HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0074.007 2024-2026December 16, 2024
Council Member Kagiwada
25 Aupuni Street, Suite 1402
Hilo, Hawaii 96720
Subject: Support for Hualalai Court Workforce Housing Project
Aloha Councilmember Kagiwada,
My letter today is to inform you of my support of the Hualalai Court Affordable Workforce
Housing application. This project would allow the building of 104 affordable properties in the
district of Hawaii Island you represent.
As Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity Hawaii Island, Inc., a non-profit that builds and
provides affordable homeownership opportunities for the Big Island, I know painfully well the
gap between affordable housing and the need for such; a particularly exacerbated situation on
the west side of the island. Although this is a project that Habitat International guidelines would
not allow us to participate in as an organization, our organization, and myself personally, are in
support of boosting affordable housing availability so that our community can thrive, at all levels,
and in all places. Currently, so many individuals and ohanas are priced out of finding adequate
housing, and being able to produce more supply is a years long process. Therefore, the sooner
we get started constructing additional units, the better.
My hope is that we, as a community, would strive for a balanced approach to our building
activities island wide. I feel that Hualalai Court Affordable Workforce Housing would help to
bring that balance to the Big Island, providing a counterbalance to the development of so many
luxury, multi -million dollar projects which seem to keep springing up, particularly on the west
side of the island.
Mahalo for your consideration of this project.
Sincerely,
Chris Marlett Patulski
21 ��