Molokai Times: Temporarily (?) Shutting Down

Article in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin:

starbulletin.com/2008/…story03.html

Molokai Times: Temporarily (?) Shutting Down

Sounds like yet another victim of the ranch closing.

Molokai Times: Temporarily (?) Shutting Down

Sure makes me wonder when we%26#39;ll see light at the end of the tunnel for little Molokai.

Tough for the Big Boys too: Gannett/USA Today, which participates in the Hawaii market via the Honolulu Advertiser, 101 Things to Do and Hawaii.com, has seen it%26#39;s stock decline 75 points from a high of over $90.

Pump up Molokai%26#39;s economy all you can while you%26#39;re there Bill!

I%26#39;m confused Bill.

How is the ';temporary'; closing of an undercapitalized, half-azzed undertaking, by two guys with no experience, dependant upon upaid staff, in a dying, archaic business, on an isolated island with few potential customers and a ';coconut wireless'; better than any publication...

The Ranch%26#39;s fault?

Methinks their business plan was doomed from the get go. Particularly when they elected not to fill the ';accounts receivable'; position.

Well, at least you will be in-tune with much of the local populace on your visit; who are now blaming everything from global warming to the Kennedy assasination on Molokai Ranch. Who could%26#39;ve known the Ranch was the prime mover of the universe?

Actually we are not going to Molokai this upcoming trip so I won%26#39;t be pumping up their economy much (except via the taxes I will be paying to Maui county in general).

Amberloo the reference to the ranch closing was just a generic statement since (from what I understand) was responsible for a lot of the income on the island. Yes perhaps these two ';theatre guys'; should have had a real paid AR person. I am sure they took on advertisements with a promise of payment and little else. I wonder, was the paper profitable (or at least solvent) under the previous owners? Not sure Molokai can actually support two papers anyway, there isn%26#39;t all that much going on there normally.

As I recall from online sources, the Ranch was the largest private (non-governmental) employer on Molokai. If true, and one guesses at the ';ripple effect';, it has to have been a major blow to the economy.

I had bookmarked the following map that illustrates the portion of Molokai controlled by the ranch. Wonder if anywhere else in the Islands would be as impacted by one event...and seemingly little in the way of immediate hope on the horizon?

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Kama..

1. Molokai Ranch only employed about 120 folks; still a lot on an island of less than 8,000 residents. But it%26#39;s closure was only sufficient to push the unemployment rate up a couple of points. The island has endemic problems with its economy which the Ranch was a victim of, not the cause.

Though a relatively large employer, it doesn%26#39;t even begin to compare with many ';company cities'; around the US. The Ranch jobs only represented about 3% of the Molokai workforce.

It was their loss of capital, planning vision and corporate energy which will have the most lasting impact. Somebody has to lead the way.

And for the most parts the Ranch lands just hold the earth together; not meaningfully productive, particularly since pineapple production ceased.

2. Yes, there are other areas of Hawaii that have/can/will be impacted as significantly from the decisions of a single landowner.

Lanai is the prime example, being much more dependant than Molokai on a single employer. Other similar concerns are from Hana Ranch (it is being offered for sale); the cessation of sugar operations at Gay %26amp; Robinson on Kauai; Maui Land %26amp; Pine closings, lay-off and change in direction; and, Dole bailing on Central Oahu.

And, of course, any time Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate starts making ';regional policy'; decisions.

people here should not rent any commercial space if it is not necessary. incomes are low here, but rents are out of proportion. i would work out ot a house or a shed behind a house like a shipping container which are often used as offices. this would be one less axpense. the Moloka%26#39;i times will probably re-appear as a donation-funded paper in a few weeks.

St.Damien faithfuls will start coming here soon as the celebrations begin in february. this will likely perk up our economy, but there is a main hindrance. as people are doing the blame-game over who shut down the ranch or if the plan offered by the ranch to sell 200 2-acre lots on an ecologically sensitive part of the island to the wealthy, everyone%26#39;s eyes overlooked the obvious: maui county planning department which is stifling small business and even places to stay for our vistiors. these bureaucrats are holding back permit applications and have been for many years. this is a political issue which needs to be addressed soon if moloka%26#39;i%26#39;s population can become self-employed by promoting small home-based service-oriented businesses.

Appreciate the perspective Amber and agree that Molokai Times was never going to be a text-book example of a solidly constructed business (but then we seem to uncover examples of mega corporations that also qualify for the Halls of Shame on a weekly basis anymore). I enjoyed, and will miss, MT%26#39;s website because it seemed truly reflective of the essence and unsophisticated charm of Molokai

Agree that Lanai is many more times dependant on David Murdoch, but then he does enjoy the advantage of 90+% autonomy and seems to view the Island as much as a hobby as a business.

Really wonder if any of the properties you cite on Maui, Kauai or Oahu come close to having the potential for total Island disruption as the Ranch; their economies are much more diversified and I would guess that the incomes of the displaced Ranch employees were significantly above the average of other private sector workers.

The thing that causes me the greates distress regarding the demise of the Ranch, and resulting water situation, is what appears to be an all-too-familiar ';Manana'; response. but then as I have mentioned before, New Mexico and Molokai do seem to have a multitude of interchangeable parts; most enjoyable/others quite worrisome to someone who loves both places.