A wave of construction in the Poipu area, Kauai is creating a furore as concern mounts among residents and visitors at the rate of growth according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle on February 19, 2008.
Along the road to Spouting Horn, ground has been broken for the 900-plus luxury homes in the Kukui’ula development. The 1,000-acre project is to include a Tom Weiskopf golf course, parks and trails, but the overall loss of green space and temporary road detours is what has raised hackles.
According to the report the noise and inconvenience from the construction has led to the closure of one of Poipu’s more affordable lodgings, the six-unit Koloa Landing Cottages. The owner decided to sell the cottages to the developer for worker housing, rather than disappoint guests used to more tranquil surroundings.
Not all development in the area has been controversial. Ko’a Kea, a 121-room luxury hotel with restaurant and spa, is expected to open in July on the site of the old Poipu Beach Hotel – nearly 17 years after the latter was destroyed by Hurricane Iniki. Painstaking efforts involved in restoring a structure that had become an eyesore have paid off in the end.
