KOKEE STATE PARK, Hawaii — Seven cabins situated in the historic Kokee recreation residence community will be auctioned to the public in mid-April for annual leases, according to a Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources news release.
Created in the high mountain elevations of Kauai in 1918 to protect forest resources and the watershed, the Kokee residence community was planned and modeled after recreation residences built in America’s U.S. national forests with the goal to provide the public with access to nature and inspire them to recreate in it.
“The unique historic community that has evolved up in Kokee over the last 100 years is part of Hawaii’s heritage and is not replicated anywhere else in the state,” said Chipper Wichman, president of the Kokee Leaseholders Association, in the release. “Many of the cabins are designated as historic structures under Hawaii law. The DLNR Division of State Parks (DSP) has adopted specific design guidelines to protect the unique architecture of this mountain community.”
As a matter of fact, Wichman said his great-grandfather built one of the first cabins in 1919.
The Kokee Leaseholders Association was formed in 1983 to protect the community and work with the state. “We work closely with the DSP to ensure that these cabins get into the hands of community members who will love them and maintain them as recreational residences as always envisioned,” said Wichman.
Permits and leases for over 100 recreation residences were initially issued by the Territory of Hawaii, then the State of Hawaii, according to the release.
The properties were leased by negotiation and appraisal up until 1985, when they were all offered for public auction for the first time. After a 20-year lease term that ended in 2005, lessees considered in good standing were allowed to continue their leases through direct negotiation and appraisal. But at the time, 17 cabins were returned to the state. They were set out for a second auction in Dec. 2011, with winning bids ranging from $2,500 to $18,000 for an annual lease.
The seven cabins being put up for the third public auction in April were all returned to the state over the past 10 years. Many of the properties have been neglected and become deteriorated, requiring significant work to restore them to livable conditions. However, all have access to electricity, telephone, internet and water. Four-wheel-drive vehicles are needed to access several of the cabins.
In a DLNR video, DSP Assistant Administrator Alan Carpenter said the cabins are kind of clustered so there will be neighbors on the same journey to restoring the cabins. “It is a privilege. It’s also going to be a fair amount of work,” Carpenter said.
“These (cabins) have been vacant for quite some time now. They’re beautiful pieces of history, but they’ve been languishing for sometimes years here in the forest, so they’ll take some sweat equity and elbow grease to get them back — and a little bit of vision. So we’re looking for folks who have that vision, have that desire to become stewards of these places into the future because they are a really important part of Kauai’s history,” Carpenter said.
Wichman adds they want people coming in to this venture to “have their eyes wide open,” knowing that it’s a challenge to get materials and workers up into the area. Many times, he said, people rely on family members and friends.
“The Kokee Leaseholders Association is really hoping that we’re going to find members of our community who are committed to maintaining this historic community, be part of it and commit to breathing new life into these cabins,” added Wichman in the video. “Many of them are really fixer-uppers; there’s a lot of work that needs to be done. But these cabins have had generations of families in them and so much joy and happiness.”
The auction is an opportunity for successful bidders to not only become part of a historic community, but to also continue the responsibility of protecting the area’s natural resources.
At the end of February, the public can view the exterior of the cabins and their properties with a proposed auction date set for mid-April. Opening bids will range from $4,500 to $9,500 for annual lease rent.
Sarah Yamanaka covers news and events for Spectrum News Hawaii. She can be reached at sarah.yamanaka@charter.com.