March 20, 1984

A Chaminade University proposal to build a four-year college on 100 acres of sugar cane land in Maalaea, Maui, ran into a solid wall of opposition yesterday from the ILWU, which has been a potent political force on Maui for many years.

G. Everett Spring, Maui coordinator for the university, revealed the university’s plans at a meeting of the Maui County Council’s Planning and Land Use Committee, which was considering the proposed Kihei-Makena community plan.

Spring said the university wants to develop 100 acres of C. Brewer’s Wailuku Sugar Co. land mauka of Honoapiilani Highway near the Kihei Road junction.

William Kennison, an ILWU officer, told county councilmen that C. Brewer has very limited agricultural land available on Maui and it would be “disastrous” to take the 100 acres out of sugar cane.

“In the last general plan, C. Brewer was going to take out a certain amount of acreage — 500 acres in Wailuku and 16 in Maalaea and so many in Piihana for urban development and now they’re coming back and telling us they want additional acreage,” Kennison said.

He added that the union has an agreement with Brewer, he said, that there will be no layoffs until 1998.

Councilman Rick Medina, chairman of the Planning and Land Use Committee, said Spring was talking about 100 acres within an area that encompasses 260 acres of land. He said it was a little confusing, but he gathered that “260 acres might be the entire campus 20 to 30 years down the road.”

“This came along at the last minute and the union was not apprised of it. The union had agreed that C. Brewer could take 600 acres with the understanding that if the land was urbanized, it would help keep Wailuku Sugar Co. viable,” Medina said. “What Willie Kennison is saying is that they can take 100 acres out of the initial 600, but they cannot add to that.

Kennison said some cane land already has been converted to macadamia nut product. … He said the nuts are a … crop that has not yet been proven.” …

Kennison said the ILWU is “very, very concerned about the Chaminade proposal.

“Why take land away from Wailuku Sugar Co.?”