Kuilei Place high-rise in Moiliili would rival Oahu’s tallest buildings

A local developer is seeking to build a $619 million residential tower complex in Moiliili where major exemptions to building height and density limits will be needed to deliver the project with 1,005 predominantly moderate-price condominiums.

Honolulu-based Kobayashi Group LLC is proposing to redevelop 3.2 acres of land occupied by 141 low-rise rental apartments dating to the 1960s between ‘Iolani School and Kaimuki High School with one high-rise and two midrise structures.

The developer aims to obtain city permission to produce a main 400-foot tower that exceeds a 150-foot zoning height limit for the property.

At 400 feet the proposed tower would rival the tallest buildings on Oahu, mainly found in Kakaako, downtown and Waikiki.

The planned project, dubbed Kuilei Place, also includes a 12-story building fronting Kapiolani Boulevard with residential units that shield a 13-story parking structure, which when combined with the 43-story tower would yield a total building density 4.5 times greater than what zoning allows for the site.

Kobayashi Group is seeking exemptions to the height and density limits under a state law that can allow such things for projects that provide over 50% of housing units at prices that are affordable to moderate-income households.

The city Department of Planning and Permitting advised the developer in 2021 that the scope of home affordability initially proposed in the project was insufficient to warrant the requested zoning exemptions sought, which DPP valued at close to or over $40 million.

Since then Kobayashi Group appears to have tweaked its plan to make 165 of the homes more affordable as rentals restricted for 30 years to moderate-income tenants.

Affordable condo units at Kuilei Place could be sold for as much as $813,300 to households earning up to $182,840 a year, according to the developer’s plan.

Kobayashi Group, which bought the property three years ago for about $34.8 million, also is seeking exemptions to city fees for building permits, plan reviews, wastewater facility system charges and other things amounting to over $7 million.

Ultimately, it will be up to the Honolulu City Council to decide whether the project is approved.

Elton Wong, a Kobayashi Group official, declined Monday to comment on the company’s plan.

Company representatives have previously described Kuilei Place as something that replaces a substandard collection of apartments in an area close to other residential towers, which include the 350-foot Regency Tower and the 375-foot Iolani Court Plaza more makai on Date Street as well as the 200-foot Plumeria Hale on the mauka side of Kapiolani Boulevard across from the project site.

At a McCully-Moiliili Neighborhood Board meeting in February, some concerns over traffic impacts were raised by community members along with support for producing affordable housing.

Jordan Hasley, a teacher, said at the meeting that she appreciated the presentation about the project from Kobayashi Group representatives and recognizes the need for affordable homes.

“There’s not enough of it here in Hawaii,” she said. “For me as a teacher and a mother, we need more of this.”

Daisy Murai noted that the project is proposed right about where a morning contra-flow lane begins on Kapiolani Boulevard and that such a dense project with 2,000 to 3,000 residents could make traffic bad.

“It’s going to create a traffic jam already on Kapiolani,” she said.

A representative of the developer told the neighborhood board that a traffic study will be done for the project, which is designed with four vehicle entry or exit points on Kapiolani Boulevard, 1,670 parking stalls and storage for 600 bicycles.

As an initial step in the regulatory procedure for projects proposed under the state’s 201-H affordable- housing law, the developer seeks to have the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp., a state agency, determine whether its plan meets a minimum qualification of producing over 50% of homes for moderate-income households.

Kobayashi Group proposes to make 603 of the 1,005 units, or 60%, affordable to households with moderate and high-moderate incomes, according to the developer’s plan submitted to HHFDC.

Maximum prices envisioned for these units sold as condos could range from $371,800 for one-bedroom units to $813,300 for three- bedroom units.

Buyers for these units could earn from 80% to 140% of the median household income on Oahu.

At the low end this equates to $73,200 for a single person and $104,480 for a family of four. At the high end it equates to $128,100 for a single person and $182,840 for a family of four.

The developer also applied this year to HHFDC for $28.7 million in financing to have 165 of the affordable units be rental apartments where rents would remain tied to tenant income levels for at least 30 years.

If such financing is granted, maximum monthly rent for these units could range from $1,960 for one-­bedroom units to $2,940 for two-bedroom units. These apartments would be reserved for households earning 80% to 100% of the median income.

Envisioned maximum prices for the 402 market-­priced units at Kuilei Place range from $705,465 to $1.15 million.

An HHFDC staff report recommends qualifying the planned project as meeting minimum requirements under the state affordable- housing law.

The agency’s board plans to consider the project and recommendation at a meeting Thursday.

If Kobayashi Group obtains all necessary approvals, it estimates that construction on Kuilei Place could start at the end of 2023 and finish in mid-2026.