A dilapidated and decades-long vacant apartment building is a Waikiki neighborhood eyesore and a frustrating burden on city resources tapped to respond to a litany of complaints, ranging from overgrowth, litter and graffiti to the poor condition of the structure and trespassing.

Even so, amid Oahu’s dire affordable housing shortage, the boarded-up site at 1615 Ala Wai Blvd., tucked between a luxury condo tower and recently renovated walk-up apartments, represents opportunity. In a sensible move, Honolulu Hale is weighing whether to acquire it to add much-needed affordable units to the island’s inventory.

The city’s Department of Land Management Director Sandy Pfund recently told Honolulu Star-Advertiser reporter Allison Schaefers that the city is interested in rehabilitating the three-story walk-up, though plans are still in a preliminary stage. The city should push forward in its effort to gain access to the parcel to size up conditions and possible reuse options.

Last year, the city acquired an eight-story Waikiki building, 436 Ena Road, and retooled it to provide 33 units of affordable housing, as well as various services to low- and moderate-income households. Most of the rentals are reserved for singles making $67,500 or less, or couples making $77,150 or less; and 20% of the units are for homeless singles or couples.

The city should consider replicating that development model, as well as senior housing possibilities, at the 9,500 square-foot Ala Wai Boulevard site, which currently has a tax-assessed value of about $275,000 and sits on land worth about $2.7 million. Should the property owner balk, the city should pursue condemnation proceedings.

Federal, state and local governments can seize private property under eminent domain laws as long as the property owner receives just compensation; and if it’s reasonably shown that the property is to be used for public purpose only.

In this case, it appears that the purpose of addressing long-festering nuisance and public safety concerns should outweigh shielding the property rights of an owner that has clearly failed to properly maintain an apartment building, which has been empty of tenants for some 20 years.

In broad strokes, acquiring such a property aligns with the recently released “Ola: Oahu Resilience Strategy” report, spearheaded by the city’s Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency. It asserts: “Given our high housing costs, housing units should not sit empty — adding to Honolulu’s housing supply shortage and high rental rates.”

Since 2017, when Oahu was short some 24,000 housing units, with bulk of the need in the “affordable” category, the city has made some strides in increasing that inventory while also addressing homelessness with strategies, such as hygiene centers and Housing First vouchers, which are accepted at the 436 Ena Road building.

At the top of the report’s listed goals for supporting affordable housing development is a call to reduce the count of empty homes and increase affordable housing funding. Along those lines, a plan in the works is to follow Vancouver, British Columbia’s lead by imposing an annual fee on the assessed value of any residential property left empty for more than six months of a tax year.

Through that tactic — intended to lower Oahu’s highest-in-the-nation long-term vacancy rate of 5.3% — and city acquisition of properties ripe for renovation, such as the Ala Wai Boulevard building, there’s potential to effect progress. It would help fend off problems tied to vacant derelict structures, such as squatting and public safety issues including fires, as well as the need for costly infrastructure to build new affordable housing outside of existing urban areas.