Tourists are back in full force. Beach parking lots are full. Weather is perfect. Masks are coming off, restrictions are ending.

Building four is done except for the gutters. Our gutter contractor has been having trouble getting workers, so we are behind on gutters in most of the buildings. Building One is under demolition now, next is Nine, then Eight. Each building takes about three months plus or minus.

We have spent our two million all ready and we are about to search for another line of credit before interest rates go sky high. Our landscaping has taken a beating with construction and we still need funds for the downstairs patios.

To prevent flooding and to get quick emergency access, we will be changing and standardizing all the locks in early June.

We look forward to a face to face meeting this April! There will be an owner’s potluck at the Kahala pool at 5 PM on meeting day April 29.

It is March 1 and work on building one has started. Building one, nine and eight have had the most dry rot and that’s why they are last to be fixed. The average has been three months per building.

Our best, most experienced Board member at Kahala, Dick Fogel, just recently died of cardiovascular disease. It is a huge loss for the Kahala community. Dick was the one who put together the lanai repair project and he followed Kahala’s finances with expertise that was truly amazing. A true heartbreaking loss for Carol, his family and all of us.

John Hagen will take over Dick’s role as treasurer. The Board has appointed Scott Dahl. Scott has been a great volunteer helping Board member Shawn Cohen do volunteer repair work at Kahala. Scott lives here half the time, so does Shawn.

Building one will be worked on in March, April and May.

We are trying to figure out how to deal with the huge costs of floods in unoccupied units. The plan is to get all units on one key so security can enter immediately. We have cleaned out all the main sewer lines and we are going to clean the kitchen sink lines again. We hope everyone remembers to replace their water heaters after eight years and to put hair trap screens in their bathtubs. Ice makers are another cause of floods.

It looks like the April members meeting will actually happen this year. Hope to see you all!

Gordon

Watching the long lines for covid tests, the island residents seem to be gripped with omicron anxiety.The visitors, on the other hand, are coming back in droves. The mayor has calmed down with his restrictions, everything is open again, new businesses replacing old ones. You are supposed to wear a mask indoors, but that’s about it.

Kahala made it through the storms with no problems. We had hoped to get the tree trimming done before the winter, but there is a huge labor shortage on the island and everything is going slower than the normal slow. The Board decided that we need to find another way of cleaning our gutters other than walking on our forty year old roof. Our investigation of gutter guards turned up negative. We are still trying to figure it out. 

Building Four construction is about one third done. Building One will probably start sometime in March.

We are building some railings for the stairs on Building Nine. The rains have made it clear that the slippery steps are not safe. 

We have had a couple more floods. We have started a regular process of sewer line maintenance. Here is what we are learning: upstairs units need to have full water flush toilets, all bathtubs and showers need little filter traps to catch hair in the drains, signs not to put tampons in the toilets would be helpful  and, of course, replace your water heater every seven years. PLEASE NOTIFY YOUR ON-ISLAND REPRESENTATIVE!

If you have a car in the reserved spots (or if you leave your car your assigned spot while you are gone) be sure your on-island representative has a key in case it needs to be moved.

It is beautiful here! Happy Holidays!

The balcony project is progressing well.  Building four is presently under construction. They are finding more rotten wood and overcoming balcony support beam issues. It will take time. Building one is next. February?     

There are many rules in our bylaws regarding what is allowed on our lanais that haven’t been enforced.  (Only outdoor furniture, potted plants and certain umbrellas are allowed.) Prior to this massive refurbishment on all the balconies, the owners were responsible for their care and upkeep.  This is now the responsibility of the Kahala homeowner’s association. The Board is asking that all potted plants be removed from upstairs balconies once the new floors are installed. Potted plants retain water during rains. Dirt and moisture build up underneath them. The weight, moisture and dirt combination over time can damage our balcony/lanais. Please make sure that all furniture on the balcony and lower lanais have either plastic or felt feet on anything that touches the tile surface so as not to damage the new tile. 

Most of these units are on the short term rental market. Kahala competes with hotels. Appearance is everything. Please be aware of your balcony/lanai’s appearance to others (especially if your lanai is in view of visitors)  Please take surfboards, bicycles, exercise bikes etc. off your balconies and keep it tidy. 

There is currently a waiting list for reserved parking spots. Please don’t buy or send a car to Kauai unless you have a place to put it. Remember, each unit has ONE parking spot. Visitor parking is used for the occasional visitor to your unit (not a second car from someone who is staying with you for months.) Visitor parking is used by maintenance workers and housekeeping workers, also gutter contractors, railing contractors and our structural maintenance team.  Unfortunately, there are also several Po’ipu Kai Association (PKA) owners who use our lot to access the PKA pool and tennis courts. Kahala Association is currently creating a parking program to identify all cars that are going to be parked in the parking lot, both short term and long term.  Once the majority of the lanai repairs are done, the parking spaces will be re-organized for better Kahala usage (note- your spot to your unit will not change) .

Hope all is well during the holiday season and Aloha from Kauai

Hi everyone! 

The floors, tiles and beams on building two are done. The railings are mostly done, but all should be done this week if the stars are aligned. Scaffolding is going down on building two and going up on building four. Building four may take longer for various reasons, primarily because rotten upper beams will need to be replaced and there will be Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks.

Building one will probably start in February.  It too has rotten upper beams and will take longer.

The island still has a bunch of COVID rules that affect our gutter contractors with fourteen day quarantines, so the gutter construction is way behind.

The island is back to normal in the slow season. Living Foods has reopened with new owners, but Tortilla Republic and Ruth Chris are gone forever. Pizzetta in Koloa is also gone. They are starting to build new condos and hotels again. Traffic has returned to the Eastside.

PLEASE have your property managers remove plants from your balcony. They are a source of broken tile and potential leaks. They seem to always be dirty and muddy and attract bugs. After spending two million dollars, we need to protect our investment. Also, lanai furniture with heavy/solid wood/block type legs should have waterproof foot glides, so the furniture legs don’t absorb or hold water and debris and stain the new floor.