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Mark Paikuli-Stride feels a deep familial connection to Luluku. His hanai family — the Sanchez ohana — was one of the many prosperous farmers in the Luluku area, once a thriving agricultural ecosystem in Kaneohe. But when the H-3 Freeway barreled through the area in the 1980s and 1990s, many farmers, including the Sanchez family, were forced to leave the area.
The Sanchez ohana relocated their banana farm to Maunawili Valley but were never able to recover from the move, which was compounded by a devastating virus that ravaged their crops, he said. Paikuli-Stride said they believe changes to the ecosystem during construction made the crops more vulnerable to viruses.
For many years, Paikuli-Stride, Native Hawaiian organizations and other agencies have been working to restore, preserve and protect Luluku lands. The group recently reached a major milestone by completing a stewardship management plan for the area. They hope to bring agriculture back to Luluku and share their experiences and cultural traditions with school and community groups.
“We are only magnifying what our kupuna did on the land before us. They had a personal attachment to the land that was very intimate,” he said. “They’ve all passed away, and it’s our generation now to carry that baton.”
Luluku was home to many agricultural terraces and a thriving loi ecosystem. The water that comes from one of the streams in Luluku was considered sacred and used in traditional ceremonies and religious rites. The area was considered a vital water source for Kaneohe.
Because of this, many Native Hawaiians and community members protested the H-3, calling for the protection of cultural sites in Halawa and Kaneohe. But the state Department of Transportation began construction of the $1.3 billion, 16-mile project, and the freeway opened in 1997.
“It was traumatic for a lot of people to see all of their cultural and natural resources being damaged, some beyond repair, by the construction of the H-3,” said Ardena Saarinen, OHA’s interim project coordinator for the Halawa-Luluku effort. “We see that restoring the Luluku area to a vibrant living and cultural landscape … will foster an environment of healing and nourishment for the (community) stewards and visitors alike.”
The Halawa-Luluku Interpretive Development project was created in 1999 to mitigate the impacts to cultural resources during the H-3 construction. Participating groups include the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the state Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration, as well as community organizations.
In 2015, Paikuli-Stride and other community groups, including Aloha ‘Aina Health and Learning Center and the Luluku Farmers’ Association, signed an agreement with OHA to restore some of the land impacted by the H-3. In August 2020, the group completed the stewardship management plan that guides future actions and projects at the Luluku site, which comprises about 21 acres owned by DOT near the H-3 and Likelike Highway.
The plan calls for restoring the agricultural terraces and loi systems in Luluku, creating community partnerships and educational opportunities, and starting programs that steward the land for future generations.
“I’m really excited that we’ve gotten to this point. It was literally decades going in circles,” said Trisha Kehaulani Watson-Sproat, vice president of the nonprofit ‘Aina Momona, which helped to write the stewardship management plan. “In the last five years, we’ve made phenomenal progress. From here, we’re really going to see an extraordinary scale-up of traditional activity in the area.”
As project manager, OHA is currently working on finalizing the design phases for support facilities at the site, including bathrooms, utility connections, graded areas for parking, a bus turnaround, storage containers, a mobile office, outdoor showers and a big agricultural sink. Saarinen said the $1.5 million project, which will be funded by DOT and the Federal Highway Administration, is expected to break ground this summer and take about eight to ten months to complete. Saarinen said they expect more educational and cultural programs on the site to ramp up once these facilities are completed.
In the meantime, Paikuli-Stride, who returned to Luluku several years ago to resume farming and to raise his nine children on private land nearby, has hosted school and community groups to teach them about his family’s loi and the area’s rich history.
One of those groups is Kaneohe Elementary, where officials have brought about 25 students to Luluku weekly for the past five years, said Principal Derek Minakami.
Minakami said school officials wanted to create a program that incorporated place-based and cultural learning for students who didn’t do well in traditional classroom settings. Many of the students who they bring to Luluku were chronically absent and struggled with behavioral problems. He said learning about science and math through working in a loi, clearing invasive species from a stream and preparing poi has helped many students, particularly their Native Hawaiian keiki, make complete turnarounds.
“We’ve had students who told us that before, they hated coming to school and now they love learning. We had students who were frequently absent from the time they were in kindergarten to having zero absences,” Minakami said. “Getting them into that learning context really helped bring more meaning to what they’re doing. I think it really brought a sense of pride and joy.”
He said they are working to create an afterschool program to increase the number of students and families who go to Luluku. It’s these types of programs that Paikuli-Stride and other community leaders hope to build on and expand. Paikuli-Stride added that for many families and community members, this restoration project is an important part of their healing and that “through adverse things, we’ve been able to build positive relationships.”
“We are one of the places that were significantly impacted by the H-3. We are all at different stages of our healing,” he said. “Luluku is one of those places that … can start to make that community impact. Through life and guidance, we ended up here. This is where we’ve decided to make our stand on the land. I can’t even put a word to describe what that has been like to make my life full and make it worth living.”
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Jayna Omaye covers ethnic and cultural affairs and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities
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