Oahu Burial Council Back in Business After Five-Month Break
The general manager of Turtle Bay Resort has been appointed to the Oahu Burial Council, making it possible for the committee to meet for the first time after a five-month hiatus.
Gov. Neil Abercrombie named Danna Holck to the committee this week, said Donalyn Dela Cruz, his spokeswoman. The council has been unable to meet due to a lack of a quorum.
Holck, who did not return a call for comment, qualifies for one of the seats reserved for a large landowner or developer.
The committee, which is supposed to meet once a month, rules on whether to remove or keep in place iwi, or Native Hawaiian burial remains, that developers encounter during construction projects. But it hasn’t met since January, potentially delaying projects.
The appointment follows a story earlier this week by Civil Beat that reported some council members were questioning whether government officials were doing enough to fill the position and whether political motives were fueling delays. You can read more about that here.
The State Historic Preservation Office is in charge of making recommendations to the governor, who ultimately decides on the appointment. That agency has been under the scrutiny of federal officials who have threatened to revoke its certification and funding if it doesn’t make major operational improvements, including hiring staff and getting rid of a backlog of hundreds of permits.
William Aila Jr., chairperson of the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, which oversees SHPD, told Civil Beat earlier this week that for years it’s been difficult to recruit for the controversial position, which entails a significant time commitment.
Holck, who began working at Turtle Bay in 2011, has held executive positions at major resorts throughout the United States, according to Turtle Bay’s . Born and raised in Kailua, on Oahu, she is of Hawaiian, Japanese and Norweigan descent.
According to council rules, Holck will have to recuse herself from any matters relating to Turtle Bay, which is pushing for a controversial expansion.
