NAWILIWILI — The Kaua‘i County Council on Wednesday approved a new easement, offered by the landowner, that provides an extra public access to Larsen’s Beach, a pristine strip of sand on the North Shore. The acquisition was the latest development
NAWILIWILI — The Kaua‘i County Council on Wednesday approved a new easement, offered by the landowner, that provides an extra public access to Larsen’s Beach, a pristine strip of sand on the North Shore.
The acquisition was the latest development in a long-standing battle for improved access to Larsen’s. Many residents who testified at the meeting saw the decision as a setback.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. sent a communication to the council on June 29, recommending approval of a grant of pedestrian access to the beach also known as Lepeuli Beach. The communication came after Carvalho’s site inspection, which resulted in an agreement between the landowner, the lessee and the administration.
The county already owned an access trail at the south end of Larsen’s. But beachgoers have been using a different route right next to the county-owned path, which has been neglected for years.
In addition to those trails, a lateral access running parallel to the beach has several paths connecting to the beach. Many community members and visitors have also been using this access, but it cuts through the property, owned by Wai‘oli Corp. and leased by Paradise Ranch.
Paradise Ranch owner Bruce Laymon has applied with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to build a fence to keep his cattle in, but the fence would block off the lateral access that many are saying is the easiest way to get down to the beach.
The DLNR had approved the fence, but two appeals were filed earlier this year.
The DLNR required Laymon to work with the county administration and Wai‘oli to find a better access to the beach, according to Laymon.
So Laymon and Waioli offered the county the trail that many fishermen and beachgoers have been using for years.
Laymon said a beach cleanup earlier this year took five truck-loads of trash from the beach, left mainly by illegal campers. Those campers, he said, have set up camp on the beach and on the mauka side of the lateral access.
Councilman Jay Furfaro said the DLNR requested, as condition 16 in Laymon’s application, that Laymon work with the county to “define or improve the existing pathway to Lepeuli.”
Even if the county did not accept the easement, the condition would have been fulfilled, Furfaro said.
Some community members say the lateral access is the Alaloa, an ancient Hawaiian trail that circles the island, running alongside the ocean. This claim, however, has been disputed by Laymon and others.
Furfaro said he was willing to include a new item on the agenda requesting extra information on the Alaloa. But that was a separate issue from the decision at hand.
Kaua‘i resident Linda Sproat asked the council to wait for an update from the DLNR, but Furfaro said it could take another three or four months for a response.
“The business in front of us is accepting or not accepting this piece,” Furfaro said.
Hope Kallai of Malama Moloa‘a said the proposed easement is twice as steep and twice as short. The original trail has a few switchbacks and it complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act standard for trails, she said.
Kallai said if the county accepted the new easement, by law the administration would have to upgrade it to Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
Councilman Dickie Chang said he did a site visit, expecting that it would be a difficult trail.
“I had two words: duck soup,” said Chang, explaining that it was “very easy to get down and very easy to get up.”
Laymon said the original request for the easement came from local fishermen, who have been using the trail for years.
“For the people to make the assertion that the proposed trail is not easier, it’s just not true,” Laymon said. “This is a trail that everybody uses.”
Councilwoman Lani Kawahara, calling the proposed trail redundant, voted against accepting it.
Chair Kaipo Asing said the county was being given an opportunity to take a safer access to the beach. He proposed that only the new trail be maintained.
Councilman Tim Bynum said the county might get sued if the old trail, the more gradual one, is shut down. He said both trails should be maintained.
Councilman Derek Kawakami said by accepting the new easement, the county is making a commitment to maintain the trail.
Councilman Daryl Kaneshiro said the county should accept the easement, and perhaps combine both trails into one.
The county accepted the easement with a six-to-one vote.
Visit www.kauai.gov for more information.
• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@kauaipubco.com.
