Investigative Articles

The Unfair Influence on Housing in Kaua'i

In 1995, the State approved a 541 acre urban development for Lihue. The petitioner was Amfac/JMB Hawaii. JMB Hawaii was a real estate company from Chicago that had recently purchased some of Amfac’s land after the sugarcane plantations shut down. JMB Hawaii was the financial backer of this project. The Land Use Commission’s (LUC) Finding of Facts state: “approvals for development will be in place to allow for major infrastructure development to begin in late 1996”. JMB Hawaii sold their holdings in 2001 with no approvals having been secured. In 2001, JMB Hawaii was sold to Visionary, LLC. In 2000, Grove Farm also changed hands to related party, Visionary, LLC. In Visionary, LLC’s submittal to LUC it states “It should be noted that both Visionary, LLC (dba Lihue Land Company) and Grove Farm Company share common officers, directors, and staff.” These two entities control a large percentage of development rights in Lihue. 

The project includes:

• 1,250 Single Family units
• 550 Multi-Family units
• 70 acres of Commercial use
• 128 acres of Industrial use
• 70 acres of Public use
• 48 acres of Parks

The estimate to bring water and sewage to the project was $35 million. Allocating that cost to just the 1,800 residential units, leaving out commercial and industrial use, would be less than $20,000 per unit. There was plenty of water. Lihue’s “total withdrawal of ground water from the aquifer system, including the water requirements of the Project, would therefore be… 17% of the sustainable yield.” An economic and fiscal impact study prepared by Arthur Anderson and Company said “about 4,475 residents are projected to reside within the Property by 2016.” 

Why has this project not been developed? The LUC’s findings state: "The location and distribution of the affordable housing or other provisions for affordable housing shall be under such terms as may be mutually agreeable between the Petitioner and the County of Kauai." Why couldn't Visionary/Grove Farm come to "mutually agreeable" terms with the County of Kauai? Plenty of Commercial land has been developed since 1995. New Industrial use is being zoned today through special use permits on Agricultural zoned land, not Urban zoned. And "resort-type or second homes" have been developed, which are not permitted in this Project. Where's the median price housing, as well as affordable? The County is approving permits for zoning that were to support Affordable Housing in this "Integrated Mixed Use Project". This Project was used in the General Plan 2000 to justify discouraging agricultural subdivsions because there was already so much residential zoned land in Lihue. If the Project was not lucrative for the developer, why isn’t the County willing to participate in the infrastructure cost to help incentivize the development. How much more will it cost today to bring water and sewer? Will this project ever be built? Or will it end like so many projects here, where the land is sold off, and the conditions changed, because it was never about the people.