{"id":297,"date":"2026-05-19T08:04:55","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T08:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297"},"modified":"2026-05-19T08:04:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T08:04:55","slug":"developer-of-kauai-condos-files-for-bankruptcy-over-predatory-lending-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297","title":{"rendered":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A divisive development of 279 luxury condos under construction on Kauai\u2019s south shore is now in financial trouble. <\/p>\n

Read more Coast Guard, partners respond to oil spill at Ala Wai Harbor<\/a><\/p>\n

After pre-selling about $100 million worth of units, developer Meridian Pacific filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy over its Kauanoe o Koloa project, days before a scheduled hearing for a lawsuit against it. <\/p>\n

An attorney for the company blamed a \u201cpredatory lending agreement\u201d for the filing. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re hoping that the trustee in bankruptcy can sell the parcel, which is partly developed, but not enough for anybody to live on, and it\u2019s a mess,\u201d Bridget Hammerquist, president of non-profit organization Friends of Mahaulepu, said. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

The group filed the lawsuit, claiming the project\u2019s drainage plan would send storm water runoff onto neighboring properties. <\/p>\n

Kauai County is a defendant in the litigation for permitting the plan. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was too big a thing for the south shore, and it was really going to threaten our beaches with the runoff,\u201d Hammerquist added. <\/p>\n

Friends of Mahaulepu was prepared to make their case to the Hawaii Supreme Court on Thursday, but now, they are on standby. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur lawyers are trying to figure out right now whether there will be oral argument because we don\u2019t know the impact of the bankruptcy filing,\u201d Hammerquist said. <\/p>\n

Read more City launches AI training pilot for Oahu businesses, nonprofits<\/a><\/p>\n

Opponents also raised alarm four years ago when crews blasted through dense rock on the 25-acre parcel next to the Kiahuna Golf Course. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat (the work) really probably injured a lot of the native species, which are indigenous and unique to Koloa. They\u2019re nowhere else in the world,\u201d Hammerquist shared. <\/p>\n

At the time, Meridian told HNN a team of archaeologists tested the site beforehand, and that the State Historic Preservation Division concluded no historic properties were impacted. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cYou know they did a lot of damage,\u201d area resident Llewelyn Kaohelaulii said. <\/p>\n

Kaohelaulii is the caretaker of a nearby site sacred to Native Hawaiians, Kaneiolouma Heiau, and argues the development is disruptive to the grounds. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s taking everything of us,\u201d Kaohelaulii said. \u201cIt\u2019s been happening in Poipu, so much development coming down.\u201d<\/p>\n

HNN asked Meridian\u2019s attorney how the bankruptcy would affect the project, and did not get a specific response, but we received the following statement:<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cThe Chapter 11 filing was a difficult, but necessary, step to address financial obligations arising from a predatory lending arrangement. Chapter 11 provides the orderly framework needed to stabilize the project, protect the interests of all interest holders, and resolve the disputes in the proper forum. Our foremost concern is the impact on the Kauai contractors and local businesses who have contributed to this project. We are committed to working through the Chapter 11 process to preserve the project, benefit the community, and treat creditors and buyers in escrow fairly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more First Alert Forecast: Heavy pockets of spotty rain into Tuesday then make sure to hold on\u2013 gusty trades are coming our way<\/a><\/p>\n

The county said it cannot comment on pending litigation.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The filing came days before the Hawaii Supreme Court was scheduled to hear arguments against the controversial project, which includes 279 luxury condos on Kauai’s south shore. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":296,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nDeveloper of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The filing came days before the Hawaii Supreme Court was scheduled to hear arguments against the controversial project, which includes 279 luxury condos on Kauai's south shore.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\"},\"headline\":\"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297\"},\"wordCount\":521,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297\",\"name\":\"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=297#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hawaii Moving Insider\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","og_description":"The filing came days before the Hawaii Supreme Court was scheduled to hear arguments against the controversial project, which includes 279 luxury condos on Kauai's south shore.","og_url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297","og_site_name":"Hawaii Moving Insider","article_published_time":"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0"},"headline":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019","datePublished":"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297"},"wordCount":521,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297","name":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019 - Hawaii Moving Insider","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif","datePublished":"2026-05-19T08:04:55+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3e07edd5407d49f991799a51855f2983.avif","width":1200,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=297#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Developer of Kauai condos files for bankruptcy over \u2018predatory lending agreement\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/","name":"Hawaii Moving Insider","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com"],"url":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}