Housing for seniors being built in Iwilei

Low-income seniors looking for rental housing on Oahu have a new opportunity to consider with a high-rise apartment project in Iwilei wrapping up construction and slated to be completed in March.

Pacific Housing Assistance Corp., a local nonprofit developer, is building the 160-unit project called the Senior Residence at Iwilei with state and county assistance, and recently began accepting rental applications.

Gov. Neil Abercrombie said the project will bring the state closer to a goal of creating more than 5,000 affordable homes over the next five years. The agency facilitating development of affordable housing is the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp.

"Through projects like the Senior Residence at Iwilei, the state of Hawaii is partnering with the city and the private sector to take a proactive role in providing affordable rental housing options for our seniors," he said in a statement.

Monthly rent at the Iwilei project will range from $800 for a one-bedroom unit to $1,180 for a two-bedroom unit.

An on-site service coordinator will be available to help tenants obtain transportation, day care, health care, financial aid, legal assistance and other services, allowing residents to delay potential future moves to long-term care facilities.

To apply, one must be 62 or older, be a U.S. citizen or qualifying noncitizen, and not be a majority owner of residential real estate.

Applicants also must have qualifying incomes that do not exceed 60 percent of Hono­lulu’s annual median income, which equates to $41,160 for a single person or $47,040 for a couple. Some units are reserved for households earning no more than 50 percent of the median income, or $34,300 for a single person or $39,200 for a couple.

Applications are available online at msc­hawaii.com or at 1330 S. Bere­ta­nia St., Suite 200, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The application process is being handled by Management Specialists Co., an affiliate of Century 21 Realty Specialists that also can be reached by phone at 943-9318, ext. 126.

A lottery will be held to select tenants if more than 159 qualified applications are received.

The 15-story project at 888 Iwilei Road was awarded to Pacific Housing in 2001 in response to a request for proposals by the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp.

But difficulties arose, including unexpected underground storage tanks, old railway easements and the recent recession, that disrupted financing.

The $69 million project is being financed primarly using $26 million in general obligation bonds approved by the Legislature in 2011, $33 million in Hula Mae multifamily housing revenue bonds, $5 million from a state dwelling unit revolving fund, a $2.3 million community development block grant from the city and a $900,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle.