"Coco Palms"

I do not usually post about my office's real estate listings.  But this is a special situation.  The property is owned by a good friend --and some of the finished carpentry work on the home was done by another.  Plus I believe it represents an outstanding buying opportunity for the right purchaser.  And not only that, it is walking distance to an "almost secret" white sand beach.

                                               

Known as “Coco Palms,” it is located on 1.4 acres and is a planned twelve-unit Polynesian-styled residential complex zoned 'Hotel and Resort'.  Cantilevered over an ancient fishpond located in the center of the property is a completed thatch-roofed three bedroom, three bath model unit. The property has a total of twelve Condominium Property Regime ('CPR') units with plans included in the sale for the eleven additional units.

Located by the beaches in Keaukaha, just three miles east of downtown Hilo, the future potential uses for this property are many.  You could live in the model home and enjoy the large natural fishpond all by yourself.  Or build a few units -- or build all eleven. (Plans are included for eleven other homes similar to the model home.) They could be used for friends and family or for vacation rentals – or you could build them and sell them.  As the new owner you would control the density and the build out.

The model home is environmentally conscious with a solar hot water system. And, obvious attention-to-detail is evident.  Spanning the Oceanside length of the main living level is a spacious ten feet deep lanai with ceiling fans and a granite counter outside of a kitchen pass-through. Inside a great room opens to a gourmet kitchen with granite counters, a cooking island and bar, Koa veneer kitchen cabinets and top-of-the-line stainless steel appliances.

                                               

Call me if you would like to learn more.  Land ownership is fee-simple and its listing price is $995,000.  The Big Island real estate market is gradually starting to improve, so with low interest rates, now might be the time for you to invest in this very special place.

               Wes Davidson, MBA, SFR, Realtor(S)

               Hilo Brokers, Ltd.

               400 Hualani Street, Suite 296

               Hilo, Hawaii 96720

               wes@hilo-brokers.com

               www.WesIsland.com

    http://www.WesIsland.blogspot.com

               Office: 808.969.9400 x19

               Cell: 808.315.5760 (preferred)

               Fax: 808.969.7900

Singin’ in the Rain

Yes it does rain often in Hilo and after my last posting on the trade winds it made me wonder even more, “Why?”  Since the wind is coming across the open ocean from the east and then hitting the mountains, it seems the air would pick up moisture as it goes over the volcanoes and drop it on the Kona side of the Big Island.  But no, thanks to the phenomenon of orographic (my spell checker keeps wanting “pornographic”) precipitation the rain drops on Hilo and the Big Island’s east side.

Before defining this let me say that much of the rain comes at night.  For instance, I play golf just about weekly and have not been rained out once; rained on occasionally but not rained out.  And the average temperatures are superb as you can see below.

NOAA

So to recap, in Hawaii, local climates vary considerably on each island due to their topography, divisible into windward (Koʻolau) and leeward (Kona) regions based upon location relative to the higher mountains. Windward sides face the east towards northeast trade winds and receive much more rainfall; leeward sides are drier and sunnier, with less rain and less cloud cover.

http://www.thefullwiki.org/Orographic_precipitation

The rainfall is caused by orographic precipitation which is when masses of air pushed by wind are forced up the side of elevated land formations, such as large mountains. Upon ascent, the air that is being lifted will expand and cool. This cooling of a rising moist air parcel may lower its temperature to its dew point, thus allowing for condensation of the water vapor contained within it, and hence the formation of a cloud.

If enough water vapor condenses into cloud droplets, these droplets may become large enough to fall to the ground as precipitation. In parts of the world subjected to relatively consistent winds (for example, trade winds), a wetter climate prevails on the windward side of a mountain than on the leeward (downwind) side as the moisture has been removed by the effects of orographic precipitation.

Full Wiki

In the state of Hawaii, Mount Waiʻaleʻale on the island of Kauai is notable for its extreme rainfall, as it has the highest average annual rainfall on earth with 460 inches. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orographic_precipitation#Orographic

A true-color satellite view of Hawaii shows that most of the vegetation on the islands grows on the north-east sides that face the wind.

Hawaii Islands

The result of this phenomenon on the Big Island is one very green side with waterfalls (the eastern) and one very sunny, dry side (the western).  Most of the resorts are located on the western side and served by Kona International airport.  Waterfalls and beautiful greenery are on the eastern side and served by Hilo International airport.  We prefer life on the “green side,” with visits to the beautiful beaches around Kona. (See East Side/West Side - All Around the Big Island
 for other contrasts.)  And rain does bring these!

Devany Vickery-Davidson

That’s the Way the Wind Blows

We were accustomed on the mainland to the prevailing wind coming from the West, and tailwinds making the travel from say Denver to New York generally much faster than the return trip.  When we moved to the east side of the Big Island I assumed that we would be on the leeward (“away from the wind”) side of the island.  But no, in the middle of the Pacific the prevailing winds turn out to be from the east, putting us on the windward side after all.

It so happens that solar radiation warms the air over the equator, causing it to rise. The rising air then proceeds south and north toward the poles. From approximately 20° to 30° North and South latitude, the air sinks. Then, the air flows along the surface of the earth back toward the equator.  This phenomenon creates several effects well known to pilots of ocean sailing vessels.

The Doldrums
Sailors noticed the stillness of the rising (and not blowing) air near the equator and gave the region the name "doldrums." The doldrums, usually located between 5° north and 5° south of the equator, are also known as the Intertropical Convergence Zone or ITCZ for short. The trade winds converge in the region of the ITCZ, producing convectional storms that produce some of the world's heaviest precipitation regions.


The Horse Latitudes
Between about 30° to 35° north and 30° to 35° south of the equator lays the region known as the horse latitudes or the subtropical high. This region of subsiding dry air and high pressure results in weak winds. Tradition states that sailors gave the region of the subtropical high the name "horse latitudes" because ships relying on wind power stalled; fearful of running out of food and water, sailors threw their horses and cattle overboard to save on provisions.

tradewinds‑lrg.jpg

The Trade Winds
In the central North Pacific, the trade winds represent the outflow of air from a great region of high pressure, known as the North Pacific High, typically located well north and east of the Hawaiian Islands. The North Pacific High is a semi-permanent, subtropical area of high pressure in the North Pacific Ocean. It is strongest in the Northern Hemispheric summer and is displaced towards the equator during the winter.  


Blowing from the subtropical highs (or horse latitudes) toward the low pressure of the ITCZ are the trade winds. Named from their ability to quickly propel trading ships across the ocean, the trade winds between about 30° latitude and the equator are steady and blow about 11 to 13 miles per hour. In the Northern Hemisphere, the trade winds blow from the northeast and are known as the Northeast Trade Winds; in the Southern Hemisphere, the winds blow from the southeast and are called the Southeast Trade Winds.  http:/geography.about.com

frontiernet.net

Hilo Hawaii is located roughly at 19.7 degrees north of the equator (see my earlier blog Changes in Latitudes).  As described above the trade winds at this latitude blow westward from the northeast thus putting the east side of the Big Island facing the prevailing wind known as the Northeast Trade Wind.  Whereas, in the mid-latitudes where most of the United States mainland is located the “westerlies” blow eastward. In fact in both the northern (30N to 60N) and southern (30S to 60S) latitudes, the prevailing winds are from the west. wikipedia


Confusion resolved!