Keeaumoku tower wins Council OK without ‘poor door’

A 41-story residential tower, which drew criticism for its so-called poor door, won final approval by the Honolulu City Council on Wednesday after the developer did away with separate entrances for homeowners and renters.

ProsPac Holdings Group LLC plans to build the tower at Keeaumoku and Makaloa streets with up to 428 units, 78 of which are to be designated “affordable” rental units aimed at those making no more than 80 percent of area median income.

Resolution 17-333 grants ProsPac a permit allowing the developer to build up to 400 feet, instead of the now-allowed 250 feet. The permit also allows for four times the floor area ratio, or density, than is now permitted.

The project received criticism for initially proposing an entryway and lobby for the market-priced units off Keeaumoku, and a separate entrance and lobby for renters off Makaloa.

Buildings with “poor doors” have raised an outcry in other major cities including New York, where Mayor Bill de Blasio made it a policy to bar developers receiving tax breaks from putting up separate entrances for affordable units.

ProsPac backtracked and said there would instead be a shared entrance and lobbies with no walls of separation and blamed the original proposal on a design requirement.

The developer hopes to break ground next year and have the project completed in 2021.

Council Zoning Chairwoman Kymberly Pine called providing housing for those making 80 percent of AMI in the heart of the Kapiolani business district a key development. “That’s where we need the rentals the most right now,” she said.

Most of the affordable units will be studios with living spaces of between 248 and 467 square feet. The 80 percent AMI category, as defined by federal housing guidelines, comes out to about $58,600 for a single person, $67,000 for a couple and $83,700 for a family of four. Maximum rents are estimated to be about $1,500 a month. ProsPac is required to keep the units affordable for at least 30 years.