forms. One for VDA. One for non-conforming. One for multi-family outside VDA before 1982 that are technically grandfathered. One person went into planning with architects and engineers stamped plans from renovations that were only two months old and planning would not accept it. That is not good!

Anything outside the VDA that is not operating now, is not allowed. To re-register an outside the VDA unit, you must show at least 30 days of income for the prior year.

Superferry EIS begins amid continued concerns.

More Great values! Foreclosures increasing

Here is a small sampling of some of the foreclosure auctions coming up in April. Whether you are interested in buying or selling, we can help. We understand short sales AND foreclosures. Do you know the difference? A short sale implies a late payment status with a clean up period of about 2 years. A foreclosure impacts the consumer's credit rating and will impact any credit possibilities for the next 7 to 10 years. Obviously, the short sale is the preferred method in saving one's credit position.

A short sale is the sale of a property in which the proceeds fall short of what the owner still owes on the mortgage. Many lenders will agree to accept the proceeds of a short sale and forgive the rest of what is owed on the mortgage when the owner cannot make the mortgage payments. By accepting a short sale, the lender can avoid a lengthy and costly foreclosure, and the owner is able to pay off the loan for less than what he owes.

When buying a short sale, you need to be patient. It can take 4 to 10 weeks for the bank to respond to your offer. With a foreclosure, the bank already owns the home. It is considered an REO and the transaction is pretty standard. Banks still will try to get market value for the home.

In the table below, the recorded date indicates the date the foreclosure documents (notice of default) were filed with the county recorders office. Call or email with any questions and kindly refer to the property ID number. Mahalo.

Prop ID	Recorded	Location	SQ. FT.	BR	BA	Auction Date
17010445	2/28/08	Plantation at Princeville Unit 422	1318	3	3	April 4, 2008
16967044	2/20/08	Puamana at PRinceville -26B	1532	2	2	April 11, 2008
17350069	3/18/08	Sandpiper #115 in Princeville	1058	2	2	May 2, 2008
17297188	3/14/08	148A Royal Drive - Wailua Homesteads	2927	5	4	April 25,2008
17461425	3/3/08	2015 Puu Kaa	778	2	1	April 17,2008

Mayor and Planning issue TVR instructions.

OK, hot of the presses or rather the press releases, from the County of Kauai is a news release about transient vacation rentals (TVR). The press release states that any offense of this new ordinance will be fined no less than 500 dollars and no more than 10,000 dollars. Gee, a couple of 10k fines could be a little dent in your yearly cash flow. Anyway, read the interactive press release from the County of Kauai, and if you have a vacation rental within the VDA (visitor destination area) take care of registering the proper paperwork. If you have a vacation rental outside the VDA, then you must apply for a non-conforming use designation by Oct. 15th and the non-conforming use must be approved by March 30th, 2009.

I would not be surprised to see the county get sued over this cumbersome legislation.

View the final Bill 2204 regarding transient vacation rentals on Kauai.