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West Hawaii beneficiaries push DHHL to fund community projects, health center and infrastructure
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Summary
Beneficiary leaders from Waimea and Layopuʻa outlined priorities including a resumed undivided‑interest (UI) offering, preschool and kupuna services, boat storage, and a multi‑phase health center aimed at federal FQHC status; they asked DHHL and the commission to preserve and direct existing appropriations for homestead-led projects.
Speakers from Waimea and the Layopuʻa area urged the Hawaiian Homes Commission on March 18 to prioritize community‑led development projects and to preserve funding that beneficiary organizations had helped secure for homestead improvements.
Boka ("Uncle Boku") Huey, identifying himself as Executive Director of Layopuʻa Community Development Corporation, thanked the commission for approving the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands’ environmental review for a Giannales property and described an outreach event in which beneficiaries were invited to sign up for undivided‑interest (UI) awards. Huey said restoring the UI program offers a path for kupuna to provide transferable awards to descendants and urged DHHL to set aside land for boat storage and to support a preschool and a kupuna day‑use center for Layopuʻa Village.
Mike Hudson, president of the Waimea Nui homestead, described a multi‑phase project to build a community health center with the goal of achieving Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) status. Hudson said the community secured multiple funding sources for infrastructure — including an $8.3 million Department of Defense grant matched by DHHL — and that phases one and two of the health center planning and design are complete. He asked the commission and the department not to reallocate funding that had been legislatively set aside for homestead development, noting the funds were pursued by homestead leaders to support health and economic rehabilitation on trust lands.
Hudson described the plan to develop an RHC (rural health clinic) into an FQHC, which would enable satellite clinics across homesteads statewide. He said the homestead has obtained permits for initial construction and is seeking additional CIP requests (he cited an ask of $3.5 million to complete the building and a longer-term $4 million plan) to finish the facility and pursue the federal designation that would allow broader service delivery. He stressed that an FQHC designation could increase access to primary care and enable culturally focused indigenous health services across homesteads.
Both speakers urged clearer collaboration between DHHL and beneficiary organizations and asked commissioners to respect funding lines beneficiaries helped procure. Commissioners responded with appreciation for the community work and committed to follow up; no formal votes were taken during the public‑comment period.
Several beneficiaries at the meeting also requested continued DHHL support for planning, right‑of‑entry approvals and protection of homestead borders to prevent trespass and unauthorized resource extraction. Speakers noted that beneficiary‑led CDCs are often the “boots on the ground” and asked the commission to factor that local capacity into funding decisions.
