(Honolulu, Hawaii)
A plan by Japanese real-estate mogul Genshiro Kawamoto to build a private museum in Kahala was met with loud resistance Tuesday night during a community meeting led by state Rep. Barbara Marumoto.
Marumoto scheduled the meeting last month after Kawamoto announced he would transform four beach front lots along Kahala Avenue into his “number one estate,” which also features a private museum for his art collection.
“I think that it's very important for us to be ready to know who in the community is opposed to it and who is in favor of it,” said Marumoto, as she addressed about thirty people at the Kahala Park Pavilion.
Kawamoto owns more than two dozen properties along Kahala Avenue and has allowed many of them to go into disrepair. He also allowed three native Hawaiian families to move into three of his properties practically rent-free in 2007.
Walter James lives just a few blocks from the proposed site of Kawamoto’s museum in the 4600 block of Kahala Avenue and spoke strongly against the Japanese billionaire.
"This guy does nothing except tear down walls, let houses go into disrepair and he does nothing for this community,” exhorted James in a loud voice. “He doesn't pay his taxes; he doesn't pay his fines.”
During the meeting Marumoto distributed a letter from the city Department of Planning and Permitting that stated Kawamoto would be required to obtain a zoning variance in order to move forward with his museum.
Zoning variances are rarely granted by DPP and require a public hearing where all stakeholders are allowed to air out their concerns. However some Kahala residents are concerned Kawamoto will simply forge ahead regardless of what the law says.
“We all know how Kawamoto reacts,” Kahala resident Gunter Koejler told khons2. “Permits or no permits, (it) doesn't really interest him, so I wonder what's going to happen?"
Among those speaking out against Kawamoto’s planned museum in Kahala was Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board member and former City Council District 4 candidate Rich Turbin.
Turbin described Kawamoto’s plan to build a museum a “rope-a-dope.”
“I doubt very much that he's serious about putting up a museum,” said Turbin. “I think this is another one of Mr. Kawamoto's distractions. It’s the rope-a-dope and we’re the dopes!”
During last year’s legislative session Marumoto introduced a bill that would have made it a misdemeanor to incur several zoning infractions within a short period of time. The legislation was clearly aimed at Kawamoto, whose Kahala properties have received at least 50 infractions from the DPP.
“I’ll introduce the bill again this year,” said Marumoto, “but there’s no guarantee it will pass.
State Sen. Sam Slom, the sole republican in the state legislature, urged people in the crowd to get involved if they truly wanted lawmakers to craft legislation that would prevent real estate investors like Kawamoto from “blighting” neighborhoods.
“If it's worth doing it means that we have to all of us, give up some of our private time and some of the things that we'd rather be doing to do this.”
Scotty Anderson, chairman of the Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board, urged residents to take their concerns to the Honolulu City Council in addition to state lawmakers.
"What this whole group really needs to do one day is go down to the City Council and make our voices heard,” he said. “We want that kind of legislation that gets rid of the blight in the neighborhood.”
Kawamoto did not attend Tuesday’s meeting or have a representative present, however in November he told Khon2 he intended to refurbish all of his 26 Kahala properties.
"I have every intention of putting the money that I need to into my properties to make them nice and attractive,” Kawamoto said through an interpreter.
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