LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i County Council has authorized the first steps in condemnation by eminent domain of a 23.5-acre lot in Kilauea for an affordable housing project.
The lot, situated makai of Kuhio Highway on Kilauea Road, has an estimated value of $1.606 million, according to real property tax records. The property is currently owned by B&D Properties, LLC, of North Dakota.
The vacant agricultural-zoned land was last sold in 2018 for $1,062,151.
County Housing Agency Director Adam Roversi said this land grab is to build workforce housing and promote the expansion of the Kilauea Town Core as called for in the town plan.
“The Housing Agency’s intention in seeking acquisition of this property to develop affordable housing, both for rent and for sale, gradually over time with in-depth feedback and communication from the neighborhood and the community as to exactly what they would like to see there,” Roversi told the council at its Wednesday morning meeting.
Roversi said this acquisition is “particularly triggered” by the county receiving about $9 million in Community Development Block Grants – Disaster Recovery funds from the devastating April 2018 floods.
“We’ve had multiple conversations with the landowner and have been unable to come to an agreement on the purchase of the property,” Roversi said. “So this eminent domain proceeding simply provides a vehicle by which the county could acquire with the court involved in deciding what a fair-purchase price would be.”
All-in-all, council approval is the first step in condemnation for public use. The formal proceeding takes place in court with appointed assessors deeming what the county would ultimately pay.
The county has the authority to take and purchase private property for public use, County Attorney Matt Bracken said.
“We can basically force the sale of the property for public purpose,” Bracken said.
The future Kilauea Access Road the county has recently taken over will be developed and run along the property down to Kuhio Highway.
“As a 20-year member of the Kilauea Neighborhood Association, I just want to acknowledge that the design and the location is consistent with what the community has planned,” Councilmember Felicia Cowden said. “It’s very welcome.”
At the last council meeting on Aug. 4, the body authorized the county to expend up to $180,000 in special counsel for legal services related to the condemnation and development on this area.
In the short term, after the land is acquired, Roversi said a portion of the land would be developed with the federal funds with a preference for people who have been impacted by the 2018 floods, which primarily affected those in Wainiha, Ha‘ena and Hanalei.
“We went through a long project selection process in cooperation with HUD (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development), and HUD frowns upon rebuilding homes in flood areas that have been impacted by floods,” Roversi said. “For example, it’s not really feasible to rebuild homes in the Wainiha floodplain that had been destroyed or severely damaged by floods.”
Kilauea is outside of the flood zone and tsunami-impact areas.
“It’s really important that we work on affordable housing in this part of the island that will serve a greater area as well,” Councilmember KipuKai Kuali‘i said.
Councilmember Bernard Carvalho said that this is one of the last moku, or area, of the island to see an affordable housing project to this scale.
“This is great and I think more opportunities will come from there,” Carvalho said.
