The State of Hawaii has proposed purchasing just over 600 acres of land from Turtle Bay Resort to create a conservation easement along the North Shore of Oahu. Supported by Governor Neil Abercrombie, the proposal would allow the resort to continue using the land for recreational operations provided that they provide public access, but would prevent them from developing the land. Turtle Bay Resorts would also retain ownership of the land under an easement. Members of the North Sore community are delighted with these suggestions by the state and Turtle Bay Resort representatives have stated that they would be willing to work with the Governor and the state legislature to come to a resolution that all parties can be happy with.
However, the biggest challenge comes down to money. Under Hawaii law, the state government is not allowed to pay more for conservation easement than the property's appraised value. State appraisers have come up with a preliminary appraisal range of $31.3 million to $38.3 million, and the state actually has a $40 million target price to purchase the land. However, Turtle Bay's owners have stated that amount is far too low for them to accept. If the Turtle Bay Resort is willing to accepted the price of $40 million, they may come up with additional compromises with the state including limiting the extent of public access and/or creating exceptions for the developer regarding required road improvements.
One final option that the state could have would be condemnation, where the state seizes the land for public use and then pays the owner the appraised value. However, if they were to do this, the Turtle Bay Resort would surely challenge that decision in court, which could cost the state millions of dollars in legal fees. The state would also be responsible for managing and maintaining the property under condemnation.
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 1-19-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Principal Broker, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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