Anahola Sports Complex and Ranch & Rodeo


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Anahola, Kauai County, Hawaii

Homestead Community Design Corporation (HCDC), Enterprise Community Partners, and MASS partnered together to consider the potential for a 250-acre parcel of land along the coast of Anahola, Kauai, designing a recreational hub and gateway to Kauai’s North Shore. HCDC is seeking to develop affordable housing and economic opportunities on the trust lands of the Native Hawaiian people, known as “homesteads,” or Hawaiian home lands. As land values skyrocket and Hawaiian homelands are increasingly allocated for hotels and other non-Native uses, the need for Indigenous placemaking and community-serving spaces in Anahola and along the North Shore could not be more urgent. 

The layout of the Anahola site was established through the concept of ahupua'a, a Hawaiian term for the traditional socioeconomic, geologic, and climatic subdivision of land and a holistic way of working with the land from mountain to ocean. Ahupua’a concepts are applied across the site, based on the topography and natural watersheds, with the goal of taking better care of the land, re-establishing self-sufficiency, and building cultural and community resilience. Existing water courses are preserved and celebrated within ravine areas that hold trail systems and water terrace gardens, while all development is limited to former sugarcane fields. The project models how traditional forms of land stewardship can offer solutions in the face of the climate crisis.

The Anahola complex will include a gym, baseball complex, skatepark, rodeo grounds, stables, and housing. Buildings and structures integrate locally-sourced volcanic rock material along their facades, while open air walkways and spaces allow for natural ventilation. Anahola’s rodeo grounds take the form of a triangular sail system, creating shade and visibility for visitors as well as flexibility of programming for year-round use. An accompanying stable hosts horse programs and provides space to accommodate an influx of animals during large events.

The site also includes twenty units of housing for young adults to address a shortage of attainable starter homes in the community. A central, open-ended dogtrot passage on the ground floor allows for passive ventilation. Other design elements including live-edge timber structures, thatched roof and wall planes, steep roof pitches, and ample lanai (porch) spaces are all informed by Hawaiian vernacular forms.

Project Details

22.140332772, -159.307832102

Location: Anahola, Kauai County, Hawaii

Year: 2022

Status: In Progress

Size: 250 acres

Program: Community development project featuring housing, marketplace/business spaces, multi-sport facilities, and rodeo grounds.

Services: Visioning, Predesign, Concept Design

Clients:
Homestead Community Development Corporation

Partners:
Enterprise Community Partners