Hawaii’s housing market is still pretty much trying to work out of a slump, especially on the neighbor islands. But developers on the Big Island are positioning themselves to be ready for the next surge.

Local developer Stanford Carr recently resumed work on a plan for a more than $1 billion community with 5,000 homes in North Kona.

The ambitious project, known as Kaloko Makai, is the largest of several new residential communities slated for an area Hawaii County officials envision as ground zero for urban growth in West Hawaii.

At least seven other large-scale projects encompassing about 11,000 homes are planned or being built in North Kona. Most are designed for local residents, as opposed to resort homes for visitors.

Carr’s project represents nearly one-third of the 16,000 homes planned for the area, which is positioned to produce some of the most concentrated urban growth anywhere in the state.

"This is where you got the opportunity for planned growth," Carr said.

Some observers question whether all the projects will be built as planned, given the ups and downs of the economy and demand. But developers and county officials say there is great need for work force housing in the area close to major resorts along the Kona and Kohala coasts.

Several of the projects began seeking government approvals several years ago in anticipation of finishing homes before the global financial crisis and economic recession ended the housing boom. Some are tangled in financing issues or have delayed construction to time the next market upswing. Others are pushing ahead with permitting in anticipation that strong demand for homes will resume.

The larger master-planned communities are, of course, long-term projects that likely will take two, three or four decades to complete and may go through the swings of multiple housing market cycles.

Carr began seeking approvals for Kaloko Makai in 2007 and at that time anticipated completing the first homes in 2011 if the plan gained necessary approvals.

But Carr said he paused to allow the county to finish new guidelines for development in Kona. The guidelines encourage designs that make communities more walkable and accessible to public transit, among other things.

Carr recently submitted a revised environmental impact statement preparation notice with the state, outlining updated plans for the project on 1,142 acres.

Many of the main components of the master-planned community are unchanged, such as 153 acres for commercial use including retail and industrial businesses, preservation of a 150-acre native dry-land forest, park space, two elementary schools and a middle school.

One new element is a proposed hospital to better serve West Hawaii. The regional acute-care facility right now is the state-run Kona Community Hospital, about 11 miles south in Kealakekua.

More details are expected to be published in an environmental impact statement and a subsequent petition to the state Land Use Commission to reclassify 952 acres of the site for urban use from agricultural and conservation uses.

The site, which was once part of Huehue Ranch and is largely covered by lava and scrub vegetation, has been the subject of golf course, residential and commercial development plans for nearly three decades.

Japanese development firm TSA International led by Takeshi Sekiguchi bought the property from Huehue Ranch in 1981, and began planning an 18-hole golf course on a 190-acre piece of the property that the land commission reclassified for urban use in 1985.

Sekiguchi, who was involved with developing the Grand Wailea Resort on Maui and Ko Olina Resort on Oahu, had a grand vision for the Kaloko property. But the initial golf course plan stalled.

On an adjacent property, Sekiguchi developed Kaloko Industrial park in the early 1980s. Present tenants include Costco and Home Depot.

In the early 1990s, Sekiguchi advanced plans for the Kaloko Makai site after persuading another Japanese firm, golf course developer Tokyo Green Co. Ltd., to invest in the project.

Tokyo Green proposed 850 homes and a shopping and entertainment complex on much of the site.

But Tokyo Green backed out in 1997 amid Hawaii’s bad economy and a financial crisis in Japan. A company controlled by Sekiguchi retained the property.

Carr got involved in 2006 when he acquired a half interest in the land for $20 million, according to property records.

Carr acknowledges there will be a lot of competition given the number of developers planning to build homes in the area. Not all overlap in their target markets, though several will compete for the same buyers.

Targeting the high end of the market is Kohanaiki Golf & Ocean Club, which is slated for 500 luxury homes surrounding a golf course below Kaloko Makai stretching to the ocean. The golf course is complete, but developers Discovery Land Co. and IHP Capital Partners are waiting for improvement in the real estate market before beginning home construction on the project formerly known as The Shores at Kohanaiki.

Next to the Kohanaiki golf site, developer Midland Pacific Homes is seeking Land Use Commission approval to develop 950 to 1,200 homes as Ooma Beachside Village, which previously was referred to as North Kona Village.

Above Kaloko Makai is a 1,362-home Carr project called Kaloko Heights, which ran into financial difficulties with the failure of Lehman Bros., an investor in the project. Carr said he’s working to buy out the stake of Lehman and another partner, while moving ahead with infrastructure work.

A bit north of Kaloko Makai is Palamanui, a project awaiting final approvals for 1,117 homes that could break ground in 2013, according to developer Hunt Development Group.

To the south of Kaloko Makai, the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands is developing 4,263 homes as part of its Villages of Lai Opua community. About 225 homes have been built, and a second phase of 117 homes is being built.

Next to Lai Opua is Kamakana Villages at Keahuolu, a 2,330-home project the state initiated for workforce housing. Construction is anticipated to begin next year, according to developer Forest City Hawaii LLC.

A couple of smaller projects have more unclear timetables. The developer of a 270-home project called Kula Nei didn’t return a call seeking information. Real estate brokers said a 191-home subdivision called Lokahi Makai is stalled.