Plantation Estate
Encyclopedia
Plantation Estate is a single-story wood frame 5000 ft2 Pacific Ocean
-front house at 55 Kailuana Place in Kailua, Honolulu County, Hawaii that Barack Obama
rented to be used as a Winter White House
during Christmas break vacations in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
The house is less than a mile south of the Marine Corps Base Hawaii
. Obama works out at the Semper Fit Center at the base and attends dinners there during his visits. He also swims in the ocean at the base at Pyramid Rock.
which is on the National Register of Historic Places
. George Hogan (1914–2009) designed numerous houses on the island and the Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaii
.
The Castle family sold the house in 2003 to Paul Sullivan. Sullivan extensively remodeled, adding among other things a lava rock pool, hot tub and eight waterfalls. He sold it in January 2008 for $9 million to Houston, Texas
investor Kevin Comcowich (after dropping the price from its listed $11.9 million). Comcowich has rented the house out for between $2,500 to $3,500 a day.
The specifications for the house describe it has having 4951 square feet (460 m²) interior space on land area of 27,131 feet.
The house is in the Paradise Point Estates gated community
at Paradise Point.
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
-front house at 55 Kailuana Place in Kailua, Honolulu County, Hawaii that Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
rented to be used as a Winter White House
Winter White House
A "Winter White House" is typically the name given to the regular winter vacation residence of the standing President of the United States aside from Camp David, the mountain-based military camp in Frederick County, Maryland, used as a country retreat and for high-alert protection of the President...
during Christmas break vacations in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
The house is less than a mile south of the Marine Corps Base Hawaii
Marine Corps Base Hawaii
Marine Corps Base Hawaii , formerly Marine Corps Air Station, Kaneohe Bay and originally Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, is a U.S. Marine Corps base facility and air station located on the Mokapu Peninsula of windward O'ahu in the City & County of Honolulu. As of the 2000 Census, the base had a...
. Obama works out at the Semper Fit Center at the base and attends dinners there during his visits. He also swims in the ocean at the base at Pyramid Rock.
History
The house was originally built and occupied by Harold Kainalu Long Castle in 1948 and was designed by the Honolulu architects Ives and Hogan. The house was added to the Hawaii Register of Historic Places on August 2, 2009 and was identified as the Harold Castle Beach Residence. Among other buildings by Albert Ely Ives (1898–1966) is the Kaneohe Ranch BuildingKaneohe Ranch Building
The Kaneohe Ranch Building at Castle Junction, where the Pali Highway , Kamehameha Highway , and Kalanianaole Highway intersect on the windward side of Oahu, was built in 1940 to be the headquarters of Kaneohe Ranch, which owned of surrounding land and played a major role in the history of...
which is on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. George Hogan (1914–2009) designed numerous houses on the island and the Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
.
The Castle family sold the house in 2003 to Paul Sullivan. Sullivan extensively remodeled, adding among other things a lava rock pool, hot tub and eight waterfalls. He sold it in January 2008 for $9 million to Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
investor Kevin Comcowich (after dropping the price from its listed $11.9 million). Comcowich has rented the house out for between $2,500 to $3,500 a day.
The specifications for the house describe it has having 4951 square feet (460 m²) interior space on land area of 27,131 feet.
The house is in the Paradise Point Estates gated community
Gated community
In its modern form, a gated community is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly-controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences. Gated communities usually consist of small residential...
at Paradise Point.
Zoning, taxation and dog rules issues
- Comcowich paid $300 in property taxes on the $9 million house in 2010 because it was added to the State Register of Historic Places in 2009. The taxes on the property in 2007 were $48,000. Owners who receive the break "must sign an application that certifies, among other things, that the pre-exemption level of property taxes is a "material factor" threatening the existence of the home."
- The house is in a single family zoned area. Honolulu authorities say ordinances permit the short term renting of the property as long as it is rented to only one family during a month.
- Hawaii has an up to 120 day quarantine rule for dogs from off the islands because it is rabies free. However Obama's dog Bo was able to accompany the family immediately in 2010 because they had followed the state's “Five-Day-Or-Less” rules enacted in 2003. The rules include among other things a rabies vaccination in the previous 90 months, a current blood test for rabies and a microchip identificationMicrochip implant (animal)A microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of a dog, cat, horse, parrot or other animal. The chips are about the size of a large grain of rice and are based on a passive RFID technology....
.
Obama visits
- August 8-14, 2008 - Obama visited Kailua August 8–14 during the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election staying at a different house belonging to Jill Tate Higgins, the general partner of Lakeside Enterprises, a Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, CaliforniaBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
private family investment company. During the visit he made what would be his last visit with his grandmother Madelyn DunhamMadelyn DunhamMadelyn Lee Payne Dunham was the American maternal grandmother of Barack Obama, the 44th and current President of the United States of America...
who had raised him in Honolulu from age 10 on.
- December 20-31, 2008 - Obama in his first visit to Plantation Estate took a two week vacation after winning the election. Among the activities was the scattering of his grandmother's ashes at Lanai LookoutKoko HeadKoko Head is the headland that defines the eastern side of Maunalua Bay along the southeastern side of the Island of Oahu in Hawaii. On its western slope is the community of Portlock, a part of Hawaii Kai...
at the same location where he had scattered his mother Stanley Ann Dunham's ashes in 1995. His grandmother had died two days before Obama's election. Photographs of him shirtless on the beach and looking buff were widely circulated.
- December 24, 2009-January 3, 2010 - During the visit he went to his maternal grandfather Stanley Armour DunhamStanley Armour DunhamStanley Armour Dunham was the maternal grandfather of U.S. President Barack Obama. He and his wife Madelyn Payne Dunham raised Obama from the age of 10 in Honolulu, Hawaii.-Early life:...
's grave at National Memorial Cemetery of the PacificNational Memorial Cemetery of the PacificThe National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific is a cemetery located in Honolulu, Hawaii that serves a memorial to those men and women who served in the United States Armed Forces...
. Obama's trip was cut short after he dealt with the attempted Christmas bombing of Northwest Flight 253Northwest Airlines Flight 253Northwest Airlines Flight 253 was an international passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands, to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Romulus, Michigan, United States...
. Obama was at the house from December 24 to January 3.
- December 23, 2010-January 3, 2011 - Obama arrived on December 23 for a planned 11-day visit. His arrival was one day late because of the lame duckLame duckLame duck can refer to:*Lame duck , an elected official who is approaching the end of his or her tenure, and especially an official whose successor has already been elected....
congress approval of the New STARTNew STARTNew START is a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States of America and the Russian Federation with the formal name of Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms...
treaty. Michelle ObamaMichelle ObamaMichelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
, Malia Obama and Sasha Obama and Bo (dog)Bo (dog)Bo is the pet dog of the Obama family, the First Family of the United States. Bo is a neutered male Portuguese Water Dog. President Barack Obama and his family were given the dog as a gift after months of speculation about the breed and identity of their future pet...
, left for Hawaii on December 18 flying on a C-40B Special Mission Aircraft. Press reports indicated that her not flying with the President cost $63,000 to $100,000 additional for the trip. He extended his departure date one day to January 4. During the vacation he made recess appointmentRecess appointmentA recess appointment is the appointment, by the President of the United States, of a senior federal official while the U.S. Senate is in recess. The U.S. Constitution requires that the most senior federal officers must be confirmed by the Senate before assuming office, but while the Senate is in...
s of James M. ColeJames M. ColeJames Michael Cole is an American attorney who has served as United States Deputy Attorney General since December 29, 2010. He was first installed as Deputy Attorney General following a recess appointment by President Barack Obama on December 29, 2010...
to be United States Deputy Attorney GeneralUnited States Deputy Attorney GeneralUnited States Deputy Attorney General is the second-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice. In the United States federal government, the Deputy Attorney General oversees the day-to-day operation of the Department of Justice, and may act as Attorney General during the...
, William J. BoarmanWilliam J. BoarmanWilliam Joseph "Bill" Boarman is the 26th Public Printer of the United States. A former American printer, labor union leader, and government consultant, he has previously served as Senior Vice-President of the Communications Workers of America and President of that union's Printing, Publishing &...
to Public Printer of the United StatesPublic Printer of the United StatesThe title of Public Printer of the United States refers to the official head of the Government Printing Office . Pursuant to , this officer must be nominated by the President of the United States and approved by the United States Senate...
, Matthew BryzaMatthew BryzaMatthew James Bryza is a United States diplomat. Currently serves as the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan.-Education:...
to be United States Ambassador to AzerbaijanUnited States Ambassador to AzerbaijanThis is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Azerbaijan.The United States recognized Azerbaijan's independence on Dec 25, 1991, and announced the establishment of diplomatic relations on February 19, 1992....
, Norman L. Eisen to be ambassador to the Czech RepublicUnited States Ambassador to the Czech RepublicFollowing the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian empire in 1918 at the end of The Great War, the Bohemians, Moravians, and Slovaks united to form the new nation of Czechoslovakia...
, Robert Stephen Ford to ambassador to SyriaUnited States Ambassador to SyriaThe United States Ambassador to Syria is the official representative of the President of the United States to the head of state of Syria.From the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire in 1922 until 1944, Syria had been under the control of France as a part of the League of Nations French Mandate of...
and Francis J. Ricciardone, Jr.Francis J. Ricciardone, Jr.Francis J. Ricciardone is the United States ambassador to Turkey. Previously he was Deputy Ambassador at the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. He was also on leave from the U.S. Department of State as a guest scholar at the U.S. Institute of Peace. He has served as U.S...
to be United States Ambassador to TurkeyUnited States Ambassador to TurkeyThe United States of America has maintained many high level contacts with Turkey since the nineteenth century.-Chargé d'Affaires:*George W. Erving *David Porter -Minister Resident:*David Porter *Dabney Smith Carr...
. During the trip Hawaii Governor Neil AbercrombieNeil AbercrombieNeil Abercrombie is the 7th and current Governor of Hawaii. He was the Democratic U.S. Representative of the First Congressional District of Hawaii which comprises urban Honolulu. He served in Congress from 1986 to 1987 and from 1991 to 2010 when he resigned to successfully run for governor...
who knew Obama and his family as a child said he would seek to find a way to release the original birth certificate showing that Obama was born in Hawaii and not in KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
as birthers have argued. He also dined with his half sister Maya Soetoro-NgMaya Soetoro-NgMaya Kassandra Soetoro-Ng is the maternal half-sister of Barack Obama, the 44th and current President of the United States. She was previously a high school history teacher and university instructor in Hawaii.-Early life:...
at Alan WongAlan WongAlan Wong is a chef and restaurateur known as one of 12 cofounders of Hawaii Regional Cuisine. They came together to form an organization to create a new American regional cuisine, highlighting Hawaii's locally grown ingredients and diverse ethnic styles...
's Restaurant near his boyhood home in Honolulu. Other destinations have been snorkeling with family at Hanauma BayHanauma BayHanauma is a marine embayment formed within a volcanic cone and located along the southeast coast of the Island of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands....
on a Tuesday when the bay is normally closed to tourists. Obama's reading list for the trip included The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de ZoetThe Thousand Autumns of Jacob de ZoetThe Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet is the fifth novel published by the author David Mitchell. It is a historical novel set during the Dutch trading concession with Japan in the late 18th century...
by David Mitchell (author)David Mitchell (author)David Stephen Mitchell is an English novelist. He has written five novels, two of which were shortlisted for the Booker Prize.- Biography :...
, Our Kind of TraitorOur Kind of TraitorOur Kind of Traitor is a 2010 espionage novel by the British novelist John le Carré about a Russian money launderer seeking to defect to the UK after a close friend of his had been killed by the new leadership of his own criminal brotherhood.- Plot summary :...
by John le CarréJohn le CarréDavid John Moore Cornwell , who writes under the name John le Carré, is an author of espionage novels. During the 1950s and the 1960s, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6, and began writing novels under the pseudonym "John le Carré"...
and President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime by Lou CannonLou CannonLouis Cannon is an American journalist, non-fiction author, and biographer. He was state bureau chief for the San Jose Mercury News in the late 1960s, and later senior White House correspondent of the Washington Post during the Reagan administration...
. Obama signed the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 on January 2.