A proposed affordable apartment complex on former Navy land in Kalaeloa would more than quadruple needed affordable rental housing there — adding 260 new units to the 70 units offered at Hale Uhiwai Nalu, a former military-housing facility.
This potential jump in affordable units would represent laudable progress, and progress has been slow in coming to Kalaeloa. Well-thought-out proposals for revved-up development in the area should be greeted with open arms by the state and city, bringing Oahu closer to the economically stronger and more affordable model that’s been embraced by government leaders.
Nonprofit developer Ikaika ‘Ohana is pitching a midrise complex serving primarily low- and moderate-income households, paid for as a “public/private project” receiving public financing and development rule exemptions from the state Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp.
It remains urgently necessary that housing affordable to households with low to moderate incomes be available throughout Oahu. Kalaeloa, with its abundant acreage already earmarked for a new community, is ideally positioned to be built out to include residents of diverse incomes — and to be built so that it can truly be a vibrant community, with shops and residences near each other, and streets designed to encourage walking rather than driving from parking lot to parking lot.
There are indications that state legislators this year will get more involved with Hawaii’s efforts to add affordable housing and reduce the cost of living — perhaps by pushing for looser rules on the proportion of low-income housing required. Hawaii’s new House Speaker Nadine Nakamura said as much in a recent interview with the Star-Advertiser, relating that some representatives want to increase the proportion of housing units deemed affordable for households earning as much as 140% of area median income (AMI), by making these workforce units eligible for affordable housing subsidies.
The push seems valid: Median-income households also face a Hawaii housing crisis. It also can be easier to “pencil out” a development mixed with higher-earning workforce residents than only those with a limited income, well below AMI. However, careful analysis is required before cutting back on a current requirement that 20% of new multi-unit housing be affordable for households earning below 60% of the median income — $58,500 for one person, $66,840 for a couple and $83,250 for a family of four. That benchmark is routinely undercut as it is.
Scaling back requirements for very affordable housing could exacerbate affordability issues for this low-income group, with consequences including increased homelessness. That’s an outcome that must be avoided.
In Kalaeloa, Ikaika ‘Ohana’s current proposal is to make all of the units affordable to households earning no more than 60% of the median income on Oahu, and to include some units reserved for households earning no more than 30%, 40% and 50% of the median income. However, Douglas Bigley, Ikaika ‘Ohana president, said plans for the project could be altered to include rent-to-own units or to give preferences to particular segments of Hawaii’s essential workforce — nurses, for example, or teachers. That would be an acceptable option, given Oahu’s urgent need for more housing tailored to essential workers.
The Hawaii Community Development Authority’s 2006 master plan for Kalaeloa envisioned development of 6,000 homes, including 1,800 for low- to moderate-income households. That plan is being updated to encourage development of higher-density housing in certain areas, a wise move that can allow for additional workforce housing serving those at median or above-median incomes, as well as housing for those with limited incomes. Both are needed. As the state agency continues to update its planning, it must seek to maximize affordable housing across the spectrum.
