Aikanaha project bill submitted for $14 million Affordable Housing Fund loan : Maui Now

A bill has been submitted to the Maui County Council that would pave the way for a loan of up to $14 million from Maui County for the 212-unit Aikanaha low-income rental housing project in Waikapū.

Listed as an agenda item on Friday’s Maui County Council meeting, Bill 35 would amend the county’s fiscal 2024 budget to delete two earlier appropriated housing projects and insert Aikanaha’s Phases I and II. The move would help Aikanaha developer Pacific Development Group line up $113 million needed to finance the project, which would be the first buildout of the master-planned Waikapū Country Town development.

The bill would delete $7.5 million that had been set aside from the Affordable Housing Fund for Ka Hale A Ke Ola Homeless Resource Centers to purchase and retrofit the Anchor Square (former Travelodge property) for affordable housing on Papalaua Street in Lahaina. The Aug. 8 wildfire destroyed that property before that housing project could get underway.

The measure also removes $6 million from the fund for the Kuikahi Village Workforce Housing project. That project has not moved forward as planned, said Budget Director Maria Zielinski in a Feb. 8 transmittal letter to council members.

The budget amendment shows an estimated balance of $24.2 million in the Affordable Housing Fund as of June 30. Another $43 million is expected to be added to the fund in fiscal year 2024.

Zielinski said the Aikanaha project’s 212 units would be affordable for at least 62 years, and 10% of the apartments would be accessible to mobility, hearing and vision impaired households according to guidelines in the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

All Aikanaha residents will be low-income households, earning only up to 60% of the Maui County area median income. Monthly rent would range from $1,111 for studios to $1,651 for 3-bedroom apartments. Hale Mahaolu is expected to manage the housing complex.

Amenities include 327 parking stalls, outdoor gathering areas, a playground, an approximately 3,300-square-foot community building, a laundry, trash enclosures and an electric vehicle charging station.

On Friday, Bill 35 could be referred to the Budget, Finance and Economic Development Committee, chaired by Council Member Yuki Lei Sugimura. Or, with the approval of at least six council members, the full Council could waive bill referral rules and take action on the floor.

On Feb. 7, the Council’s Housing and Land Use Committee, chaired by Council Member Tasha Kama, discussed the project at length.

Another housing project set for first-reading action on Friday is the 28-home Kilohana Makai project in Kīhei. On Feb. 5, the Council’s Budget Committee recommended approval of amending the fiscal 2024 budget to include a grant of more than $4.9 million for developer ʻĀina Lani Pacific. The funding would help pay for sharply rising construction costs.

Also, Bill 5 would add nearly $2.65 million for the county to buy multiple condominium units to provide affordable rental housing for kupuna displaced by the Maui wildfires.

Other agenda items include Bill 11. It would include a $500,000 grant in the county’s fiscal 2024 budget for Hone Heke Corp., operator of the Expeditions Maui-Lānaʻi passenger ferry. The funding would help with Expeditions operations and the purchase of replacement parts lost during the Aug. 8 Lahaina wildfire. The proposal already passed first reading on Jan. 26.

Another measure, Bill 137, is set for first-reading approval. It would appropriate $3.63 million for rehabilitation of the War Memorial Football Stadium and Satoki Yamamoto Track.

Friday’s regular Council meeting begins at 9 a.m., with in-person testimony taken in the Council Chamber on the eighth floor of the Kalana O Maui Building in Wailuku. Members of the public can also participate online via Teams at http://tinvurl.com/2p9zhir2. To testify by phone, call 1-808-977-4067, code 465 611 688#. The meeting will be televised on Akakū – Maui Community Media, cable Channel 53.