Kona commercial project dead
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
KAILUA, Hawai'i — Residents angry about traffic congestion and other growing pains in North Kona helped persuade the Hawai'i County Council to kill a major commercial, hotel and housing project in a close vote yesterday.
The council voted 5-4 against overriding Big Island Mayor Harry Kim's veto of the project by Clifto's Kona Coast LLC. Clifto's was seeking permission to put 390 apartments and condominiums and about 392,000 square feet of retail and commercial space on 83 acres north of Kailua.
The proposal also included a 250-room airport hotel. Cliff M. Morris, managing member of Clifto's, estimated that the total construction cost for the project would have been $160 million to $180 million.
The development was proposed for the makai side of one of the most congested sections of Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway, the busiest north-south thoroughfare in the area.
It quickly became a political rallying point for Kona residents fed up with daily traffic jams along Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway, and about 180 people turned out for the council's hearing in Kailua.
"Do we want the highway from the airport to Kailua to look like Nimitz Highway in Honolulu?" asked Kailua resident Marian Wilkins.
Wilkins, who said the development between Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway and the ocean would damage the view plane, questioned whether any of the new housing will actually be "affordable" for ordinary people.
County Planning Director Chris Yuen has warned the council that the Clifto's development would encourage shoppers to travel that already-clogged highway. Planners say the two-lane roadway has been at full capacity since 1998.
Kim vetoed the Clifto's project in August, citing concerns that the development could be completed before the state finishes its project to widen the highway.
Sidney Fuke, a planning consultant representing Clifto's, said the project would have provided an alternative shopping and business area, drawing traffic away from the crowded corridor into Kailua. Fuke also noted that the developer promised to provide $750,000 to kick-start planning efforts for the second phase of the Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway widening project.
The developer agreed to set aside 20 percent of the residential part of the project for affordable housing, amounting to 78 homes. Fuke said it was twice the required amount, and the developer also offered to dedicate about 18 acres of a separate beachfront property for a shoreline park.
The council heard more than four hours of testimony, with most members of the boisterous crowd opposed to the development. Some jeered and laughed out loud at supporters of the project.
Morris said he will now reconsider his options for use of the site. He said the industrial zoning would allow some commercial and retail operations there, including restaurants.
Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 935-3916.
