The Robin Masters Estate (Pahonu)

[KingKC]

I guess all good things must come to an end.

[Sam]

Looking back through this thread here was an article that was posted December 2015.


Rumor Persists that Obamas Will Live in Magnum PI Estate Post White House


Having been on Oahu for over a month, I have to say the locals I’ve chatted with firmly believe it’s all a smokescreen and that the Obama family will be the next residents of the Anderson Estate (no relation, more’s the pity).

http://candysdirt.com/2015/12/30/rumor- ... /#comments

[ConchRepublican]

Looking back through this thread here was an article that was posted December 2015.


Rumor Persists that Obamas Will Live in Magnum PI Estate Post White House


Having been on Oahu for over a month, I have to say the locals I’ve chatted with firmly believe it’s all a smokescreen and that the Obama family will be the next residents of the Anderson Estate (no relation, more’s the pity).

http://candysdirt.com/2015/12/30/rumor- ... /#comments

I was one who felt strongly about that, but the razing of the Estate gives me pause. For someone growing up in Hawai'i, at least partially, you'd think the sentimentality of the Estate would BE the Estate building, not just the grounds. Maybe update it, modernize things a little, but keep the main structure. Now it's just another beachfront property.

[surferboy]

Goodbye old friend... Aloha Pahonu
https://vimeopro.com/mls/41505kalaniana ... /114330282

Thank you, a little consolation in a very very sad moment.
For over thirty years Robin's Nest has been for me the most beautiful place on earth.

[Sam]

Hi Conch.
It's funny that their only concern was whether or not Obama would live there full-time or part-time and no concern or worries about a demolition.
That article was from December 2015.. at that point it was too late it was already going down.or at least cleared the hurdles allowing for a demolition.

[erock308]

Goodbye old friend... Aloha Pahonu
https://vimeopro.com/mls/41505kalaniana ... /114330282

Thank you, a little consolation in a very very sad moment.
For over thirty years Robin's Nest has been for me the most beautiful place on earth.

I really enjoyed the short time I had at the estate in 2005, swimming in the tidal pool, running on the beach, snooping around, and reinacting a few of my favourite scenes from the show. The estate has always been my "Grace Land" and often dreamt of winning the lottery and buying it to turn into a Magnum theamed bed & breakfast ;-{)

"The only thing we can count on in life is change."

[KENJI]

Looking back through this thread here was an article that was posted December 2015.


Rumor Persists that Obamas Will Live in Magnum PI Estate Post White House


Having been on Oahu for over a month, I have to say the locals I’ve chatted with firmly believe it’s all a smokescreen and that the Obama family will be the next residents of the Anderson Estate (no relation, more’s the pity).

http://candysdirt.com/2015/12/30/rumor- ... /#comments

I was one who felt strongly about that, but the razing of the Estate gives me pause. For someone growing up in Hawai'i, at least partially, you'd think the sentimentality of the Estate would BE the Estate building, not just the grounds. Maybe update it, modernize things a little, but keep the main structure. Now it's just another beachfront property.

Hi Conch,

I know none of us would've pulled the trigger on Pahonu, so how could a kama'aina......two words......
Michelle Obama! Barack has always said she is the boss when it comes to family life and she's not from Hawaii so she doesn't have that sentimentality to Pahonu that you mentioned. Maybe their intentions were to fix it up, but when they finally received the keys and crunched the numbers it just wasn't feasible to restore it. We know it was a gut (at least on the inside) from the beginning and the final price reduction $7,800,000 was basically lot value from what the experts were saying, so the hope of saving it may have been a long shot at best. Remember they weren't even allowed inside before purchasing....so they were going in blind. I can picture dry rot and termite damage throughout those beautiful wood beams we see and probably right up into the truss system holding up the roof......all guesses including the Michelle Obama theory, but very possible....I could see Michelle giving him that certain look and Barack dropping his head while saying "Yes dear".....end of story.....that scenario would work in Marty's case as well....happy wife, happy life. I'm guessing all of our wives and hubbies would've understood our decision to keep Pahonu standing though.

I know the place is not the same without the heart of the main house, but for now and I stress for now, we still have the original grounds, boathouse (tick,tick,tick), tennis court, gatehouse, perimeter wall, tidal pool and of course the gorgeous view which is still part of Pahonu. I'm with you Conch, it's lost it's sole, but there are still a few memories from the past there. I'm guessing the gatehouse is being used for a security/site office at the moment and will either come down in phase 2 or and this is just wishful thinking, they are rebuilding the new main house in the original style and felt they could save the gatehouse......you have to hold on to some hope. RG pointed out that Sakamoto's designs are not Spanish colonial revival in nature so I'm not holding my breath, but you never know, we've been surprised a lot in the last few months!
The boathouse is on borrowed time, but it's small enough that they could spend some money on it to keep it standing for a few more years while storing boats and boards etc.. Plus, if they knock it down now they will never be able to build that close to the ocean again with the current ocean setbacks which we have discussed a few times. I would keep it!

The other colder more ruthless scenario is they never intended on keeping Pahonu from day one and when they signed on the dotted line Pahonu's fate was sealed.....start fresh and get rid of the MPI fans looking inwards. I hope that's not the case!!!

I just think of the tourism dollars that could've been coming in for Hawaii if it was opened to the public, not to mention the admission fee$ that could've covered the cost of maintaining the place, maybe it could've been a boutique hotel, B&B, MPI museum, open to conferences, weddings etc.. I guess no one was willing to take a chance on such a venture which is a real shame. Hawaii has no idea what they've lost there!

To most people Pahonu was just "bricks and mortar", but to us it was much more. I find it interesting and almost fitting that in the end, Michelle broke Magnum's heart and she may have just broke ours as well.....time will tell.

[MagnumsLeftShoulder]

Obama left Hawaii in 1979 to attend Occidental College in LA so he wasn't even there during the Magnum years.

I didn't need another reason to dislike Obama, but I guess this is the cherry on top of a bitter sundae. TBH, I really can't ever see him living there, though. It's too far from the action. I'd bet Nesbitt will be the eventual occupant. Besides, supposedly Obama inherited some kind of home or estate from his grandparents.

I just think of the tourism dollars that could've been coming in for Hawaii if it was opened to the public, not to mention the admission fee$ that could've covered the cost of maintaining the place, maybe it could've been a boutique hotel, B&B, MPI museum, open to conferences, weddings etc.

That sounds right up the alley of the current occupant of the White House! That's pretty much what he did to Mar-A-Lago and it's gorgeous!

[ajcusn]

I have not seen convincing evidence that the Obama family will be moving to Waimanalo. Yes, it is possible, but speculation based on the Obama's connection to Nesbitt is all we have right now. However, it would be really ironic if Pahonu was demolished on the orders of the former president. It would certainly give meaning to the cliche "Thanks Obama!"

With that being said, the building was slowly deteriorating. It was directly exposed to the salt air and trade winds. The blue tarp was evidence of water infiltration. Wood + moisture = a feast for termites, which are notorious on Oahu. Corrosion from salt would suggest rust and/or metal fatigue. The evidence thus far suggests that the structure was not demolished based on nefarious intent, but more likely it was inevitable due to structural integrity issues. Personally, I hope they replicate the structures in good faith. The boat house should be replicated with the intent of converting the interior into a guest house.

If any Oahu residents are up for some detective work, I would be willing to volunteer to check out some public record at DLNR to see if we are missing anything. I used to hold a seat on a historic preservation commission in a national historic district, so I am familiar with the regulations. Even if Pahonu received an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places (which it almost certainly would have been eligible/granted), it could still be demolished by the owner. A contributing structure in a historic district, however, would have required a Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition, which may have been granted if the structure had deteriorated to the point that I think it had.

[Rembrandt's Girl]

I was just chatting with a gentleman who lives on Oahu, says he met Nesbitt, and Nesbitt told him that Pahonu was purchased by Obama, with Obama's money, and Nesbitt is basically the frontman.

[J.J. Walters]

I have not seen convincing evidence that the Obama family will be moving to Waimanalo. Yes, it is possible, but speculation based on the Obama's connection to Nesbitt is all we have right now. However, it would be really ironic if Pahonu was demolished on the orders of the former president. It would certainly give meaning to the cliche "Thanks Obama!"

With that being said, the building was slowly deteriorating. It was directly exposed to the salt air and trade winds. The blue tarp was evidence of water infiltration. Wood + moisture = a feast for termites, which are notorious on Oahu. Corrosion from salt would suggest rust and/or metal fatigue. The evidence thus far suggests that the structure was not demolished based on nefarious intent, but more likely it was inevitable due to structural integrity issues. Personally, I hope they replicate the structures in good faith. The boat house should be replicated with the intent of converting the interior into a guest house.

If any Oahu residents are up for some detective work, I would be willing to volunteer to check out some public record at DLNR to see if we are missing anything. I used to hold a seat on a historic preservation commission in a national historic district, so I am familiar with the regulations. Even if Pahonu received an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places (which it almost certainly would have been eligible/granted), it could still be demolished by the owner. A contributing structure in a historic district, however, would have required a Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition, which may have been granted if the structure had deteriorated to the point that I think it had.

Hey, that's great info, ajcusn. Thank you for sharing that. By the way, welcome to the site!

I've been behind the times on this whole Obama/Nesbitt thing (because I've been gone for a while), but I'm slowly catching up. I did a Google search for 'Obama Magnum P.i.' and was blown away by a 2015 Washington Post article that mentions my site and the Robin's Nest page! I grew up reading the Post every day! I eventually graduated to the Washington Times, but their Sports section is still great (if you know what I mean). Just seeing the words 'Magnum Mania' in the Post just blew my mind.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the ... 20e040ebe4

Anyway, the article is garbage. It doesn't say anything other than a "close friend" of Obama is purchasing the property. No shit, Sherlock!

I was just chatting with a gentleman who lives on Oahu, says he met Nesbitt, and Nesbitt told him that Pahonu was purchased by Obama, with Obama's money, and Nesbitt is basically the frontman.

Yep! That's where my money is on!

[Sam]

I have not seen convincing evidence that the Obama family will be moving to Waimanalo. Yes, it is possible, but speculation based on the Obama's connection to Nesbitt is all we have right now. However, it would be really ironic if Pahonu was demolished on the orders of the former president. It would certainly give meaning to the cliche "Thanks Obama!"

With that being said, the building was slowly deteriorating. It was directly exposed to the salt air and trade winds. The blue tarp was evidence of water infiltration. Wood + moisture = a feast for termites, which are notorious on Oahu. Corrosion from salt would suggest rust and/or metal fatigue. The evidence thus far suggests that the structure was not demolished based on nefarious intent, but more likely it was inevitable due to structural integrity issues. Personally, I hope they replicate the structures in good faith. The boat house should be replicated with the intent of converting the interior into a guest house.

If any Oahu residents are up for some detective work, I would be willing to volunteer to check out some public record at DLNR to see if we are missing anything. I used to hold a seat on a historic preservation commission in a national historic district, so I am familiar with the regulations. Even if Pahonu received an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places (which it almost certainly would have been eligible/granted), it could still be demolished by the owner. A contributing structure in a historic district, however, would have required a Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition, which may have been granted if the structure had deteriorated to the point that I think it had.

Hi ajcusn.. welcome aboard.. time for you to hit the grounds and pick up some of the rubble to send to your new best pals.

[Nikita70]

Unless they bought it with intent to demolish I cannot understand anyone spending all those millions on a house and they were not allowed inside before buying? Sounds like BS to me. As long as it was on the market and you’re going to tell a potential buyer they can’t see the inside?

[KENJI]

Unless they bought it with intent to demolish I cannot understand anyone spending all those millions on a house and they were not allowed inside before buying? Sounds like BS to me. As long as it was on the market and you’re going to tell a potential buyer they can’t see the inside?

I know it sounds crazy Nikita70, but those were the terms.
It also explains why she had no takers at the original price ($15,750,000) or at the first reduced price ($10,700,000) as it was way too much for anyone to risk without going inside to check the condition. It took the final price reduction ($7,800,000) to get buyers interested. At that price the value was there in the land alone so they could afford to take a risk on the house sight unseen because you were covered if it was a tear down. There were at least a few buyers interested as the final price ended up being $8,700,000. It was one of those unique listings where the owner was extremely private, possibly a hoarder and didn't want others to see how she lived. The realtors were saying it was a gut on the inside and she had quite a few animals in there so we can read between the lines. She was even vetting potential buyers herself to prevent one of us or the press getting inside the gates. If you didn't have the cash, no admission! I'm sure when the new owners finally saw the inside the writing was on the wall. They may have even brought in the experts to see if it was salvageable, but the numbers were possibly way too high to make that plan work, so Plan B was put into play.

[Rembrandt's Girl]

The other day I purchased a mortgage release from the DLNR dated December 22, 2017 so Pahonu's loan has been paid.

I've used the DLNR's online services regularly re Pahonu research and it would be interesting to know if you can get more documents in person than you can get online... even so, unfortunately there won't be any public records that will state the true owner's name(s).