The Farmers' Market at Mililani High School, tel. 808-848-2074, is held every Sunday from 8 to 11 am. Check out the website, www.hfbf.org/FarmersMarket-Mililani.html, to see the day's specials as well as a list of vendors and their goods. A local-style breakfast and/or lunch is usually offered by one of the vendors for a small price.
Sightseeing
Dole Pineapple Plantation and Maze, 64-1550 Kamehameha Highway, tel. 808-621-8408, www.dole-plantation.com. Memorialized in the 2001 Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest maze, the plantation's huge natural puzzle encompasses nearly two miles of paths lined by 11,400 colorful Hawaiian plants. The maze is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm and costs $6 for adults or $4 for children.
Afterwards, go for a ride on the Pineapple Ex-press Train, which takes visitors on a two-mile tour in which you'll learn about the history of the pineapple and hear the story of James Dole, who pioneered the pineapple industry in Hawaii. The train departs every 30 minutes between 9 am and 5 pm, weather permitting. The cost is $7.75 for adults and $5.75 for children ages four-12.
The plantation also offers a self-guided garden tour of eight mini-gardens where you can get an up-close view of a large variety of native plants grown on O`ahu's North Shore. The tour also includes information about the plantation villages and contract laborers who came from all over the world to work in Hawaii's sugarcane and pineapple fields. Tickets cost $4 for adults or $3.25 for children ages four-12.
History Lesson
James Drummond Dole, fondly known as "The Pineapple King," arrived in Hawaii in 1899. The following year he bought a 61-acre tract of land in Wahiawa where he started his first pineapple plantation. In 1901, Dole figured out that the best way to transport the pineapple out of Hawaii would be in cans, so he built a cannery, which marked the start of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company. In 1907, the cannery was relocated to Honolulu Harbor, where it was closer to the labor pool, shipping ports and supplies. The Honolulu cannery was at one time the world's largest cannery and remained in operation until 1991.
In 1922, as demand for pineapples grew, Dole bought the island of Lana`i and converted it from a cactus-covered island with 150 residents into the largest pineapple plantation in the world, with 20,000 pineapple-producing acres and over 1,000 employees and their families. For nearly 70 years, Lana`i operated as a pineapple plantation and became widely known as the "Pineapple Island," providing nearly 75% of the world's pineapples.
By the 1930s, Hawaii was known as the pineapple capital of the world. Dole's Hawaiian Pineapple Company was now processing over 200,000 tons of pineapple a year and was responsible for 90% of all the canned pineapple produced in the world.
Dole passed away in 1958 at the age of 80. The enterprise he founded is known worldwide as Dole Foods Company.
The plantation also has a country store which offers many pineapple goodies as well as great gift options such as clothing, pineapple-based treats and made-in-Hawaii products. The plantation is open daily from 9 am to 5:30 pm and in the summer months of June through August, the plantation is open from 9 am to 6 pm.
Getting to the Pineapple Plantation: The plantation is just three miles north of Wahiawa and 10 miles from Haleiwa and the North Shore. From Haleiwa, take the Kamehameha Highway (Highway 99) until you get to 64-1550 Kamehameha Highway. Follow the signs to the Dole Plantation. From Waikiki, take Highway 1 (H1) West to Highway 2 (H2) North and continue to Kamehameha Highway (99).
Hawaiian Railway Society. The Hawaiian Railway is the only active railroad on O`ahu. The Railway Society was formed in 1970 to save what remained of Hawaii's railroad history. Now an educational, non-profit organization, the Railway Society has been placed on the State and National Registers of Historic Sites.
Railway fans can ride the railway every Sunday, except the fourth Sunday in December. Departure times are 1 and 3 pm and the ride lasts 90 minutes. Seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis and costs $10 for adults or $7 for seniors and children ages two to 12. Remember, they only accept cash and checks.
The second Sunday of the month is a special day at the Railway, reserved for the Parlor Car 64, which was built in 1900. Tickets are $20 and seating is limited to 14 passengers.
For more information about the Hawaiian Railway Society call tel. 808-681-5461 or visit www.hawaiianrailway.com.
Adventures on Land
Golf
Mililani Golf Club, 95-176 Kuahelani Avenue, tel. 808-623-2222, www.mililanigolf.com, opened in 1966. It is set on a plateau, with the Wai`anae and Ko`olau Mountain Ranges on each side. The par 72, 6,455-yard golf club carves its way through a maze of Norfolk pines, eucalyptus trees, African tulip trees and tropical Hawaiian foliage.
Mililani sits on former plantation fields owned by Castle & Cooke, which began planning for its development in the early 1960s under its Oceanic Properties subsidiary. Castle & Cooke's plan was to make Mililani Town a satellite city by using a prestigious group of planners and architects to satisfy Oahu's great pent-up demand for housing with a sensitively designed, affordable new community of a type unique in Hawaii. The first homes in Mililani went on sale on June 3, 1968.
In 1976, the Interstate H-2 opened, cutting travel time from Mililani to Honolulu in half.
In 1986, Mililani was named an All American City. It is the only community in Hawaii ever to receive this distinction.
Mililani is the third wealthiest zip code (96789) in the state of Hawaii, according to the 2006 ranking by Pacific Business News.
Although it is largely a bedroom community for Honolulu, Mililani has its own commercial shopping centers, schools (such as Mililani High School), parks, community centers, and a golf course, and resembles a modern American suburban town. Mililani homeowners must pay dues to the Mililani Town Association, which enforces covenants and design standards, and provides recreational facilities including several pools.
The Mililani Golf Club is a par-72, 6,455-yard course that is open to the public.
The Mililani Technology Park is a nearby campus-like park that is zoned for high-tech industries.
Mililani Mauka is the newer and more upscale area of Mililani located on the mountain, or mauka, side of the H-2
The older portion of Mililani to the west of Interstate H-2 is known as Mililani Town. The newer portion of Mililani to the east of Interstate H-2 is known as Mililani Mauka. Almost all of Mililani's commercial and retail centers are in Mililani Town.
On April 6, 1990, ground was broken for Mililani Mauka, a newer and more upscale community east of the Interstate H-2. The first homeowners moved into Mauka in 1992.
In 2005, Money magazine named Mililani as one of the best places to live in the U.S.
In 2006, Mililani Ike Elementary School first grade teacher Phyllis Nakama-Kawamoto was named Hawaii's American Star of Teaching by the U.S. Department of Education.[1]
Mililani is located near the center of Oʻahu Island, on the plateau or "central valley" between the two volcanic mountains that comprise the island. It is in the ʻEwa District and the City & County of Honolulu. The town is somewhat physically confined between the two large central Oʻahu gulches of Waikele and Kīpapa.
Travelling north on either Kamehameha Highway (State Rte. 99) or Interstate H-2 connects the traveller with Wahiawā. Travelling south on either of these arteries connects to Waipiʻo.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10.2 km²). 3.9 square miles (10.1 km²) of which is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.51%) is water.
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 28,608 people, 9,010 households, and 7,694 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 7,319.1 people per square mile (2,825.0/km²). There were 9,280 housing units at an average density of 2,374.2/sq mi (916.4/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 20.38% White, 3.07% African American, 0.19% Native American, 46.93% Asian, 4.55% Pacific Islander, 1.33% from other races, and 23.55% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.77% of the population.
There were 9,010 households out of which 43.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.4% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.6% were non-families. 10.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.17 and the average family size was 3.41.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $73,067, and the median income for a family was $76,338. Males had a median income of $47,051 versus $31,976 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $24,427. About 2.5% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.2% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.
Elementary schools in the CDP include Kipapa, Mililani Uka, and Mililani Waena. Mililani Ike and Mililani Mauka elementary schools are outside of the CDP. Mililani Middle School is outside of the CDP, while Mililani High School is located inside the CDP.[3]
