Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Water, Land, and Agriculture and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 148 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to urge the Department of Land and Natural Resources to work with the Samuel Mills Damon Estate trustees, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and other organizations to purchase the Moanalua Gardens.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Moanalua Gardens Community Association; the Moanalua Gardens Foundation; Moanalua Valley Community Association, Inc.; and two individuals. Testimony in opposition to this measure was submitted by the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Comments were also submitted by the Nature Conservancy of Hawaii.

Samuel Mills Damon's trust included many real estate holdings such as the popular 23-acre community park and tourist attraction known as Moanalua Gardens and the pristine 3,700-acre Kamananui Valley on the island of Oahu. During his life and after his death, Samuel Mills Damon and his trust permitted Moanalua Gardens to be open to the public for over 100 years. Following his death, Kamananui Valley was opened to the public for recreational and educational purposes.

Under the terms of his will, Damon's trust is set to terminate, and all of the assets of the trust are to be liquidated, including Moanalua Gardens and Kamananui Valley. Your Committees find that Moanalua Gardens and Kamananui Valley should be protected and preserved, as these areas are one of Hawaii's most treasured cultural and historical areas. This measure urges the Department of Land and Natural Resources to work with the Samuel Mills Damon Estate trustees, Moanalua Gardens Foundation, the Trust for Public Lands, the Nature Conservancy, and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs to purchase Moanalua Gardens.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Water, Land, and Agriculture and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 148 and recommend that it be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.