The nonprofit organization Kulana Huli Honua will hold a 24-hour vigil at the historically and culturally significant Ahu'ena Heiau in Kailua, Kona, from 6 p.m. tomorrow to raise awareness of its ongoing dispute with owners of the King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel.

Mikahala Roy, president of Kulana Huli Honua, said her family and its affiliated organizations have been stewards and have cared for the heiau for more than a decade. Her father, the late David Kahalemauna Roy Jr., restored the heiau in the late 1970s with money provided by the hotel.

But in June, her group was given 20 days to vacate its office space in the hotel lobby and will no longer be allowed to care for the heiau, which is on property owned by the hotel.

Jak Hu, hotel general manager, said the hotel has no obligation to Kulana Huli Honua and works with another Hawaiian nonprofit group started by Roy's father to ensure that the historic heiau is maintained.

The matter is now in litigation.

Ahu'ena was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 because Kamehameha the Great dedicated the heiau to the god Lono. Kamehameha lived in the surrounding Kamakahonu region and was believed to have been laid to rest at the heiau, immediately following his 1819 death, before being secretly buried.

Kamakahonu, which Kamehameha made the first capital of the united Hawaiian Islands, also was believed to be the location where Kamehameha II effectively abolished the kapu system by sitting down for a meal with his mother and stepmother with foods women were previously forbidden from eating.

In more modern times, the heiau is also part of the most recognized section of Kailua, Kona. At the intersection of Palani Road and Ali'i Drive, it is next to Kailua Pier, home of fishing tournaments and the starting point of the annual Ironman Triathlon.

IWFKKH LLC Inc. took over ownership of the hotel, known by old-timers as the Hotel King Kamehameha, in June, and asked that Kulana Huli Honua vacate its rent-free offices in the hotel lobby.

Roy, the kahu or priest of the heiau, said an oral agreement made between Kulana Huli Honua and the previous hotel owner allows her group to maintain an office in the lobby and provide stewardship of the heiau. The organization conducts visits to the heiau and holds educational classes for guests, residents and employees on a voluntary basis, she said.

Hu, however, said another group started by Roy's father in 1993, known as Ahu'ena Heiau Inc., actually has maintained the heiau over the years and will continue to do so after Kulana Huli Honua is gone.

Roy said that while Ahu'ena Heiau Inc. first cared for the heiau, its stewardship role was later transferred when her father created Kulana Huli Honua in 1999. Roy said her organization fears that Ahu'ena Heiau Inc. will bow to the priorities of the hotel without regard to the sanctity of the heiau.

"What is at stake here is whether a corporation can own a heiau and determine a kahu," Roy said. "It is a spiritual takeover, and it cannot be done."

Efforts to reach an official with Ahu'ena Heiau Inc. were unsuccessful.

According to the lawsuit filed by Kulana Huli Honua through attorney Robert D.S. Kim, Ahu'ena Heiau Inc. "has ceased to represent the community at large and has become dominated by employees of the hotel." Kim said the hotel has "controlled the board of this organization and (has) diminished and/or stifled the activities to protect, restore and provide cultural practices at Ahu'ena Heiau."

The lawsuit said the hotel's actions are a breach of its agreement with the state Historic Preservation Division to maintain the heiau and to have an independent, community-based nonprofit oversee protection of the site. The state is also named in the complaint.

The lawsuit further claims that hotel management has imposed overly restrictive changes to rules governing access to the property, making it difficult for Native Hawaiians to worship and conduct cultural and ceremonial activities.

Additionally, the lawsuit said that skeletal remains of Native Hawaiians and others found on hotel property were interred near or in the current lu'au grounds of the hotel, and that management has failed to take measures to provide a buffer between the burial site and hotel activities.

Hu declined to discuss the specifics of the lawsuit, citing the advice of attorneys.

After Kulana Huli Honua sought a temporary restraining order to remain in the hotel lobby, the hotel agreed to allow them to stay pending a hearing Aug. 28 in 3rd Circuit Court, Kona.

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.