Alexander & Baldwin this week launched a Kailua community survey to gather resident perspectives on the town’s future, fulfilling a commitment the company made at a Kailua Neighborhood Board meeting several months ago.
Company spokesperson Darren Pai said by email that A&B is engaging with the Kailua community to hear opinions and concerns about issues facing Kailua Town and priorities for the years ahead. The survey, administered by Ward Research, was mailed Monday to about 16,000 residential households in Kailua.
Kailua community survey topics
The questionnaire includes 18 items covering satisfaction with the mix of shops and restaurants, efforts to manage vehicle and bicycle traffic, and how well A&B keeps residents informed about activities in Kailua. It also asks residents to rate how tourism in Kailua has affected their household’s quality of life, with options ranging from much better to much worse.
Open-ended prompts invite suggestions for activities or entertainment residents would participate in, along with broader changes or improvements they would like to see. One question focuses on Pali Lanes, the longtime bowling alley previously slated for redevelopment.
It asks what should be done with the property and presents three choices: keep the Pali Lanes structure but repurpose it for uses other than bowling; keep Pali Lanes and the surrounding area as is for bowling; or replace the structure and repurpose the area for uses such as green open space, a social gathering area, town center, playground, events amphitheater or special events venue. Respondents can rate each option from strongly support to strongly oppose or select do not know.
Community response and calls for a forum
Our Kailua, a community group that organized a petition to preserve Pali Lanes, urged supporters on Facebook to back the second option to keep it as a bowling alley. Spokesman Evan Weber said that while the survey is a meaningful step, the group remains concerned the results may not accurately reflect community sentiment and believes the Pali Lanes question is poorly worded because it does not include an option to both preserve and improve the alley.
The group is pushing A&B to hold a public forum and has started a petition calling for one. A&B, the state’s fourth-largest private landowner, owns about 90% of Kailua’s retail buildings.
A&B’s broader engagement and next steps
The mailing included a letter signed by A&B President and CEO Chris Benjamin and Sheila-Anne Ebert, manager of A&B Kailua Properties. The letter said A&B put planning decisions on hold to learn what people who live and work in Kailua want for the town.
Pai said A&B paused all commercial real estate development plans in Kailua in March to conduct a comprehensive engagement effort. In addition to the Kailua community survey, the company has spent the past six months meeting with community organizations, hosting listening sessions with residents, business owners and community leaders, and holding face-to-face conversations with long-time residents and others committed to constructive dialogue.
A&B plans to publicly share the survey results and use them to guide commercial property plans in Kailua now and in the future. Residents concerned about development pressures may also be watching trends such as Oahu active listings and broader real estate activity across the island.
Residents who complete the survey by Oct. 1, either by mail using a postage-paid envelope or online, will be entered into a drawing the following week for one of three iPads. Those who did not receive a survey or have trouble accessing it online can contact Ward Research at 585-2309 or wrsurvey@wardresearch.com.
