More than two decades after it was shuttered by Hurricane Iniki, the iconic Coco Palms Hotel on Kauai is now closer to resurrection.

Applications for demolition permits soon will be submitted after Coco Palms Hui LLC cleared a major hurdle — getting approval from the Kauai Planning Commission last month for a special management area use permit, project development use permit, variance permit and Class IV zoning permit.

Architect Ron Agor of Agor Architects LLC, who is working with the developers on the design, said they are preparing to submit demolition permits. The hotel’s dilapidated cottages and King’s Lagoon building are slated to be torn down, rebuilt and elevated to meet flood-proofing standards.

The application to be submitted by Coco Palms Hui is for a revised demolition permit to replace an application previously submitted by the hotel owner, Prudential Insurance. Planning Director Michael Dahilig said developers will be required to comply with conditions presented by the planning commission.

In 41⁄2 months, developers also plan to submit applications for building permits for the hotel’s three main buildings — the Shell and Alii Kai I and II — that will be gutted and renovated.

Permits for other structures that include the lobby, retail building and the Queen Audience Hall will follow soon after.

"We project that building permits for all structures will be applied for by the end of this summer," said Agor.

Developers also plan to renovate the beachfront Seashell Restaurant.

Renovation of the resort is generating buzz in the community.

"It’s really exciting," said Agor. "It means so much to the people of Kauai."

In an emailed statement, he said: "We know where we want to go with the structures. The challenge is to take the existing building components and transform them into the new vision. There are situations where we won’t know the condition of a wall or roof until we start the demolition. Only then can we start the design work for the new vision.

"The key, in my mind, is to complete the work by minimizing the disturbance of Coco Palms’ sacred grounds. The project is not about architecture. It is about respecting and bringing back the culture and history of Coco Palms," he said.

The land where the hotel is situated was the ancestral home of Kauai’s royalty in the 13th century, according to coco-palms.com. In the mid-1800s, Kauai’s last reigning queen, Deborah Kapule, wife of King Kaumualii, resided there.

Contractors must stop work and contact the State Historic Preservation Division if any Native Hawaiian burials or archaeological resources are discovered during construction.

Dahilig said developers still face other hurdles that include a flood review on their design from the Department of Public Works.

The hotel first opened on Jan. 25, 1953, with two guest rooms and four employees. It grew to 416 rooms at its peak in the mid-1970s, according to the website.

The property was popularized with the wedding scene in the 1961 Elvis Presley movie, "Blue Hawaii." The hotel shut down after it suffered extensive damage in Iniki in September 1992.