Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 34, Number 4, 1 April 2017 — Kūkaniloko Master Plan Working Group Kicks Off [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kūkaniloko Master Plan Working Group Kicks Off

By Office of Hawaiian Affairs Staff n 2012, OHA acquired 511 acres of agricultural land surrounding a five-acre parcel containing the Kūkaniloko Birthstones in Wahiawā, O'ahu; a portion of the former Galbraith Estate. As the sacred birthplace of many of Hawai'i's renowned ali'i, OHA must ensure its use of the lands surrounding Kūkaniloko is compatible with the cultural significance of the site. To achieve this objective, in 2016 OHA began a two-year process to create a Kūkaniloko Master Plan (KMP). The KMP will be informed by a wide range of expert and eommunity input, whieh includes the creation of an advisory working group. Through the months of November and December 2016, OHA solicited applicants to participate as working group members. At the end of the application period, 25 applications were received. After a thorough review process, nine individuals were eventually selected. These individuals include: Thomas Lenehanko - long-time steward of Kūkaniloko and Wahiawā resident; Jo-Lin Lenehanko Kalimapau - official representative of the Hawaiian Civic Club of Wahiawā and Wahiawā resident; Leilani Basham - cultural specialist, Wahiawā resident, and Hawaiian Studies/Language professor at UH West O'ahu; Noa Lineoln - Professor of Indigenous Crops and Cropping Systems at UH Mānoa; Jonah La'akapu Lenehanko - wrote

his Master's thesis on Kūkaniloko and Kamehameha Schools' teacher; Jesse Cooke - specialist in finance and investment with a concentration in agriculture from the Ulupono Initiative; Manulani Aluli Meyer - Director of Indigenous Education at UH West O'ahu and cultural practitioner; Susan Crow - expert in soil science and professor at UH Mānoa; and Amber Leonani Nāho'oikaika i - Kumu Alaka'i at Pūnana Leo o Wai'anae and cultural practitioner. OHA believes this team of experts will bring diverse perspectives to this multi-faceted process , and to the creation of a unique, j innovative, exemplary, and cultur-ally-focused KMP. The working group will meet monthly until the completion of the Master Plan. The working group's first meeting was | conducted on February 22, 20 17, at OHA's Nā Lama Kukui office. Additional venues for eommunity input will also be available throughout the planning process. OHA will be conducting meetings with a number of civic groups and will also host several community meetings. These meetings will function to both provide updates to community on the planning process and to receive testimony. Information regarding these meetings will be made available on OHA's website and in Ka Wai Ola. Stay tuned for more Ka Wai Ola articles detailing the history of Kūkaniloko, updates on the planning process, and announcements for upcoming community workshops. ■

j 'ĀINA ^ % LAND AND WATER f

A leam of experts will advise OHA as it develops a master plan for Kūkaniloko. - Photo: Courtesy of the Kūkaniloko Advisory Working Group