The Kili-Bikini-Ejit Local Government has put nearly 300 acres of land it purchased in 2019 near Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii up for sale.
In 2019, one of many purchases of the KBE Local Government leadership at the time was buying 283 acres of agriculture-zone land on the Big Island.
The intention was to develop it for residential use. But the plan ran into objections from people in the surrounding community who feared the impact of commercial development of this large property on nearby residents.
Now, Big Island Representative Matthias Kusch is urging support for a proposal to buy the 283 acres to use as a wilderness state park for Hilo, reported West Hawaii Today last week.
He envisions a park with walking trails through natural landscapes, bicycling paths, dog walking, pavilions, a safe walking route to school for E.B. de Silva Elementary students, preservation of cultural sites and what he called “clean, quiet open space,” according to the report in West Hawaii Today.
The land was bought for $4.8 million by KBE through Bikini Atoll Moriba, a limited liability corporation, established for the purpose of purchasing and developing the land.
The KBE Local Government reportedly listed the land for sale at $4.5 million. Kusch said he’s been in touch with KBE representatives about sale of the land.
Kusch said the state would need to pay half the purchase price; the other half would be matched by the US Department of the Interior’s Land and Water Conservation Fund.