PAAUILO, Hawaii: The following message is being circulated around the the Big Island community by Hamakua Councilman Dominic Yagong:

Aloha Friends,

Thanks to the strong support from the people of this island, the County Council authorized the leasing of 718 acres of County owned lands in Pa‘auilo.

County Land Manager Ken Van Bergen will be conducting a tour of the County lands on Sunday, September 25th. If you are interested please meet us at Pa‘auilo Store at 2:00 p.m. Due to the conditions of some of the roads, a four wheel drive vehicle is recommended.

I look forward to seeing you there. If you have any questions, please call my office at 961-8538.

Warmest Aloha,
Dominic Yagong
Council Chairman

An article by Jason Armstrong in the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports that the county has adjusted the terms of the leases. After feedback from the community, the administration will now offer two 10 year renewal options to go along with the original 10 year lease, making the maximum lease time 30 years. The community said 10 years was not worth the effort.

Big Island Video News covered a recent meeting in Paauilo, held to discuss the land lease bid process.