Whole Foods Delays 1st Hawaiian Store

ELLIOT ZWIEBACH

HONOLULU — Whole Foods Market, Austin, Texas, has reportedly had to delay construction of its first Hawaiian location here because of a dispute between the property developer and Native Hawaiians over the disposition of 100-year-old bones that were unearthed on the property.

The Whole Foods store is part of a development that includes an apartment building and small shops. During construction, at least 50 sets of bones were unearthed, putting a halt to the work last summer while the developer — General Growth Properties, Chicago — deals with the threat of potential lawsuits and the prospect of being required by the state to redesign the project.

Hawaii passed a law in 1990 that prohibits removal, destruction or alteration of burial sites without permission from state and local agencies. Under that law, construction projects that find bones must stop work and notify authorities before proceeding further.

While the Oahu Island Burial Council decided last year that the first 11 sets of bones could be reburied elsewhere on the property, the disposition of the other remains, which were discovered separately, is still awaiting a determination by the State Historical Preservation Division.

Wal-Mart ran into a similar challenge three years ago when 64 sets of bones were found on a site where the company was building a supercenter and a Sam's Club.

Construction of the project was suspended briefly while the company hired a consultant to work with descendants of the deceased. The bones are now in storage pending final determination of where they should be interred.

When the Wal-Mart stores opened in 2004, protesters carried signs that accused the company of destroying graves.