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Borreca: A portion of the opposition was fueled by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, which according to its own releases said: "The huge turnout was prompted largely by efforts at OHA to mobilize its beneficiaries through email alerts, phone calls and public notices in its newspaper as well as social media sites."

OHA said it didn't trust the PLDC because the PLDC rules didn't "reflect cultural sensitivity to the unique challenges facing Native Hawaiians. (And) the PLDC is authorized to develop the state's lands in a way never allowed before."

The controversy attracted the attention of Democratic candidate for the state Senate, Laura Thielen, who has started campaigning on a platform of repealing the PLDC. Thielen adds a lot of credibility to the argument because she was DLNR director and land board chairwoman during much of the budget-cutting years and knows the issues more than most.

"There are a lot more people stepping forward, saying to wait. There are laws and regulations in place to protect our quality of life, and even if it takes a little longer but to respect our residents, then so be it," Thielen said in an interview.

If the PLDC is needed to pay for the state parks and recreation land, Thielen noted: "The state doesn't have a good record of earning a lot of money when it tries to compete with the private sector."

"If you look over the past 50 years, it seems we have developed an awful lot. What have we needed to develop that we haven't developed?" she said.

Her Republican opponent, former state Sen. Fred Hemmings, said he also opposes the PLDC because "it was a good idea that was poorly executed."

For now, the PLDC remains — and with it a deep community skepticism that when the Abercrombie administration and all future governors say, "Trust me," it really means, "Sucker."