HONOLULU (AP) — Honolulu officials are moving forward with plans to redevelop a former sugar plantation village built in the early 1900s after promising renovations to residents of the largely neglected area decades ago.
Varona Village is one of eight communities in Ewa Villages built for Ewa Plantation Co. sugar workers and their families between 1900 and the 1950s. City plans to redevelop the site have stalled since the 1990s, due to the closure of Honolulu’s leading housing agency, failed attempts to trade the property for state land and other factors, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported (http://bit.ly/1UMsh6f).
City officials are now looking to turn the 26-acre community, which has about 90 lots, into an affordable housing development. They plan to issue a request for proposals to seek out potential developers starting in July or August.
The city acquired Varona and the nearby Tenney and Renton villages from Oahu Sugar, Ewa Plantation Co.’s successor, when the company shut down in 1995. Former plantation workers had been told they could stay and rent their homes, and officials created a plan aimed at rehabilitating the area and giving tenants the options to buy their homes.
However, Varona didn’t receive as much attention as the other villages, which underwent renovations and had lots sold to residents and other buyers. Varona Village was left with abandoned houses and vacant lots.
“One of my concerns has been the health and safety issue regarding the dilapidated conditions of the housing,” said City Councilman Ron Menor, who represents the area. “The city made a promise to the plantation workers . that the city would eventually rehabilitate their neighborhood and community as they had with other places such as Tenney and Renton villages.”
City officials will hold a public meeting on Tuesday intended to give residents of the community a chance to provide input on the redevelopment plans.