Big Island Buzz » Square Foot

Cher Puts Her Big Island Home Up For Auction

bigislandbuzz — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 03:52:47 +0000

Singer/Entertainer Cher is selling her Big Island Home!

Entertainer Cher’s newly constructed home at the Four Seasons Hualalai Resort on the Big Island of Hawaii goes on the auction block next month.

The 8,821-square-foot Balinese-style home was designed by the singer and actress and completed just this month.

Concierge Auctions, which will conduct the sale on Jan. 18, estimates the home, which sits on three-quarters of an acre overlooking the Hualalai Golf Course and the ocean, will fetch anywhere from $8 million to $12 million.

Cher’s Inshallah Trust bought the property for $2.9 million five years ago, according to tax records. The house, which has a main residence with a master suite and five bungalows, is being sold furnished with artwork and accessories.

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Lava Zone Maps Cause Drama on the Big Island

bigislandbuzz — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 02:16:37 +0000

The notorious lava zones on the Big Island have caused headaches for many as the outdated maps are used by insurance companies to assess risk. The AP has an interesting article up regarding the zones and how they affect people here in the Puna district:

Ford’s two-acre property is in the Leilani Estates subdivision, a 45-year-old tract where homes are separated by vibrantly green foliage dotted with old-growth ohia trees. It sits more than 10 miles from the the closest active lava flow, yet, it’s in Zone 1. The land underneath a nearby development, Nanawale Estates, was inundated in 1840 but is in Zone 2, as is the town of Pahoa.

Liberty Mutual insured Ford’s 2,200-square foot, three-bedroom home that was assessed at $231,000 for $424 last year. The company had wanted to cancel her policy last year after it decided to no longer cover homes in zones 1 and 2, but relented for one year after Ford complained to state regulators.

But the coverage has now lapsed, and Ford’s separate hurricane policy also jumped much higher.

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Kaiser Permanente’s ‘Most Wired Mobile Health Vehicle’ Coming to Big Island

bigislandbuzz — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:47:17 +0000

From Kaiser Permanente’s web site:

Electronic Health Records, Telemedicine, Mammography and Health Screenings on Wheels Expand Access and Encourage Healthier Communities

OAKLAND, Calif. — Kaiser Permanente, one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans, is introducing a new generation of mobile health. A first-of-its-kind, 500-square-foot, 10-wheel mobile medical vehicle is being shipped to its home island of Hawaii, known to many as the Big Island, where it will improve health care access for thousands of Kaiser Permanente members and the uninsured.

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