A mainland-based medical nonprofit, working with Hawaii-based senior living developers, wants to build a combination assisted living and skilled nursing facility in Kailua-Kona.
West Hawaii Health LLC, representing Covenant Retirement, has proposed a 291-residence project on Kuakini Highway, a 14-acre parcel formerly known as the Lava Kuakini development. That development received some entitlements in 2006, but to complete the project as affordable housing, the developers are using the 201-H process, which allows for a number of exemptions to the Hawaii County Code to bring down the project costs, as well as expedites the permitting process.
“We started looking at the west side of the Big Island seriously in 2008,” West Hawaii Health Managing Partner Bruce Beard said in an email Friday. “The demographic studies available indicated a strong need.”
Those studies showed West Hawaii is home to more than 400 people who could use assisted living care, but for whom there are no available assisted living homes, and another 400 people in need of skilled nursing care, but who also cannot find available care, according to figures West Hawaii Health provided to county officials.
Beard said the location on Kuakini Highway, near Pottery Terrace, is centrally located to a number of community activities, health care services, recreation and transportation.
The exemptions list includes a request to waive application fees and a grubbing permit and to allow a maximum height of 48 feet — 3 feet higher than the typical limit. Housing Director Steve Arnett said the finalized requests were vetted by various county departments. The council’s Human Services and Social Services Committee, which meets at 1:15 p.m. Tuesday at the West Hawaii Civic Center, will discuss the exemption request.
Arnett said West Hawaii definitely needs more senior housing.
One potential issue raised in the request is a condition in the property’s 2006 rezoning that requires driveway access tying in to the long-planned, but stalled, Kahului to Keauhou Parkway, also known as the Alii Parkway. Two West Hawaii council members, Dru Kanuha and Brenda Ford, said they can see some advantages to the project eventually connecting to that road, if it is ever built. The condition regarding parkway access was reworded in the exemption request to allow access on Kuakini, but require connection to the parkway if it is ever built.
Kanuha, in whose district the project is located, said he is supportive of the project.
“This project will benefit our community extremely,” he said.
West Hawaii Senior Living will have 96 assisted living residences, 160 skilled nursing and long-term care residences and 35 employee housing apartments. Of those units, 51 percent, or 147 units, will be qualified as affordable housing under state and county guidelines, with 24 units available at the affordable level for someone earning 60 percent of the county’s median income, 18 units at the affordable level for 80 percent of the median income and 105 units at the affordable level for 100 percent of the median income.
The project will offer access to geriatricians and geriatric psychiatrists, either on site or via telemedicine, transportation to appointments and medical care, supervision to prevent wandering by those with dementia, three meals a day, activities and socializing and other on-site care, according to information provided to the county.
“While we support aging at home, in many cases, the needs of the seniors are greater than can be provided for in their traditional homes,” company officials wrote. “Aging at home works well for some seniors. For others it means being isolated from community and services. For those who need alternative services, providing a continuum of care community offers choices about how to best meet their needs.”
Officials also claimed the project will bring more than 350 full-time skilled and semi-skilled jobs to West Hawaii. Covenant Retirement, which operates more than 15 other retirement communities on the mainland, is also offering to train Big Island residents for the job openings.
West Hawaii Health LLC members have developed and built assisted living facilities on Maui and Oahu, documents filed with the county said. Project funding comes from the Southern California Laborers Pension Trust, with investments managed by TDA Investment Group in San Mateo, Calif.