The developer of two planned condominium towers slated to replace much of Ward Warehouse in Kakaako made its case for deviating from some building design rules during a public hearing Thursday prompted by a new state law.

Howard Hughes Corp. presented justifications for rule deviations at a special hearing before the board of the Hawaii Community Development Authority, a state agency regulating development in Kakaako.

Previously, HCDA rule deviations had been debated as part of an initial presentation and public hearing for tower development projects. Lawmakers, however, wanted to give the public a better opportunity to understand and weigh in on such requests at a special hearing.

House Bill 1866, which became Act 61 in April, did just that along with making other changes to HCDA. The Hughes Corp. project dubbed Ward Village Gateway was the first project subjected to the new hearing requirement.

Hughes Corp. presented its plan Wednesday before the HCDA and garnered largely positive public response.

At Thursday’s hearing, nearly all the public testimony supported the requested rule deviations that include allowing the podium part of the towers loaded with parking to rise 65 feet, or 20 feet higher than permitted under an older version of HCDA rules tied to Hughes Corp. development at Ward Centers.

Hughes Corp. also sought three other rule deviations: using an average 15-foot building setback on Ala Moana Boulevard and Auahi Street instead of a uniform 15-foot setback, increasing how far a pedestrian shade canopy may extend into a front yard area, and reducing how much the lower part of a building slopes back from the street.

HCDA rules allow consideration of what the agency calls rule "modifications" for certain design elements if proposed deviations result in a practically and aesthetically superior project that does not adversely affect neighboring property and remains consistent with the agency’s general plan for Kakaako.

Hughes Corp. said the deviations it seeks will produce a more attractive and pedestrian-friendly "streetscape" that includes outdoor seating for restaurants and shaded walkways.

"We are creating a path for the public that is easier to engage," said Michael Palladino, a principal and partner with New York-based architecture firm Richard Meier and Partners retained by Hughes Corp.

In the case of the podium height, an additional 20 feet would allow the developer to push parking floors higher and add retail stores and restaurants along Auahi Street and townhomes along Ala Moana Boulevard instead of having a parking garage wall fronting major pedestrian areas, Hughes Corp. representatives said. The developer also said underground parking is not feasible because the water table is 5 feet down and the land is in a flood zone.

Regarding the setback rule, a nonuniform distance between building facades and the street creates a more interesting and aesthetically pleasing environment, the developer said, adding that the average distance it proposes is 32 feet compared with the rule’s 15-foot linear setback.

Richard Quinn, a landscape architect who lives at 1133 Waimanu St. in Kakaako, agreed and said parking garages fronting sidewalks in parts of Kakaako suck the pedestrian life out of the area.

Lisa Kim, a representative of the specialty beer bar on the other side of Auahi from Ward Warehouse called Real A Gastropub, also endorsed the rule deviations. "These improvements support what tenants such as myself are really hoping for," she told HCDA’s board.

About a dozen people in all testified in support of the rule deviations.

Two people objected to the tower base height exception: One Waterfront Towers residents Sharon Moriwaki and Galen Fox.

"Rules are rules and they should be followed,"said Moriwaki, who is also president of the group Kakaako United, which has opposed other tower projects permitted by HCDA.

HCDA is expected to decide on the rule deviations and the overall project permit at a hearing Dec. 3.