HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0989.152 2018-2020 i
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BUtLOING INDUSTRY
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August 8, 2020
Honorable Aaron Chung, Council Chair COUNTY CLERK
Hawaii County Council COUNTY OF HAWAI'
25 Aupuni Street, Suite 1402 RECEIVED
Hilo, Hawaii 96720
Time OM _ By__de --
Chair Chung, and members of the Council: Date AUG 0 5 2020
RE: Relating to Bill 179 AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A COUNTY CONSTRUCTION CODE,
RELATING TO BUILDING CONSTRUCTION AND RELATED SYSTEMS WITHIN A BUILDING
UNDER CONSTRUCTION BY AMENDING THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION,
AS AMENDED), AS FOLLOWS:
1) ADOPTING NEW CHAPTERS 5 (CONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATIVE CODE), 5A
(BUILDING CODE), 5D (ELECTRICAL CODE), 5E (ENERGY CONSERVATION CODE),
AND 5F (PLUMBING CODE);
2) AMENDING CHAPTER 2, SECTION 2-39; CHAPTER 3, SECTIONS 3- 14 AND 3- 15; AND
CHAPTER 25, SECTIONS 25- 1- 5, 25-4- 10, AND 25-4-60;AND
3) REPEALING CHAPTERS 5 (BUILDING CODE), 9 (ELECTRICAL CODE), AND 17
(PLUMBING CODE).
My name is Dwight Mitsunaga, 2020 President of the Building Industry Association of Hawaii
(BIA-Hawaii). Chartered in 1955, the Building Industry Association of Hawaii is a professional trade
organization affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders, representing the building industry
and its associates. BIA-Hawaii takes a leadership role in unifying and promoting the interests of the
industry to enhance the quality of fife for the people of Hawaii. Our members build the communities we all
call home.
BIA-Hawaii is in strong support of the County of Hawaii's proposed improvements to the Building Permit
process by consolidating the various building codes into one permit system. Delays in the issuance of
building permits causes unnecessary risk and uncertainty in a supposedly ministerial process. Improving
the building permit process will create more opportunities for construction projects, funded by private
capital, to enter the market. These privately funded projects will be essential to help us build our way out
of the recession caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
We also understand that concerns have been raised regarding Appendix L of the proposed Bill which
allows for factory-build housing (up to code). BIA-Hawaii is an advocate for increasing the supply of
housing at all price points. One of the major challenges we face in Hawaii is the high cost of housing. We
participated in Senator Stanley Chang's review of the housing programs in both Singapore and Hong
Kong. In both instances, pre-fabricated panels were used to create various different modular floor plans
that greatly reduced the cost of the units.
State of Hawaii has a "housing crisis."The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
(DBEDT)forecasted demand for additional housing units by county is 25,847 units for Honolulu, 19,610
for Hawaii, 13,949 for Maui, and 5,287 for Kauai during the 2015-2025 period (DBEDT
Report Measuring Housing Demand in Hawaii, 2015-2025, April 2015).
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Aloha United Way commissioned ALICE: A STUDY OF FINANCIAL HARDSHIP IN HAWAII to help
identify those.across our state who are struggling to make ends meet, and to understand the enormity of
this issue and the obstacles these families and individuals in our communities face. ALICE is an acronym
for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. In Hawaii, there are 148,771 ALICE households (33
percent), while another 41-A.'.19 hou's' eholds (9 percent) live below the poverty level. In total, 42% of Hawaii
households are ALICE r- ,,below. ,,(Aloh�a United Way Website: https://www.unitedforalice.or-q/Hawaii,)
County Total-Households % Below ALICE Threshold
Hawaii 71,565 48%
Honolulu 308,208 40%
Kauai 22,524 44%
Maui 52)794 42%
It seems reasonable to implement different construction methods that would reduce the overall cost of
housing in Hawaii, especially considering the income limits to Hawaii residence across the state. We
need a "mixed bag of tools"to increase the supply of housing at all price points.
The Covid-19 Pandemic has turned our economy on its head and created an economic crisis for us all.
All policy makers need to give pause to adopting new legislation/rules and view these initiatives in light of
the new economic reality all families in Hawaii face.
We applaud the County of Hawaii's initiative to improve the building permit process which will help us
build our way out of this recession. BIA Hawaii is in strong support of Bill No. 179 and strongly
encourages its passage.
-213
94-48",r Aknki St, Ste,,,
www,biahawaii.org
(I X 80,84 9-7701 Waipahu,M 9,6797 info@bisl