Developers are seeking permits for a new affordable housing development in Honokaa scheduled to open in 2027.
The Windward Planning Commission will discuss today a pair of zoning applications for the Lehua Villages, two planned subdivisions that would offer 40 new single-family housing lots.
Roger Meeker, manager of Lehua Village Partners, said the two subdivisions are on a pair of 7-acre parcels divided by Lehua Street on the southwestern edge of Honokaa. The eastern development, Lehua Village 1, would consist of 20 finished lots that would be offered at the county’s affordable housing rates.
The other subdivision, Lehua Village 2, would include 20 more lots offered at market price, although Meeker said it might also include constructed homes as well.
“We can deliver finished lots more quickly than if we have to do construction on 40 houses,” Meeker said, adding that the entire project is currently being financed through private fundraising.
According to a project document, the twin villages would include a pair of private roadways and cul-de-sacs, as well as pedestrian paths providing access to the lots from Lehua Street. Each lot would range from 10,000 to 23,400 square feet in Village 1, and from 10,000 to 33,000 square feet in Village 2.
Each lot would be served by a private wastewater system, which documents say would “probably” be a septic system.
The parcels on which the villages would be built are currently unused.
Meeker said he wants to have the project zoned via a Planned Unit Development, a process that he said offers more flexibility in how the space is used. He added that the topography of the area — which includes a slight slope and a meandering central road — makes denser, more typical subdivisions harder to build.
In a report by the county Planning Department, the PUD serves to “promote the development of a single-family residential development that is more neighborhood-friendly and consistent with the rural character prevalent throughout the Honokaa town area.”
“There’s a need for affordable housing everywhere really, but we definitely see the need in Honokaa too,” Meeker said.
The Planning Department issued a favorable recommendation for the request in July. However, some Honokaa residents have submitted concerns about the project to the county over the past several months.
Several residents in May submitted letters expressing concerns about the increase in traffic that the project would cause, particularly in the case of a single-lane bridge on Lehua Street to the east of the project site. Others were worried about height limits — “everyone here purchased lots for an ocean view,” read one letter — and whether the site has sufficient drainage capacity.
Should the Windward Planning Commission approve his requests, Meeker said he plans to submit a subdivision application by the end of the year. While he suggested to the county that the project should be completed by the end of 2027, he said it could be done sooner.
“The county needs us to give them a timeframe, so we told them 2027,” Meeker said. “But with finished lots, we can probably get those done a bit quicker than that.”
Meeker added that he estimates the project will cost somewhere between $3 million and $4 million, although he said that, because of the current volatile prices of construction materials, that estimate could easily change.
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
