African Tulips with Bumble Bees
Dave and I flew in from Oahu to attend the Kawela Plantations Homeowners Association Meeting. It was our first meeting, and as we understand it — the long-time residents found it to be a rather ”mellow” meeting. However, from our perspective, things seemed to get a bit heated at times.
There were a number of positives that stemmed from our attendance at the meeting.
First of all, it allowed us with the opportunity to meet and socialize with our neighbors. We met a bunch of neat people. One man, Gene Anderson, was particularly nice and helpful. He has resided in Kawela for a long time, lives just down the road from us, and has an incredible amount of knowledge about the area. Right after the meeting, Gene drove over, walked the lot with Dave, and pointed out the things we need to consider before building our home. We’re talking stuff that ordinary folks from Oahu would never think about because its just not part of our framework.
One suggestion was to have the property blessed by a Kahuna Pule (Hawaiian minister). Kawela was the site of a huge battle in ancient Hawaiian times, and as such, many lives were lost in the area. The subdivision is full archaeological sites. Many of these have been documented, but there are certainly others that have yet to be discovered. To respect the area, the history, and the culture – a blessing ceremony really is appropriate.
The other thing we need to keep in mind is the wind. Kawela can be WINDY! A nice breeze that keeps the house cool and comfortable year round is great. A windstorm the blasts through your house carrying dirt, bugs, and leaves in on one side while blowing all your important papers out the other side is not. And yes, the wind CAN AND DOES get that strong.
Deer are another big issue when it comes to building in Kawela. As we understand it, if there is an irrigation system, the deer will break the pipes and sprinkler-heads in search of water. For absentee owners, this can be a huge problem because they’re not there to notice the damage and make the repairs. If the irrigation system is automated, thousands of gallons of water could be wasted before someone notifies you of the problem. Then you have to scramble to get over there and fix it, or hire someone to do so. To top it off, you’re stuck with a huge water bill at the end of the month. Therefore, to deter problems, it’s better to just provide the deer with a large tub of water at the far end of the property. It’s also better to have above-ground pipes, so you can easily see if and where there is a break in the line. If PVC pipes are used, it’s important to use extra-thick walled pipes to minimize deer-related breaks. Now who on Oahu would ever think of deer as an important consideration when building a home?
Another great bit of infomation came by way of Bob Libby. Bob is with the consulting company that made a presentation to the Kawela Plantation Homeowners Association about a photovoltaic system to power Kawela’s water pumps.
Contact: Bob Libby
Company: Solar Power Solutions
Phone: 925-255-3345
Email: Bobby@CaSolarPowerSolutions.com
Website: http://www.CaSolarPowerSolutions.com)
Bob gave me the name of the licensed and bonded contractor on Molokai who built the McAfee estate.
Contractor: Don W. Williams
Phone: 808-336-1388
Email: dwms808@aol.com
Don sits on the Molokai Planning Commission and as such, is quite knowledgable about building on Molokai.
On our first day, we made new friends, made some contacts, and gathered a lot of useful information. Looks like this is going to be a successful and productive trip.
Sunset over Kawela
Comments (0) 
I guess we were too busy lounging on the deck, relishing the views, and basking in the quiet of the neighborhood. Oh yeah, not to mention the sunrises and sunsets. We were busy watching those too. What can I say, we had a hectic schedule on Molokai. 
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