803 Waimanu Gets Approval from HCDA

The Hawaii Community Development Authority has given developer Franco Mola approval to build a condominium at 803 Waimanu Street in Kakaako.  Under the final proposal, the building will be a total of seven stories high and will have a total of 153 units.  This significantly different from the first proposal made in May 2013 of a 27-story tower with 192 units.  Mola stated, "This has been a long, arduous project for us. It's not what we wanted, but we can live with the result."

Residents and owners of the adjacent Imperial Plaza condominium have been very concerned about the development of 803 Waimanu.  Despite the concessions made by Mola to reduce the height of the building and to preserve most of the view channels, the close proximity of the new building has raised concerns over traffic, sewer capacity, and general city infrastructure. Mola added, "I think we designed a building that one, meets the rules, and two, is a good neighbor."  Sales of the building should begin in the spring of 2014.  The building will be classified as affordable, which mean geared towards people earning no more than 120 percent of Honolulu's median income.  This equates to about $82,320 for a single person or $94,080 for a couple.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 1-9-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Principal Broker, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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803 Waimanu Update - Residents in Imperial Plaza Still Not Satisfied

The developer of the 803 Waimanu building, Franco Mola of MJF Development Corp, had recently revised his plans for the building in an effort to comply with height and spacing rules and to appease opposition from residents in the Imperial Plaza condominium.  Originally, Mola had proposed that 803 Waimanu would be a 27-story building with 192 units, which would have significantly blocked views of Imperial Plaza.  In his most recent proposal, Mola had reduced the height of the building to 7-stories with 153 residential units.  However, during a round of public testimony, it is clear that the neighbors are still not satisfied.

Residents of the Imperial Plaza are still concerned that 803 Waimanu would create significant strains on the city's sewage systems and storm drains. There is also concern about the additional vehicular traffic that 803 Waimanu would create.  The Hawaii Community Development Authority, which is the state agency responsible for regulating the redevelopment of the Kakaako neighborhood, has scheduled two additional public comment sessions on November 16th and November 19th.  The HCDA is scheduled to meet on January 8, 2014 and will make a decision about if the project will be allowed to proceed.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 11-7-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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Update on 803 Waimanu in Kakaako

MJF Development Corp has submitted a new application with the Hawaii Community Development Authority to build a seven-story building with 153 units at 803 Waimanu in Kakaako.  Previously, the company had proposed to build a 27-story tower with 192 units, but that plan was rejected by the HCDA after receiving a lot of opposition for residents of neighboring Imperial Plaza condominium tower.  Imperial Plaza residents argued successfully that the originally planned 803 Waimanu tower was too tall and too close their building.

Under the new proposal, a total of 117 of the 153 units will be studios, approximately 384 sq ft in size.  The rest of the units will be a mix of one-bedroom and two-bedroom units.  It should be noted that there will be only a total of 92 parking stalls in the project, many of which will be in a mechanical lift system.  As a result, not of the units will be conveyed with parking.  MJF Development Corp will make a presentation of their proposal to the HDCA on November 6.  The public would be allowed to attend this meeting and provide testimony.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 10-8-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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803 Waimanu Street Project Facing Permit Problems

Developer Franco Mola of the MJF Development Corp received some bad news regarding obtaining the necessary permits for his new moderate-priced condominium tower at 803 Waimanu Street in Kakaako.  Mola had made several requests for variances to the Hawaii Community Development Authority including increasing the height restriction from 65 feet to 250 feet, allowing 803 Waimanu to be built only 90 feet away from Imperial Plaza condominium's main tower and 39 feet away from Imperial Plaza's mid-rise tower.  Under current laws, the minimum gaps between buildings is 300 feet in the mauka-makai direction and 80 feet in the Ewa-Diamond Head direction.  The Hawaii Community Development Authority, which is responsible for regulating development in the Kakaako neighborhood, listened to testimonials from both supporters of Mola and those who opposed the variances and recommended that the board deny the building permit for 803 Waimanu due to substantial adverse effects on surrounding land users and the neighborhood character.

The Hawaii Community Development Authority has not officially voted to approve or deny the permit, as they are required to allow MJF Development Corp and opportunity to respond in writing to their recommendation.  The actual vote is scheduled for August 7, 2013, but as of this writing the board voted 6-0 against the project as it stands right now.  Imperial Plaza resident Bernard Nunies, testified against the variances requested and stated that the exemptions were an extreme" departure from HCDA's Mauka Area Rules governing building heights and tower spacing.  Nunies stated, "We didn't make the Mauka Area Rules.  All we are asking is you enforce the rules that you established."

Franco Mola has stated that he will not give up his plan to create a condominium tower at 803 Waimanu Street.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 7-4-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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Economists Believe that Demand Will Be There for All the New Condominiums

A total of 5,000 new condominium units and 1,000 rental units have been planned to be developed in Oahu’s urban core over the next decade. While some people are questioning if there will be enough demand for these new buildings, many local economists and real estate experts believe that the increased supply won’t even be noticed. Paul Brewbaker, the chief economist of TZ Economics, commented, “It’s not a question of will there be enough buyers. The problem is, will there be enough condos?”

Below is a list of the planned buildings:

Waihonua, located on Queen Street, is being developed by Alexander & Baldwin Inc. Currently 321 of their 341 units have been sold. The building is scheduled to be completed in March 2015.

One Ala Moana, is located above the Nordstrom parking garage at the Ala Moana Center. The 210 units have been sold out. The MacNaughton Group and the Kobayashi Group are the local developers in partnership with the Howard Hughes Corp.

801 South Street was marketed as moderately priced building. All 635 units have been sold through a lottery drawing. At that time 300 lottery entrants did not secure a unit. Marshall Hung is the developer of this building.

Symphony Honolulu is located on the North West corner of Ward Avenue and Kapiolani Boulevard. Sales are expected to begin this summer.

404 Ward Avenue is the address of a new moderately priced condominium tower that the Howard Hughes Corporation will be building. Prices have not been specified as of yet. Sales are expected to begin this year. The building will have approximately 400 units.

1108 Auahi Street is the address of a new mid-luxury condominium tower that the Howard Hughes Corporation will be building. Prices have not been specified as of yet. Sales are expected to begin this year. The building will have approximately 300 units.

1140 Ala Moana is the address of a new luxury condominium tower that the Howard Hughes Corporation will be building. Prices have not been specified as of yet. Sales are expected to begin this year. The building will have approximately 200 units.

The Collection is a project being done by Alexander & Baldwin. Located at the site of the former CompUSA store on the corner of South Street and Ala Moana Blvd, the project will include 466 units including several townhouses. Sales are expect to begin later this summer.

803 Waimanu is a project being developed by Franco Mola and will be located on Waimanu Street near Cooke Street. The project will feature 217 units. Sales are expect to begin later this summer.

Aloha Kai is a planned project on Atkinson Drive on the property that is currently being occupied by the Central YMCA property. The developer is still seeking a city zoning change. The building would have 128 units.

Halekauwila Place is a rental project with 204 units being developed by Standord Carr.

690 Pohukaina is also a rental project with 804 units. The project is being planned by Ohio-based Forest City Enterprises Inc.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 6-3-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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Kakaako Neighborhood – 803 Waimanu Development Sparks Debate

MJF Development Corp, lead by Franco Mola, is hoping to build a new condominium tower in Kakaako tentatively named 803 Waimanu. Mola hopes to build a 197-unit tower and is requesting the Hawaii Community Development Authority to grant the MJF Development Corp a variance to allow them to build the property 250 feet high. Currently, the lot is zoned for a maximum height of 65 feet. Mola is also requesting for a variance to build the tower 90 feet away from the Imperial Plaza, an existing high-rise condominium, while the current rule calls for a 300 foot gap. According to plans, there will be a portion of the 803 Waimanu building that would be build just 39 feet from Imperial Plaza’s mid-rise tower.

The 803 Waimanu building is going to qualify as “workforce housing” which means at least 75 percent of the units will be offered to occupants earning between 100 percent to 140 percent of Honolulu’s median household annual income. This equates to $68,600 to $96,040 for a single person, or $97,900 to $137,060 for a family of four. Prices will start at $249,000 for a studio with 372 sq feet of space and would be as high as $586,000 for a three-bedroom unit with 1,086 sq feet of space. Under Hawaii Community Development Authority rules, developers who build “workforce housing” may be granted special variances for building their projects. This is due to the fact that it is financially challenging to build affordable housing in Hawaii, where land and development costs are so high.

However, there are many residents in the neighboring Imperial Plaza condominium who are extremely upset with this proposal, as the close proximity of 803 Waimanu would affect views and may create additional noise and traffic. These opponents argue that by granting 803 Waimanu a variance, it would set a precedent for other projects in Kakaako. Provided that a variance is granted by the Hawaii Community Development Authority, Mola hopes to start selling the building in September and start construction by the end of 2013.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 5-2-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com