HomeMy WebLinkAboutStolz, Anja
Tsuneda, Kaci
From:Anja Stolz <alohacasa808@gmail.com>
Sent:Monday, October 19, 2026 7:33 PM
To:Council Testimony
Cc:Onishi, Dennis; Kagiwada, Jennifer; Kimball, Heather; Kierkiewicz, Ashley
Subject:Testimony in OPPOSITION to Bill 147 – Multi-Unit Properties in the CDH District
Aloha Chair Kierkiewicz, Vice Chair Galimba, and Members of the Committee,
RE: Bill 147 – Relating to Transient Vacation Rentals
POSITION: OPPOSE
I am a property owner in downtown Hilo, zoned Downtown Hilo Commercial (CDH), and I respectfully
OPPOSE Bill 147 as drafted. Our property is one TMK with several separate, self-contained, legally
permitted dwelling units in more than one building. The buildings have been there since the 1940s. Bill
147 would make it impossible to keep operating these units as we do today, even though our property
fully conforms to its commercial zoning. I ask the Committee to hold this bill. If it moves forward, it must
at minimum be amended on the four points below.
1. One TVR per building site – Section 25-4-D(d)
As drafted, a building site is limited to one TVR unless it is a condominium property regime under HRS
514B. Our property has multiple dwelling units, in more than one building, on a single TMK. Each unit has
its own entrance, kitchen, and bathroom. Under this section, the whole property would count as a single
TVR. This treats a legally permitted multi-unit commercial property the same as one single-family house,
and it pushes owners into costly condominium conversions just to keep doing what they already do
legally.
Requested amendment: Allow each legally permitted dwelling unit on a building site to operate as its
own TVR, at least in commercial districts such as CDH, CG, and V, without requiring a CPR.
2. The five-bedroom limit
The current definition limits a short-term vacation rental to no more than five bedrooms for rent on the
building site. Counting bedrooms across all units and buildings on one lot, instead of per dwelling unit,
penalizes multi-unit properties in the very commercial districts where vacation rentals belong.
Requested amendment: Clarify that any bedroom limit applies per dwelling unit, not per building site.
3. Renting to separate parties –
Section 25-4-F(g)
I understand the intent: preventing individual bedrooms inside one home from being rented to strangers
at the same time. But as written, combined with Section 25-4-D(d), it could prevent separate, self-
contained units in the same building, or in separate buildings on the same TMK, from being rented to
different guests.
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Requested amendment: Clarify that this prohibition applies only to bedrooms within a single dwelling
unit, not to separate, legally permitted dwelling units on the same building site or TMK.
4. CDH as a permitted district
The CDH district was dropped from the original 2018 ordinance because of a technical drafting issue,
with the stated intent to add it back later. Bill 147 should clearly list CDH as a district where unhosted
TVRs are permitted.
Our property is fully conforming and is actually underused compared with what the zoning allows. CDH
density would permit one dwelling unit per 500 square feet of land, so our 5,000-square-foot lot could
hold up to ten apartments. We already built all required off-street parking when the County asked us to.
We operate as a commercial business and pay General Excise Tax and Transient Accommodations Tax.
Downtown Hilo commercial zoning is meant for business activity. If a few guest units are not appropriate
in a commercial district, what commercial uses does the County want in CDH? This zoning would allow
far more intensive businesses, such as a funeral home. Visitor lodging brings people downtown who
shop, dine, and support small businesses.
One-size-fits-all rules do not fit the many real situations on our island. Multi-unit commercial properties
in downtown Hilo are different from single-family homes in residential neighborhoods. For these
reasons, I OPPOSE Bill 147 and ask the Committee to hold it, or at minimum adopt the amendments
above.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
Mahalo,
A downtown Hilo property owner
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