Project unites grocer, condo

A $390 million condominium tower and flagship Whole Foods Market proposed for Kakaako on the site of an Office Depot store and former home of Nordstrom Rack got a largely favorable public response Wednesday at a state hearing.

The developer of the project, Howard Hughes Corp., presented its plans to the board of the Hawaii Community Development Authority, the state agency regulating development in Kakaako.

The project, which has yet to be named, includes a 38-story condo with 466 units connected to a Whole Foods store at the mauka-Ewa corner of Queen and Kamakee streets behind the movie theaters at Ward Centers.

It is part of a master plan by the Texas-based developer for up to 22 towers and 1 million square feet of retail that would replace the 60-acre Ward Centers where no one currently lives with a community dubbed Ward Village. 

To date, Hughes Corp. has three towers with 915 combined units approved, including a luxury tower called Waiea under construction and one with moderate prices called 988 Halekauwila expected to break ground by the end of next year. Two more towers are pending HCDA approval.

For its sixth tower, Hughes Corp. presented details for HCDA directors largely through exhibits and testimony from a group of consultants that included the project’s architect, civil engineer, traffic engineer, cultural specialist and others.

General elements of the project have been previously reported based on the development permit application, though Wednesday’s meeting was the first opportunity for the public to give HCDA board members feedback.

Based on written testimony, support outweighed opposition 17 to five.

Hughes Corp. received most of its public support from officials with a preschool to which the company has given grants. Members of the construction industry also testified in favor of the project.

Christine Reimer, a Waipahu resident who works near the development site, said in written testimony that she looks forward to Whole Foods and would rather see development in Kakaako than in rural areas.

"This project is another step in the right direction to construct an all-encompassing community that I personally would like to live in," she said.

Nuuanu resident Lorraine Leong questioned whether the project can be supported by existing road and sewer infrastructure. "These condos will all be built before the rail is, which means EVERYONE will have cars," she said in written testimony. "It is going to be a traffic and parking nightmare."

The City and County of Honolulu, which regulates sewer connections, has indicated sufficient capacity exists for the project. Hughes Corp. said it will mitigate traffic impacts based on a traffic analysis included in its application.

There are 1,301 parking stalls slated for the project, including 650 for retail customers going to Whole Foods and nearby stores and restaurants.

Many of the stalls will be in six levels of parking on top of the Whole Foods store, which would make this part of the project taller than HCDA rules allow.

Hughes Corp. has asked HCDA to permit a deviation so that the Whole Foods building with parking can rise about 75 feet instead of the 45-foot limit tied to the project.

Under HCDA rules, deviations on certain design rules are permitted if they result in a practically and aesthetically superior project that doesn’t adversely affect neighboring property and remains consistent with the agency’s general plan for Kakaako.

Nick Vanderboom, Hughes Corp. senior vice president of development, said high ceilings needed by Whole Foods made the two-story retail portion of the building about 32 feet that left insufficient room for enough parking.

"The project isn’t viable without the modification," he said.

The company also noted in its application that 75 feet is only 10 feet more than the current limit, which was raised after the Hughes Corp. master plan was approved, and helps produce retail along the street instead of a parking garage.

Besides the height limit, Hughes Corp. has asked to deviate from four other HCDA rules.

One is to let the tower encroach into a 75-foot view corridor along Queen Street. The company said this allows the wide sides of the building to be perpendicular to the mountains and ocean, thus preserving more public mauka-makai views.

The other three requests are relatively minor, such as having yard space fronting the street that is 15 feet wide on average instead of a uniform 15 feet, and increasing how far a pedestrian shade canopy may extend into front yard space.

A meeting for HCDA directors to hear specifics of the requested rule deviations is scheduled for Thursday at 9 a.m. in HCDA’s office conference room at 461 Cooke St. The agency is scheduled to make a decision at a Jan. 7 meeting.

If Hughes Corp. receives approval, it anticipates starting construction next year and finishing the Whole Foods portion in 2017 followed by the tower in 2018.