Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 11, 1 November 2004 — Selling DHHL lots [ARTICLE]

Selling DHHL lots

I am totally amazed at the number of homesteads that are being sold to whoever are 50 percent Hawaiian and ean meet the price. I ean agree that homesteaders who have made improvements on their lots deserve to receive a reasonable and fair return on their investments, but an unimproved, residential lot is questionable. I ean even understand that leases on improved commercial and agricultural lots ean be sold to qualified Hawaiians. But residential lots are something else. We have moved so far from the intent of the homestead act that these lands are treated more like real estate on a very exclusive market. The Hawaiian Homes Commission Act may not have been a perfect program, but it did set down some basic understandings as to its intent. What happened to those qualified Hawaiians on the waiting list? And furthermore, after selling your award, you ean get back on the waiting list to do the same thing again! Auē! jane Lee Kaunakakai, Moloka'i