Remember our story about how Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach was public, but the park behind it wasn’t? Well, some good news: Hawaiʻi County has reached a tentative $1.46 million agreement to purchase the 6.8-acre park, following the lease dispute that closed its facilities in August. The deal isn’t final, and the park remains closed for now, but public ownership is looking much closer. Meanwhile, the land shuffle continues in the other direction.
Kamehameha Schools has sold the land beneath Kona Village, a Rosewood Resort, for $246.3 million to an affiliate of existing resort owner Kennedy Wilson (not a person, but a publicly traded real estate investment firm). Add that to the $400 million Four Seasons Hualālai land sale and the $510 million Royal Hawaiian deal, and Kamehameha Schools has sold approximately $1.15 billion in resort land in just over a year.
The trust says the proceeds will strengthen its endowment, support education, and help fund stewardship of its other lands. That’s a substantial financial strategy, but these transactions also raise a bigger question about the long-term ownership of Hawaiʻi’s most significant places. At Punaluʻu, public ownership may soon be secured. At three landmark resorts, the land has moved into private ownership. Different deals, very different implications, and a reminder that in Hawaiʻi, who owns the ʻāina matters.
