Left to right: Pono Asano (Executive Assistant to Mayor Richard Bissen), Harold Rodrigues, Kealiʻi Reichel, Vania Kanamu (Ka ʻOhana o Kahikinui), Chair Kali Watson (Hawaiian Homes Commission)
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) awarded 25 pastoral lots on December 2, 2023, as part of its Kuleana Program. Established in 1999, the Kuleana Program was created through beneficiary consultation. It is the department’s direct response to fulfilling the community’s needs and its desire to be good stewards of the land.
It has been more than two decades since the Kuleana Program awarded the first 75 lots. The Kuleana Program provides an alternative homesteading option for DHHL beneficiaries interested in living on unimproved Hawaiian Home Lands. The program also addresses the department’s need to quickly provide homesteads to a growing list of beneficiaries, many of whom lack sufficient funding to acquire a traditional residential lease.
Located on the leeward side of Haleakalā, Kahikinui encompasses 22,860 acres. The area is zoned for 101 lots ranging in size from 10 to 16 acres. As part of the Kuleana Program, lessees must maintain the roadways, their properties, the surrounding landscape, and historical features.
“It is a challenging program, but we do have people on our waitlist that are committed and will take on that challenge,” said Hawaiian Homes Commission Chairperson Kali Watson. “The department will be more actively involved in providing financing and also assistance on construction, so it’s an exciting time.”
The department’s pastoral leases provide lands for ranching and allow beneficiaries to build a home. The DHHL pastoral lot awards vary in size on Hawai‘i Island, Kaua‘i, Maui, and Moloka‘i. To learn more about this program, visit https://dhhl.hawaii.gov/.
“I’m glad to become a member of that great community,” said DHHL beneficiary Harold Rodrigues. “Being in a homestead is a hardship but you persevere, as whoever is there now has persevered and built that community up to what it is now.”