What to Do About Illegal Vacation Rental

The city's Department of Planning and Permitting is responsible for preventing illegal vacation rentals on the island of Oahu, but in the last five years only 88 violation notice or warnings have been issued and only $48,853 in fines have been collected.  Critics argue that this is a tiny amount considering that it is currently estimated that there are over 22,000 illegal vacation rentals being operated on the island.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell defended the Department of Planning and Permitting and stated. "The vacation rental issue is highly controversial. We face a huge challenge here, as you know, regulating and enforcing vacation rental issues, and it always comes down to money and whether we have the money to actually do the enforcement." George Atta, the director for the DPP, added, "Quite honestly, operators are smart. They tell their tenants not to answer the door and not to speak to anyone from the city. Because my inspectors don't have a warrant, they can't insist on entering. In a certain sense, we don't have the tools that are necessary to gather evidence."

City Councilman Ikaika Anderson has drafted a proposal that would expand owner-operated bed-and-breakfasts to 1,275 units, with no more than 25 percent of them allowed in one district.  Anderson also would punish violators sternly and would not grandfather in current offenders. The fees created by these new bed-and-breakfasts would pay for about a dozen new city inspectors, who would focus on vacation rental enforcement.

The Honolulu City Council plans to meet in the new year to discuss further options.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 12-29-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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City Plans to Replace Street Lights with LED Lamps

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell is proposing changing all of the city's streetlights with light-emitting diode (LED) lamps over the next few years.  This move would cut the electricity consumption for the streetlight by half, saving the city approximately $3 million in energy cost per year.  Furthermore, LED lights will last longer than traditional lights and shine brighter, helping to reduce crime and the number of vehicular accidents across Oahu.  The city is now requesting for bids from companies to install the LED lamps.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 12-27-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Mayor's Sand Island Transitional Center Facing Unanticipated Costs and Delays

Mayor Kirk Caldwell had proposed in August to convert a 5-acre vacant lot on Sand Island into a temporary transition center for up to 115 homeless people.  Initially, the plan was expected to cost less than $1 million, but this number seems to be growing significantly, which may mean that the Mayor's office will have to drop the proposal entirely. 

The state Department of Health stated that the 5-acre lot may contain contaminants because it was once a dump site.  In order to gain approval to build the transitional center, the state Board of Land and Natural Resources stated that a soil study must be conducted to ensure that it is safe for people to camp there.  Soil remediation and resurfacing is already twice what the Mayor's office had initially anticipated, and experts believe that there may be better ways to allocate the $1 million.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 11-11-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Honolulu Repaved 269 Lane Miles of Road So Far in 2014

According to a report issued by the Honolulu Department of Design and Construction, a total of 269 lane miles of city-owned roads have been repaved in 2014, bring the grand total since the road repair initiative began in January 2013 to 667 lane miles.  The city had budgeted $120 million for road repairs in the 2014 fiscal year, and has set aside an additional $130 million for the 2015 fiscal year.  Mayor Kirk Caldwell stated that he hopes to have the city repave a total of 1,500 lane miles before December 2018.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 10-11-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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City Obtains Lease for Transitional Center at Sand Island

The City and County of Honolulu has obtained a conditional lease from the state Board of Land and Natural Resources to build a transitional center at Sand Island.  The center will provide shelter for up to 100 homeless people at a time and is designed as temporary housing until the homeless could secure more permanent housing.  The city will still have to obtain clearance from the state Department of Health as well obtain an environmental assessment of the location.  City officials restated that they would not proceed with the building of the transitional center if the site is deemed to be hazardous or unsafe.  However, once the site is deemed safe, they hope to be up and running within a few months.

Opponents of the transitional center argue that the city is building a "de facto internment camp", are not providing enough security, and are using an unsafe location.  The Sand Island site may be challenged in court.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 9-13-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Transition Center for Homeless Suggested for A Five-Acre Site at Sand Island

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell has suggested creating what is being called a "transition center" for homeless people on the island of Oahu while new permanent housing is being constructed under the Housing First initiative.  The state of Hawaii has agreed to provide the city with a vacant 5-acre parcel of land at Sand Island. City Managing Director Ember Shinn stated that the Sand Island site will not be a traditional "safe zone" or homeless encampment, but rather a transitional center for approximately 100 people who meet the definition of chronically homeless.  Those using the site would be moved into permanent shelters with a year to 18 months. Shinn commented, "We're hoping that we can bring people in off the streets, assess them if they haven't been assessed, score and rank them in terms of their priorities for services, and then move them into permanent shelters as they become available. We are not providing any walls or permanent shelters whatsoever; it's totally transitional."

The city would provide 24-hour property management and security, restrooms and showers, storage units, benches, park tables and other on-site services.  There will also be shuttle service to a major bus line.  Pets would be allowed and there would be no curfews.  They will be some rules, however security would be focused on making sure that the site is safe and not cracking down on illegal activities. The Housing First initiative calls for the city spending approximately $44 million to either acquire or develop housing for 400 chronically homeless individuals over the next two years.

Some argue that the Sand Island site is too remote and many homeless living in the Waikiki and Kakaako neighborhoods don't want to move there.  There is also criticism that the Sand Island initiative is criminalizing the homeless for not having shelter.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 9-6-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Honolulu City Trash Pickup to End for Nonresidential Buildings and Multi-Family Complexes After January 31, 2015

Honolulu City and County officials have announced that starting January 31, 2015, the city will no longer be offering trash pickup services to nonresidential and multifamily complexes.  This will mean that approximately 110 multifamily complexes and 80 schools, churches and other non profits will have to start paying for their own service.  Lori Kahikina, the director for the city's Environmental Services Department wrote letters to the affected properties which stated, "Your property has had the benefit of the city's refuse collection service at no charge for many years while other, similar privately owned properties have had to use private refuse hauling service." Kahikina noted that there are more than 4,000 multifamily buildings and condominiums whose owners are already paying for private service.

Some property managers are concerned that the cost of paying for private hauler will be prohibitive for their residents.  For example, the Arbors in Ewa complex stated that it would cost approximately $4,000 monthly for a private hauler to service their 18 trash bins.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 8-11-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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City Officials Concerned that Waikiki Not Ready for A Major Hurricane

Officials from Honolulu's Department of Emergency Management are very concerned that Waikiki, Oahu's most densely packed area, is not ready in the event that a major hurricane were to strike. While most of the hotels meet monthly to review and update their disaster plans, the Department of Emergency Management noted that most of the condominiums and apartment building have no such plan in place, and are encouraging them to get prepared.  Many of Waikiki's building were built before stricter building codes required more solid, concrete construction.

Steven Businger, a meteorology professor at the University of Hawaii admitted that a major hurricane hitting the islands is a rare event, but agreed with city officials that the public should be ready and have a plan.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 8-4-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Bike Lanes and Sharrows to Be Added in Kaimuki

Transportation officials for the City and County of Honolulu have announced that they will be working on making the Kaimuki neighborhood more bike friendly starting in late August or early September.  In some areas designated bike lanes will be added while in others "sharrows", or shared lanes" will be painted along the street shoulder to allow bicyclists to share the road. Currently, only 1.6 percent of Honolulu's commuters use a bicycle to get to work and the city hopes that number will increase with initiatives such as this one. Under the 2012 bicycle master plan, the city will add an additional 310 miles of bikeways within the next 30 years at a cost of $68 million.  For the current fiscal year, the city budgets approximately $2.4 million for bikeway-related projects.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 7-29-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Waikiki Businesses and Hotels Concerned About Homeless Situation

Over the last couple of years, Waikiki has seen record numbers of tourists staying in their hotels and frequenting their businesses.  However, the neighborhood has also seen an increased number of chronically homeless campers, aggressive panhandlers and people who are using sidewalks and parks as toilets, and the hotel and tourism industry are not happy about this at all.  The Waikiki Neighborhood Board, the Wai­kiki Improvement Association, the Hawaii Hotel and Lodging Association, the Oahu Visitors Bureau and the Hawaii Hotel & Visitor Industry Security Association, have joined forces with Waikiki residents and are demanding that state and city leaders enforce existing laws as well as consider creating new ones to prevent the problem from escalating further.

Real estate analysis Stephany Sofos commented, "We're just fed up with how this homeless issue has degraded our neighborhood. It's causing parts of our economy to fracture. Visitors don't want to come; people who live here want to move; and if investors start to realize that our community is decaying, they'll take their dollars out and put them in places that are thriving. It happened in Detroit and Sacramento and it will happen here.  It's Economics 101."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 5-19-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Possible Tax Increases for High End Properties

Honolulu City Council Budget Chairwoman, Ann Kobayashi, is proposing increasing the property tax for high-priced homes on Oahu.  Under Kobayashi's suggestion, all Residential A class properties, which refer to single family homes and condominiums priced at $1 million or more, would be taxed at $6 per every $1,000 of assessed value.  This is considerably more than the $3.50 per $1,000 of assessed value that owners are currently paying. However, it should be noted that Residential A class properties does not apply to primary residents, regardless on the value of the home.  Kobayashi stated, "Your house can be $10 million, but if you have an exemption, you're still in the residential class, not Residential A. The reason we put the $1 million figure is because we wanted to protect renters, and most people do not rent a home that's more than $1 million." Furthermore under Kobayashi's proposal, hotel and resort properties would be taxed at $12.90 per $1,000 of assessed value.  This would be slightly more than the $12.40 that hotel and resorts are currently paying.

The Honolulu Board of Realtors disagrees with Ann Kobayashi's suggestions and notes that the real estate industry defines luxury homes in Hawaii as those valued at $2 million and more. HBR suggests homes below $2 million pay $3.50 per $1,000 of assessed value, those properties that are valued between $2 million and $4 million pay $4.50 per $1,000 of assessed value, and those homes valued at more than $4 million pay $5.50 per $1,000 of assessed value.  Julie Meier, the President of the Honolulu Board of Realtors, stated, "We believe the threshold for any additional taxes should begin at $2 million. Any new property tax rate increase will have a negative impact on renters, because any rate increase will be passed onto them. We would like to see the city defer action on this measure until a more equitable, tiered rate structure can be considered."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 5-13-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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City Hopes to Come Up With Solutions for Homeless Situation in Waikiki

Mayor Kirk Caldwell hopes to work with business owners and concerned citizens to improve the homeless situation in Waikiki.  Over the past few years, the number of reports of homeless people defecating and urinating in the streets, stealing from tourists, and aggressively panhandling and blocking access to parks and beaches, has been growing considerably. Caldwell commented about Waikiki Beach, "This is one of the best beaches. It should be enjoyed by all. But the homeless population moved in and basically took it over and occupied it to the point that visitors and locals couldn't find a place to enjoy the views and breezes." 

Caldwell is also turning to the Honolulu Police Department to help by increasing their visibility and stepping up the enforcement of crimes such as defying park closures, sidewalk obstruction, aggressive panhandling, street performing and public drinking.  This enforcement is also helping the police to round up some of the more violent offenders that may be living on the streets of Waikiki.  Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha stated, "What's been happening recently is that we've been receiving a lot of complaints about homeless starting to commit more violent crimes. We had a couple of homeless-on-homeless homicides this year. We've seen some copper thefts, and we've seen homeless extort each other. We picked people up for everything from outstanding warrants to drug charges and alcohol violations.There's no law against being homeless, but when you commit a crime, that's when the police get involved. Don't commit crimes or you'll get arrested. Our presence and our enforcement actions serve as a warning that we are out there and watching. We want crime-free streets."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 5-12-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Waikiki Visitors and Industry Officials Unhappy About Increased Number of Homeless in Neighborhood

Laurel Mackie, a Canadian visitor who has come to Waikiki for the past 28 years, shares the growing concern that the homeless population in Waikiki is getting out of hand. Mackie stated, "I look out of my balcony and I see people passed out. And, worse yet, I have friends that have been physically assaulted by the homeless. With safety concerns and the fact that Waikiki is becoming an overpriced Beverly Hills slum of the Pacific, it seems a no-brainer to think about choosing another destination."

Tourists and visitor industry officials have come to an agreement that the rise in chronic homelessness in Waikiki has grown tremendously in the past few years ad are calling on the state and city to take immediate action to this crisis.  State Senator Brickwood Galuteria, who represents Waikiki, agrees, and commented, "I consider homeless to be a natural disaster situation not unlike a tsunami of sorts, and the tone of the response should be equal to that."

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, between 2007 and 2014, the number of chronic homelessness in Hawaii grew by 32.5 percent. Tourism officials are concerned that the state's $15 billion visitor industry will suffer as more and more visitors complain about their encounters with the homeless whom the meet in Waikiki.

Tourism officials say they are worried about the impact on the state's $15 billion visitor industry as more and more visitors publicly complain about encounters with homeless people throughout Waikiki. George Szigeti, the president and CEO of the Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association, added, "We don't like homeless challenges anywhere, but the visitor industry supports 175,000 jobs across the state and Waikiki is the economic engine that drives that train. We spend millions marketing the state to get tourists to come here. We have to protect their experience. If we don't, everybody loses because the negative economic impacts will spread."

Jesse Broder Van Dyke, spokesman for Honolulu Mayor Caldwell, stated, "Complaints about homelessness in general and in Waikiki are received daily via mail, email, phone and in person. As media attention to the issue has increased, so has public outcry. Public awareness and understanding of the issue (are) essential to justifying the expense of making progress." Van Dyke added that the Caldwell administration is proposing to spend $18.9 million for the Housing First project and $3 million for support services.  However, the Honolulu City Council will have to approve the allocation of these funds.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 4-20-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Update on Turtle Bay Resort

This past week the State of Hawaii and the City and County of Honolulu signed a preservation agreement with Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore of Oahu.  Under this agreement, a total of 665.8 acres of land owned by Turtle Bay Resorts will be barred in perpetuity from any development.  Furthermore, there will be two planned oceanfront parks at Kawela Bay and Kahuku Point that will be reserved for public use.  In exchange for this concession, Turtle Bay would be paid $40 million from the state, $5 million from the city and $3.5 million from the nonprofit Trust for Public Land.  The owners of Turtle Bay would still have the legal right to develop two hotels for a combined 625 rooms and another 100 homes of 150 acres of land that front the ocean.

While many North Shore community members are happy with this compromise between the government and Turtle Bay Resorts, there are three major community groups that are still protesting the decision and state that this does not resolve their pending legal actions over development.  Defend Oahu Coalition, Keep the North Shore Country and Unite Here! Local 5 stated that they will continue to fight Turtle Bay's expansion plan of building two more hotels and 100 additional homes.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 4-19-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Height Increase Approved for the Second Tower of the Ritz-Carlton Waikiki

The Honolulu City Council gave a 9-0 approval for the height increase requested by developer PACREP2 LLC for the second tower of the Ritz-Carlton Waikiki project.  The property, located at 2139 Kuhio Avenue, is now allowed to be 350 feet tall, instead of the standard 300 feet that was allowed under the Waikiki Special Design District. PACREP2 will be forced to make some additional concessions including building the second tower no closer than 75 feet from the first tower.  The second tower will still need to obtain a Waikiki Special District use permit from the Department of Planning and Permitting before it is allowed to proceed.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 3-13-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Second Ritz-Carlton Waikiki Tower Granted Height Exemption

The Honolulu City Council Zoning Committee has approved the 350 feet height exemption for the second Ritz-Carlton Waikiki tower, but added stipulations that would increase the amount of space between the two building and add open space and other amenities.  Under the amendment, the minimum distance between the two towers would be 75 feet, an increase from 50 feet.  Furthermore, the developer would have to create additional open space and landscaping as well as traffic, pedestrian and sewer line improvements.  Developer PACREP2 LLC has stated that they would not object to the concessions that they would have to make to increase the building height to 350 feet.

Residents of Waikiki and the Wai­kiki Neighborhood Board are still extremely unhappy with this decision and feel that PACREP has been deceiving the general public and government officials through a practice called "segmentation".  Segmentation is when a developer purposely splitting up the project to gain approvals separately so decision makers don't see the whole scope of a project at once.  Opponents also noted that there have been recent large political contributions made by PACREP employees, family members and affiliated companies to Honolulu Councilman Ikaika Anderson, Councilman Stanley Chang and Mayor Kirk Caldwell. All three politicians have denied the contributions have had any effect on their decision-making process.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 3-10-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Honolulu Mayor Proposes Tax Increases for Owners of Luxury Homes and Hotel/Resort Properties

Kirk Caldwell, the mayor of Honolulu, has proposed a new tax increase for those who own luxury homes as well an increase in taxes on hotel and resort properties on Oahu.  Under the plan, those homes that are considered to be "Residential Class A", which is defined as properties valued at $1 million and above and not receiving homeowner's exemption, would see tax rakes increase to $5.50 per $1,000 of valuation.  This is a significant increase from the current $3.50 per $1,000.  Hotel/resort properties would see their tax rate go up to $13.40 per $1,000 of assessed value, an increase from the $12.40 per $1,000 of value currently being charged.  These two proposals would generate approximately $34.6 million per year in revenue for the city and would help close the $46 million revenue gap in next year's operating budget. Furthermore, Caldwell would like to institute a $10 monthly garbage pick up fee and allow for advertising on the sides of city buses. The garbage fee would raise another $20 million a year for the city and bus advertisement would raise another $1.5 million per year.

City Councilman Stanley Chang commented, "In Hawaii a $1 million home can be a very modest, old family property.  I think it's deceptive to use a cutoff of $1 million." Ernie Martin, the City Council Chairman, added that he would anticipate that hotel and resort owners would request some type of relief if the new tax is imposed."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 3-1-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Counties Want State to Lift Cap on Their Share of Hotel Room Taxes

In 2011, the State of Hawaii government passed a bill that capped each counties' share of the hotel-room tax revenue at $93 million a year to help balance the state budget.  In 2013, the state decided to make the cap permanent.  However, county officials are now trying to change the law to remove the cap and give the counties 44.8 percent of the hotel room tax that they collect annual.  This would be broken down further and would give Honolulu 41.1 percent of this share, Maui County 22.8 percent, Hawaii (Big Island) County 18.6 percent and Kauai County 14.5 percent.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell and Maui County Mayor Alan Ara­kawa stated that the counties pick up a significant portion of the costs of tourism, such as parks, roads and public safety, and therefore they should enjoy a greater share of hotel room tax revenue.  Mayor Caldwell stated, "So we're really looking for help here. As mayor, I have not been afraid to go and propose fees and increases in taxes where necessary to provide the services that everyone demands and needs. And so we're here today to ask for some help to make sure that we keep ourselves on the front edge of tourism in the world."  Mayor Arakawa  added, "The counties need to be made whole. It's a fairness issue."

State Representative James Tokioka argued that the state lawmakers are frustrated with some of the county policy choices while the state government was making budget cuts during the recession.  Tokioka stated, "You know how frustrating it is for us sitting over here that our friends and our cousins from the counties are doing these things while we're furloughing teachers and cutting ag inspectors and all of these positions. So that's the kind of thing that is very frustrating when we sit in this seat."

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 2-26-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Massive Waves on Oahu's Shores Fortunately Causes No Deaths or Damage

Honolulu's Department of Emergency Management was pleased to report no major damage to property and no loss of life was caused by massive waves that hit Oahu's North Shore and Leeward Coast line.  The waves, some with faces reaching 50 feet in height, were still challenged by expert and professional surfers, but city and state officials warn that theses waves are extremely dangerous for even the best athletes.  Lifeguards made two rescues on the North Shore and twelve rescues on the Leeward Coast.  On the island of Kauai, an elderly man sitting on the beach watching the surf was swept away by an especially large wave.  An off duty lifeguard managed to save him before he got swept out into the ocean.  The elderly man suffered from cuts and abrasions and was treated at a Kauai hospital.

While waves are expected to decrease to 20 and 25 feet in height over the next few days, lifeguards warn that these "smaller" waves can be extremely dangerous.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 1-24-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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Aggressive Panhandlers in Waikiki May Be Hurting Tourism

Over the last few years, Waikiki residents and the visitors have noticed an increase in the number of homeless and panhandlers asking for money.  Many feel that the panhandlers have become increasingly aggressive in the demands for money often heckling tourists as they walk by. Dennis Ihaksi and his wife Penny, who are Canadian visitors who have been visiting Waikiki since 1977, stated, "We'll probably take next year off. We'd like to come back, but we just don't feel safe anymore. And it's not just us that feel that way. We have friends that have been coming here for years and we all are having the same discussion. It's worse here than in Los Angeles or San Francisco. We've also been to Vietnam, China and Cambodia. In the tourist areas, we didn't see the massive group of people with hands out to the extent that it's happening here."

Several residents and Waikiki businesses are demanding that the Honolulu government change the laws on panhandling, vagrancy, loitering, and public intoxication,  Under Honolulu law, a panhandler has to use aggressive tactics in a prohibited location to be cited for aggressive panhandling.  Aggressive panhandling is forbidden within 10 feet of an ATM, a facility with an ATM, or a check cashing business.  The penalty is $25 for each offense. The city of Honolulu does not have any laws against vagrancy, loitering, public intoxication or homelessness.

Source: Honolulu Police Department; A panhandler can be arrested by the police if they:

1.  Persist in soliciting money from, follow, or approach a person after that person has given a negative response by either words or conduct to a solicitation for money

2.  Intentionally touch or cause physical contact with a person being solicited without the person’s consent

3.  Intentionally block or interfere with the safe or free passage of a person exiting or entering a vehicle near an ATM

4.  Use violent or threatening gestures toward a person being solicited

5.  Use profane or abusive language that is likely to provoke an immediate violent reaction from the person being solicited

6.  Approach or follow a person being solicited in a group of two or more persons in a manner intended or likely to cause a reasonable person to fear imminent bodily harm or damage to or loss of property or otherwise to be intimidated into giving money or other thing of value.

Source: ACLU; A panhandler or street performer has the following rights:

A.  Panhandlers and street performers have a First Amendment right to be on the public ways and sidewalks provided they are not obstructing the flow of traffic or peddling. Peddling is defined as selling, renting, or offering to sell or rent goods, wares, merchandise, food or other kinds of property or services. A person offering goods or services in public places in Waikiki who does no more than solicit or accept a donation, leaving the amount to be determined solely and freely by the donor, is not in violation of the peddling ordinance.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 1-19-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
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