Next to Sunset Beach Elementary school sits an overgrown piece of land. The Pupukea-Paumalu property. 11-hundred acres the North Shore Community Land Trust helped to protect and transfer into State and City hands back in 2007. That same group is now advocating for residents to get involved again.
"Hey this is what we'd like to see happen and how can we go about making that happen," says Doug Cole, Pupukea-Paumalu Project Coordinator, North Shore Community Land Trust.
Doug Cole and other members of the Trust have been holding town hall meetings asking for community input on how they'd like the property to be developed.
"I've never seen on the North Shore a group of people all get together and really agree on something with no opposition and people are just really wanting to work together," says Kelly Tsutsui, North Shore resident.
Over the weeks, residents have written pages of ideas.
"They've given us the opportunity to seek out 30 different ways that this property could be used," says Tsutsui.
Some include expansion of the elementary school, building a YMCA type facility with an aquatics and fitness center, even adding a dog park and areas protected for hiking trails and community gardens.
"With 2 small children that use the North Shore, go to this school, live in this area we need to make sure this is for them," says Tsutsui.
"We all own this land being part of the public so it's important and helpful to the State and City to know what the community would like to see," says Cole.
Cole says it's a proactive approach. And the North Shore Community Land Trust hopes to present the city and state with a draft management plan for the property by early next year.
"Hopefully the ones that have the most community support I guess will become reality at some point in future, when we don't now," says Cole.
The NEXT Public Meeting:
Thursday, November 12
Time: 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Where: Sunset BEach Elementary School Cafeteria
