Bill aimed at improving Hawaii agency overseeing Kakaako redevelopment sent to governor’s desk
Duane Shimogawa Reporter – Pacific Business News
A bill that aims to improve management, legislative oversight and public participation of the Hawaii Community Development Authority, which oversees the redevelopment of Kakaako, was sent to Gov. Neil Abercrombie on Monday.
“[ House Bill 1866] will allow us to ‘reboot’ HCDA and allow it to refocus on its mission, provide greater transparency in its operation and decision making, and allow the public to have greater input in its deliberations,” State Rep. Scott Saiki, D-McCully-Downtown, who lives in Kakaako and introduced the bill, said in a statement. “At the end of the day, it will help HCDA create a community that is more livable, more productive and that better reflects our island values, lifestyle and sensibilities.”
Dubbed by some as Oahu’s “Third City,” Kakaako, the Honolulu neighborhood sandwiched between Downtown and Waikiki, is undergoing major developments that will place thousands of new residents in more than 10 new condominium towers.
Abercrombie has the option to sign H.B. 1866 into law, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.