Summer-Fall 2026 • Hawaii Military Guide 227 You’ll find the military communities of Halsey Terrace and Radford Terrace, with both boasting comfortable amenities and larger sized housing (by Hawaii standards). The green suburban West Honolulu community is comprised of parks, golf courses, and hiking trails enhancing multiple residential options that include single-family homes, townhomes, and high and mid-rise condominiums. With its desirable location, quality public schools and ample green spaces, West Honolulu is a convenient, comfortable community many military members and Kamaaina (local residents) call home. Kamaaina (local residents) call home. SALT TO PLANTATION TO URBAN MILITARY MECCA The Moanalua ahupuaa – or land division in Hawaiian – once stretched from the mountains above Salt Lake to the ocean where HNL is located today. In the center of the ahupuaa was a nearly one milewide shallow lake formed by saltwater seepages and freshwater springs filling the Aliapaakai crater. Water evaporated and left salt deposits that became a commodity to Hawaiians and island explorers. After extreme salt exports, plantation runoff, an artesian well, sewage pipes and eventually the filling of the lake in 1966, all remaining of Salt Lake today is a pond on the golf course at the Honolulu Country Club. After the Great Mahele allowed ownership of Hawaii lands, the Moanalua ahupuaa passed through the royal Hawaiian family. In 1884, Samuel Mills Damon became the main owner of the land, leasing lots to Honolulu Plantation Company for sugarcane production and utilizing the Moanalua hillside for cattle grazing. Rice and bananas also thrived in the rich soil. The U.S. government began purchasing land in the area around 1914, eventually establishing the military bases existing today. In 1956, Damon Estates sold much of the former Moanalua ahupuaa land to residential and commercial developers, catalyzing the poststate construction of the suburban neighborhood. SHOPPING Almost anything you need and more can be found in these West Honolulu neighborhoods. Area shopping centers also turn up the fun with frequent events and discounts adding to colorful entertainment. A community staple, Salt Lake Shopping Center is home to Safeway, Longs Drugs,
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