Mayor Wright Homes will be ‘reborn’

Saying he would help end the stigmatization of Mayor Wright Homes as "ghetto," Gov. Neil Abercrombie and the state’s public housing agency Friday announced they would put out a national search for a master developer to plan a new future for the low-income housing properties and breathe new life into the Palama community.

"Mayor Wright housing is about to be reborn — not just revitalized and improved, but reborn," Abercrombie said at a news conference in his office. "This ghetto idea is going to disappear."

The redevelopment will take into account the community’s proximity to a future stop on the city’s $5.26 billion rail system and incorporate new mixed-income units along with the existing structures that will be renovated and improved, officials said.

Hakim Ouansafi, executive director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, said he envisions mid- to high-rise towers with up to two to three times the existing number of units, which is about 360. The new design also would include downtown transit-oriented development objectives and increase affordable rental housing options.

The new mixed-income, mixed-use model ideally would generate the income needed to improve the site and the surrounding community, he said.

"Every master planner will come up with their ideas how they want to achieve our goals, and then we’ll choose the best of those … where nobody knows what public housing is," Ouan­safi said. "This unit could be public housing, this could be low-income, this could be market — just to give it that new life.

"It will be a tremendous, brand-new, exciting, innovative design that when you look at it, you would not know this is public housing."

The request for qualifications went out Friday, and the administration aims to make its selection by October.

Once a developer is selected, the agency would begin a series of public meetings to gain feedback from the community and tenants. The preparation and planning process is expected to take about a year, Ouan­safi said.

Renovations would take place in phases, and residents would be relocated to suitable units in the area at the state’s expense, Ouan­safi said. He estimated more than a half-billion in investment dollars by the state but said the authority would get a better handle on costs after a developer is selected.

Rents for existing tenants would not change because they are based on income levels, he said.

Built in 1953, the last renovations of Mayor Wright occurred in 1984.

With inadequate state and federal funds available to address capital needs, the units have long been associated with crime and dilapidated fixtures.

David Gerlach, chairman of the board of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, said prior to the Abercrombie administration, dozens of units went without adequate water in Mayor Wright, adding that the issue has since been addressed.

"It’s going to remake Palama and eventually Kalihi as well," Gerlach said. "That’s something we’ve long needed in this state."

Crime also has gone down in recent years, and the new development should further remove the stigma attached with Mayor Wright, Ouan­safi said. He said the biggest complaint by tenants is that the properties are outdated.

"We’re looking forward to getting this done," he said.

Rep. Karl Rhoads, whose district includes Mayor Wright, applauded the state’s effort.

"I’ve been agitating for years to get anybody to listen to me on this project," Rhoads (D, Chinatown-Iwi­lei-Kalihi) said. "I’ve always thought the potential was tremendous.

"They may have been modernized in 1984, but 1984 was 30 years ago."

And Rep. Mark Hashem, chairman of the House housing committee, said he too looks forward to getting to work on Mayor Wright housing once the legislative session begins again.

"I don’t think the public understands: This will change Palama, and it will change Palama forever going forward," Hashem (D, Hahaione Valley-Aina Haina-Kahala) said. "This will be a huge impact for the area."

The Hawaii Public Housing Authority is the sole public housing agency for the state. It administers more than 6,000 federal and state low-income public housing units on five islands, and just under 2,000 rental assistance vouchers on Oahu.