March 7, 2013 Maui Weekly
http://www.mauiweekly.com/page/content.detail/id/511012/Connect-the-Dots.html?nav=13
Real estate, construction, politics and the development of Maui
Susan Halas – Senior Contributing Writer , The Maui Weekly
“In the years following WWII, Maui steadily lost population. But by the late 1960s, with the coming of jet airlines, the Valley Isle began to evolve as a glamorous–and as yet unspoiled–visitor destination. With this surge came the marriage of development, real estate, construction and the Democratic Party. The money poured in and so did the deals and the deal-makers.
When “Land and Power in Hawai’i – The Democratic Years” was published in 1985, it was dubbed “the gossip” book and rapidly became a local bestseller with juicy details of controversial real estate deals. It named the key players in the lucrative business of converting Hawai’i’s raw agricultural land to urban resorts, condos, shopping centers and upscale homes. These actions were often accomplished by manipulating the land use process and not-so-subtle political string-pulling.
Though the book was primarily devoted to O’ahu, it was also packed with Maui references, including AMFAC, one of the original Ka’anapali Resort developers; Alexander & Baldwin, then and now Maui’s largest land owner; Elmer Cravalho, the smart and powerful former Maui mayor; Seibu Group Enterprises, the Japanese firm that first eyed Wailea; and Maui Land and Pineapple Company Inc., owner of the property that eventually became Kapalua.”
