Developer lowers affordable housing units, fails to produce
The commission in January brought the development's chief executive officer to a hearing asking him to explain why commissioners shouldn't revert the land classification for 3,000 acres mauka of the Mauna Lani Resort from urban to agricultural.
The project's rezoning was initially approved in 1991 for the previous property owner. When Aina Lea purchased the land in foreclosure in 1998, it also received a reduction in the affordable housing requirement. The commission, in decreasing the affordable housing requirement from 60 percent to 20 percent, included language in the amendment that Aina Lea should provide certificates of occupancy within five years of Nov. 17, 2005.
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Attempts to reach the development's attorney were unsuccessful Friday.
CEO Hoolae Paoa told the commissioners he was in negotiations with the county to build 24 transitional housing units. An environmental impact statement requirement, and a denied subdivision request, had slowed his progress, he said, but he still believed he could meet his deadline this year.
Developers went before the commission in January 2007, claiming they would complete 385 affordable homes by 2010.
Commissioners asked Paoa about progress on other requirements, including a joint venture agreement and a mass grading contract. Those contracts are in place, Paoa said, but he was trying to replace his existing partner.
The EIS preparation notice, released in late 2007, showed an expanded vision for the project. Fully constructed, Bridge Aina Lea was to include as many as 4,132 residences, five golf courses, a golf academy, commercial villages and a 40-unit resort lodge.
The commission continues its hearing at 10:30 a.m. at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.
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