The Office of Hawaiian Affairs has chosen a design team to develop a plan for the 30 acres in Kakaako Makai the state agency acquired two years ago from the state of Hawaii in a deal meant to resolve a dispute that dates back to when it formed in 1978.
OHA has awarded a $2.9 million contract to the Kuhikuhi Puuone Collaborative, a partnership of four Hawaiian firms, including Edith Kanakaole Foundation, DTL, PBR Hawaii and WCIT Architecture, the state agency said Thursday.
The contract, which requires its leadership team to actively get input from the Hawaiian community during the master planning for Kakaako Makai, is expected to take two years to fulfill.
The 30 acres in Honolulu that OHA acquired from the state are valued at an estimated $200 million.
The conceptual master plan for the nine parcels fits into the agency’s strategic priority to be able to use the land to generate significant revenue to meet demand for such OHA resources as the $1.3 million, on average, it lends annually to Hawaiian business and consumers.
“This new partnership moves us a step closer toward realizing the longer-term vision for Kakaako Makai,” OHA CEO Kamanaopono Crabbe said in a statement. “We look forward to encouraging collaboration in developing a conceptual master plan for Kakaako Makai.”
This past legislative session, state lawmakers killed a proposal to allow OHA to build residential high-rises in the area of Kakaako between Ala Moana Boulevard and the Pacific Ocean.OHA was seeking an exemption from a 2006 law that bans residential construction in Kakaako Makai.
The agency has said it wants to build two 400-foot condominium towers and several other structures 200 feet high close to Ala Moana Boulevard but not near the coastline.
Duane Shimogawa Reporter – Pacific Business News