Landowner, county fail to reach agreement on Punaluu Black Sand Beach Park lease

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Punalu‘u Black Sand Beach Park will no longer be managed by the County of Hawai‘i after negotiations with the landowner, Black Sand Beach, LLC, ended without an agreement.

Read more Often unspoken and overlooked, disasters can impact mental health

The county has leased the 6.8-acre site for the past 72 years, and that agreement ends on Aug. 29.

At the end of the lease, county-managed park services will cease, and park facilities and improvements will revert to the landowner.

“We know how important Punalu‘u Black Sand Beach Park is to Ka‘ū and the entire island,” said Mayor Kimo Alameda. “During negotiations with the landowner, we made multiple good faith offers that would protect the public interest but unfortunately were unable to reach a solution that is acceptable to the community.”

The county said the current lease was executed in 1998 for $1 between SM Investments and Hawai‘i County.

Black Sand Beach, LLC, requested a new lease in 2024.

The county said that to protect community access to the beach park, make necessary park improvements, and maintain good stewardship of public funds, it proposed a 10-year lease with annual payments starting at $159,300, followed by 3% annual increases. The landowner declined the county’s offer and chose to terminate the existing lease agreement as of June 30, 2026.

Both parties agreed to extend the lease for two months to provide additional time ot negoitate a potential agreement.

Read more 600 remain without power on Hawaii Island as HECO says crews make steady gains

During that time, the county said it conducted an appraisal for a proposed purchase of the property through its Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resource Preservation Commission (PONC).

The county said the landowner declined to sell the property to the county through the PONC program. The program requires a willing seller, and the county cannot offer more than the maximum purchase price established by the appraisal.

In a statement, an attorney for Black Sand Beach LLC said the county declined another 30-day extension.

“My client did not terminate the existing lease and even gave the county an additional 60 days so further negotiations could occur. Moreover, earlier this week, my client offered an additional 30-day extension asking only for county resources to be deployed in Punalu’u, an area significantly affected by the recent storms, which the county outright rejected. The county has demonstrated no interest in aiding the desperate people of Punalu’u.

Having spoken with the Punalu’u community, the Punalu’u community is very interested in a conservation easement over Punalu’u Beach Park to be given to the County. I am currently drafting that conservation easement and will be submitting it to the County for its approval. Should the County reject this conservation easement and with my client’s permission, I would like to share the details of the conservation easement with you at a later date and time.”

An attorney for Black Sand Beach, LLC, said the landowner is committed to ensuring public access to the beach remains, adding, “It is unfortunate that the County has decided to use Punalu‘u Beach Park and the people of Punalu‘u as political fodder.”

Read more Number of graves impacted by Hurricane Lala at Naalehu Cemetery rises