By Mateo Castillo

Business leaders, community organizers and top military brass are set to huddle Monday at the Ala Moana Hotel in Honolulu for a full-day summit on military land use across the islands. The gathering will bring military departments face to face with Hawaiʻi-based chambers of commerce and planning groups for plenary talks and island-specific breakout sessions. Organizers say the point is to trade information, surface community concerns and clarify processes and timelines as several long-term military land leases inch toward renewal.

As reported by the Star-Advertiser, the Hawaiʻi Coordination Cell organized the convening, with sponsors including the Hawaii Island Economic Development Board, the Chamber of Commerce Hawaii Military Affairs Council, the Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce and the Hawaii Leeward Planning Conference. The program runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday at the Ala Moana Hotel, with geographic breakouts focused on West Oʻahu, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi Island and Maui. Registration is available at bit.ly/milandsregistration.

What organizers say

Organizers are billing the meeting as “an opportunity to share information,” with direct information exchanges planned between military departments and community organizations. Jason Chung said the convening is meant to help ensure talks are “informed, respectful and grounded in facts” as Hawaiʻi weighs the future of these lands, according to a news release cited by the Star-Advertiser.

The timing is no accident. The state and the military are staring down a crunch on leased lands, with several Army and other military leases on state-owned parcels scheduled to expire in 2029, raising questions about long-term access, conservation and how local communities benefit, according to the Office of the Governor. The Department of Defense created the Hawaiʻi Coordination Cell in January 2024 to synchronize communications on installations, energy and environmental issues, per the Congressional record. Military and community-relations offices have also put out a factbook and are ramping up outreach to inform public discussions, as detailed by Hawaiʻi Public Radio.

Legal and policy stakes

All of this is unfolding while regulatory fights over environmental review and cultural sites heat up. The state Board of Land and Natural Resources voted not to accept the Army’s final environmental impact statement for the Pōhakuloa Training Area, a move that complicates lease negotiations and increases scrutiny of unexploded ordnance and protections for sacred sites, as reported by Big Island Now. Community testimony and the land board’s decision highlight the legal and permitting obstacles any long-term agreement will have to clear.

How to follow or join

Both members of the public and business leaders can attend, and registration details are posted at bit.ly/milandsregistration. Organizers say the convening is open to interested community members and will include time for public questions during the main plenary sessions.

What to watch

Observers will be watching to see whether the meeting delivers a clearer schedule for public hearings and follow-up, island-specific outreach, including any concrete commitments on cleanup, cultural inventories and public benefits. Organizers describe this as an early step in what is expected to be a longer series of conversations over how the military’s footprint in Hawaiʻi will be managed in the years ahead.

Read the story here.