Kaneohe, Oahu – The Law Office of Kyle Smith (LOKS) is working on behalf of military families for safe and healthy housing on Marine Corp Base Hawaii (“MCBH”) in Kaneohe, Hawaii, on the island of Oahu.

In approximately 2006, military housing at MCBH was privatized and leased out to private companies on long-term leases. Thereafter, Ohana Military Communities, LLC, and Forest City Residential Management (collectively, “Forest City”) took over control of base housing and began to demolish, rebuild, and renovate MCBH housing.

Before assuming control of housing at MCBH, Forest City knew about the presence of pesticide-contaminated soils on base and even conducted testing that confirmed pesticide levels were far in excess of recognized environmental action levels (EALs) across MCBH. The pesticides (chlordane, aldrin, dieldrin, heptachlor, etc.) found at MCBH were primarily due to historic termite treatments made on and around existing home foundations. In addition these pesticides, however, the base also had known contamination from asbestos, lead, and other contaminants.

Following confirmation of excessively high pesticide levels, Forest City developed a Pesticide Soil Management Plan (PSMP) that set various procedures and guidelines for the remediation of contaminated properties. For example, as part of its PSMP, Forest City decided it would allow higher levels of pesticides in base soils because military families would typically only live on base for 6 years (2 tours). Although these higher levels carried increased risks of adverse health consequences, Forest City never informed military families that pesticide contamination had been confirmed at MCBH nor did it tell military families that living on base could increase their risks of cancer and other adverse health problems. Instead, Forest City embarked on a multi-year project to demolish and rebuild homes at MCBH that started in approximately 2006 and lasted until approximately 2013/14.

Because of Forest City’s failure to disclose these dangerous pesticides over a multi-year period, LHSS is working with military families who currently or previously lived at MCBH to address the impact of these pesticides and the failure of the private companies who manage MCBH to disclose the problem. After Forest City refused to mediate with military families, a class action lawsuit in April 2014.

Key documents:
Pesticide Soil Management Plan – details Forest City’s plan to remediate pesticides at MCBH.
Pesticide Burial Maps – depicts where Forest City claims to have buried contaminated soils before building new homes at MCBH.
Press on this matter:
Gina T. Harkins, Marine Families Worry Soil Under Base Housing May Be Toxic, Marine Corps Times, February 16, 2014.
Gina T. Harkins, K-Bay Housing Companies Refuse Meeting With Families, Marine Corps Times, March 17, 2014.

September 2015 – Kyle Smith and co-counsel win $27 million dollar class action jury verdict for homeowners in the Ocean Pointe/Hoakalei community in Ewa Beach, Oahu. As part of the verdict, the jury awarded $20 million dollars in punitive damages against the developer Haseko for unfair and deceptive trade practices related to Haseko’s decision to not finish the promised centerpiece of the community: a world-class marina. After trial, the Court granted a motion to strike the jury’s damage awards and the parties submitted their remaining equitable claims to Judge Karen T. Nakasone, who subsequently awarded over $20 million in equitable damages against Haseko to Class homeowners with argument by Kyle Smith and Terry Revere. This case is presently on appeal before the Intermediate Court of Appeals for Hawaii.