A hearing Friday on an appeal by a prominent developer over building permits that were revoked for three two-story homes on a single lot in Kaimuki characterized by some as a “monster home” adjourned with no decision.

The city Building Board of Appeals heard final arguments of an appeal by developer Christy Lei, who is asking to resume construction on the homes on a 19,000-square-foot property in the 3600 block area of Sierra Drive.

Friday’s hearing brought two protesting Kaimuki residents who sat in the audience with signs reading “Be a good neighbor” and “17-1/2 bathrooms?”

The board adjourned without making a decision and announced no timetable.

Appeal’s Board Chair Christopher Hong said the board will meet in executive session to discuss testimony and evidence presented in a previous hearing on June 23 and again Friday and would notify both parties “within a reasonable time.”

The board Friday heard testimony from Lei’s draftsman, Gerry Peria, as well as from Dawn Takeuchi Apuna, director of the city Department of Planning and Permitting.

Monster homes are defined as residential buildings that violate land-use ordinances crafted to prevent apartmentlike structures from being built in neighborhoods with single- dwelling houses, Takeuchi Apuna told the board Friday.

Apartmentlike structures, Takeuchi Apuna said, should really be located in the districts zoned for apartments.

“So you have like 17.5 bathrooms in a residential area where you normally have one or two houses,” Takeuchi Apuna said. “That’s a huge strain on water and sewer, parking — people take a lot of parking on the streets — so we don’t want these apartmentlike structures in the residential districts.”

“They’re just huge, and they disrupt the fabric and character of our neighborhoods,” Takeuchi Apuna said.

In his closing statement, Lei’s attorney Elijah Yip said construction on Lei’s property is stalled at 75% complete and that the property remains vacant.

The city’s corporation xounsel and Yip concluded their arguments, debating the miscalculation of the property’s floor area ratio and which land use ordinances were violated.

“All my client has done is tried to follow the lead of DPP, to follow the guidance in good faith, to follow the law that applies, the law that the Hawaii Supreme Court says applies — that’s all she’s done,” Yip told the board in his closing statement.

Deputy Corporation Counsel Carolina Miranda Constanzo argued Friday that Lei was in violation, regardless.

Lei previously told the board on June 23 that she relied on Peria and professionals at E.Y. Aczon Architects to correctly calculate the floor area ratio, which was in violation of the land-use ordinances.

However, Peria’s testimony Friday detailed that his process in calculating the floor area ratio conflicted with DPP’s process.

Constanzo countered Friday that the permits’ revocation was heavily based on the miscalculation of the floor area ratio made by Peria, an unlicensed and part-time worker for Aczon E.Y. Architects.

But there were more violations, according to Constanzo.

Among them was the number of wet bars on Lei’s property, which was also in violation of land-use ordinances. Lei’s four wet bars exceeded the two wet bars allowed for a single zoning lot of more than 10,000 square feet.

In June 2021, DPP ordered a halt of Lei’s construction of three homes for her, her adult siblings and her parents, citing violations of land-use ordinances.