According to a report issued by the Census Bureau, the state of Hawaii's population increased by 10,500 people in the 2014 fiscal year (ending July 1) or a 0.8 percent annual growth. This meant that the state's total population was 1,419,561 people in 2014. The study went on to state that nearly 8 in 10 Hawaii residents were products of natural growth, or the difference between birth and deaths. The remaining newcomers were those who arrived from out of state vs those who moved away from the islands.
The state's minimum wage will be increasing by 50 cents to $7.75 per hour beginning on January 1, 2015. This is the first increase the state has seen since 2007. It will increase to $8.50 per hour by January 2016, to $9.25 per hour by January 2017, and will finally reach its new peak of $10.10 per hour by January 2018. Dwight Takamine the director of the state Labor Department, commented, "This increase will boost consumer demand and jobs because minimum and low-wage workers spend most if not all of their increased wages.
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 12-26-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Principal Broker, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com
Dillingham Ranch Aina LLC, has submitted an environmental assessment to the state requesting that they turn the 2,700 arce property into a subdivision for 106 homes. Under the proposal, all of the properties will be "farm dwellings" which would mean that they would follow state and country regulations and be required to be primarily used for agricultural operations. A total of 91 of the lots would be at least 5 acres in size, plus a cluster of 15 homes close together. The rest of the land would be refocused on orchard crops, like mango, avocado and lime, and on maintaining the existing cattle production and equestrian activities that the ranch is known for.
Critics argue that this proposal will simply create "gentlemen's farms," where buyers will build luxurious estate-type homes and engage in little or no commercial agriculture. Under state and country regulation a buyer would simply have to plant a few fruit trees or have a couple of horse to be part of an agricultural subdivision.
Hilton Worldwide has announced that they have come to an agreement to build a Hampton Inn & Suites at the planned Ka Makana Ali'i regional mall in Kapolei. The tentative plan is to build a 175-room hotel as part of the mall's 750,000 sq ft first phase. Construction will begin in mid-2015 and the Hampton Inn would open sometime in 2016. Hilton currently has six hotels and seven-time share properties in Hawaii, but does not have a Hampton hotel in the islands yet. Bill Fortier, a senior vice president of development for Hilton, commented, "As one of the world's most sought-after travel destinations, it is only fitting to expand Hampton Hotels to Hawaii, bringing a successful mid-priced product to the market."
Governor Ing has just submitted his proposal for the state budget for the next fiscal year. Under his proposal the budget will increase to $12.6 billion, which represents approximately a 4 percent increase. The majority of the increase goes to fill contractual requirements with state workers including added health benefits and raises. These same contractual obligations will increase the budget to $13.1 billion the following fiscal year. Governor Ing commented, "We do anticipate that we would be putting a more specific imprint on the budget in January as we get department directors on board and they've had a chance to view the budget requests and budget proposals that were developed as part of the budget process."
The Honolulu Police department has started to enforce the city's new sit-lie ordinance in Chinatown. Under the new law, sitting and lying on business district sidewalks is prohibited from 5:00 AM to 11:00 PM. Police officers have spent the last two weeks handing out warnings in Chinatown and encouraging people to move into shelters. Over the next few months, enforcement will go into effect for downtown Honolulu and 14 other business districts throughout Oahu. Waikiki's ordinance is slightly different as it bans sitting and lying on sidewalks 24 hours per day.
Chinatown merchants and residents stated that they have already noticed a difference, but hope that the city would include banning lying and sitting at five malls in the Chinatown-downtown area as well. These include College Walk Mall, Sun Yat Sen Mall, Kekaulike Mall, Union Mall and Fort Street Mall.
Hawaii residents and legislators alike expressed their frustration toward the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation who recently broke the news that the Honolulu Rail Project is now expected to cost between $550 million to $700 million more than the $5.26 billion estimated. Daniel Grabauskas, the executive director for HART, commented that project delays caused by lawsuits by rail opponents, pushed the cost up by as much as $190 million, and higher then expected construction contract have attributed to the rest of the unforeseen expense. In addition, the city has received $41 million less than what was previously project from the general excise tax surcharge that was expected to pay for the bulk of the Rail Project.
Ann Kobayashi, the Honolulu City Council Budget Chairwoman, suggested that it might be time for HART officials to consider scrapping plans for a rail project, and instead allow buses, instead of trains, to travel exclusively along the 20-mile guide way from East Kapolei to Ala Moana Center. Kobayashi argued that this might be a cheaper alternative, and would eliminate the need for park-and-rides to be built along the rail line. Grabauskas replied that under the funding agreement with the Federal Transit Administration,"we are not allowed to change our plans mid-stream from a rail transit system to one using buses. To switch from steel-on-steel rail technology to buses using rubber tires, we would have to return the existing federal funding and reapply for the money."
