Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 5, 1 May 1995 — Hāna Village Marketplace gets underway [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Hāna Village Marketplace gets underway

by Patrick Johnston The windward side of Maui does not get a lot of sun year round but it shone April 8 on the groundbreaking ceremony for the Hīnamālailena Village Marketplace in Hāna. It was a good omen for a project long in the making, a project supporters hope will provide needed business and job opportunities for the community. Approximately 50 people attended the groundbreaking ceremony whieh included speeches by individuals involved in the project, a ceremonial planting of an 'ulu tree (a symbol of growth), and a Christian blessing. The marketplace is the brainchild of Bill Chang, president of the Hāna-based non-profit eeonomie development organization Hīna-mālailena. He has spent the past seven years working with eommunity members and government officials to start up the project. When it is completed, organizers anticipate the Hāna Village Marketplace will house between 12 and 15 residentowned small businesses offering everything from loeal crafts to financial services. The shopping complex will be a

village concept with clusters of wooden, kiosk-type buildings with shingle roofs, rock wall terracing and landscaping. Businesses will be designed both to profit from the steady influx of tourists that eome to Hāna everyday, and to provide services for the community. "It is not just a commercial center," said Chang at the groundbreaking, "it is a community center." Haunani Collins, a partner in a seafood restaurant business interested in setting up shop in the marketplace, echoed these sentiments. "We're hoping it will provide jobs and opportunities for the community, especially for the young, so they stay in the area." Collins and her partner Gary Chow, now a manager at the Hāna Ranch restaurant, hope to create a plaee that both visitors and locals ean enjoy. Its luneh menu would cater to tourists and in the evening, after most visitors have left town, they would offer more loeal fare. The idea of the marketplace formally began eight years ago in a Hāna business class while Chang discussed the subject of operating a business in Hāna

with some of his classmates. He explains, "During one of the course workshops we analyzed what were the biggest obstacles to starting a business in Hāna. The majority said finding an appropriate location. Not many areas in Hāna were zoned for business use." At the same time Hāna's Wananalua Congressional church was looking to lease some of its commercially zoned property. Hīna-mālailena - formed by members of the business class - approached the church with a proposal to build the marketplace. The church, after looking at a number of proposals, chose to back Hīnamālailena. Vital to its success since then has been the role of the Hāna community. According to

Chang, in its early days members of Hīna Mālailena - all Hāna residents - provided "no interest" loans to

the organization and arranged for free technical support from attorneys and architects. "We've been fueled to this point by the dreams and aspirations of the Hāna people," Chang says. Hīna-mālailena has also received support - both financial and technical - from a number of other corners.

The Administration for Native Americans has played an important financial role, giving the non-profit over $700,000 in grant funding to help with various predevelopment, training,

and permit costs. OHA has been with the project since 1992, initially supplying technical assistance in putting together grant

applications and will eventually provide a $90,000 loan. OHA's support, led by acting eeonomie development division officer Chris Van Bergeijk, paid off with a $1.76 million grant from the Eeonomie Develop-ment Administration (EDA). A key factor in receiving this grant was OHA's underwriting of the project, effectively acting as a partner. The EDA requires a co-applicant in this type of project and they prefer that it be a government agency. Maui County also played an important role in getting the EDA grant approved by producing an overall eeonomie development plan for the county, a plan that took a year to produce but was required by the EDA for the Hīnamālailena grant application to be

accepted. Maui County has also provided financial support in the form of $350,000 in grant funding to help cover

construction costs. As part of the marketplaee preparations, Hāna residents wanting to start small businesses were given īeehnieal assistance from OHA business eonsultants, the Small Business Development Center and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. A business support services office will continue this assistance after the eompletion of the marketplaee. Construction on the marketplace is expected to begin this month and promoters anticipate the first tenants setting up shop by the end of the year. For more information about the project eontact Bill Chang at (808) 248-7485.

A view of the Hāna coast from the future site of the Hina-malailena Village Marketplace; a miniature modei of the commercial center. Phntas hv Patrir.k John<tian

Bill Chang prepares ground for 'ulu tree at marketplace site.

Sam Ka'ai blows a eoneh shell to begin groundbreaking ceremonies.