A day after approving a major development in Central Oahu, the State Land Use Commission has approved an even bigger project. This time, on the Ewa plain.
Yesterday it was Koa Ridge, and today it’s Ho’opili.
You see all this farmland just south of the freeway on the Ewa plain? That’s where developer D-R Horton – Schuler is planning to build homes.
No doubt, there’s a great need for more homes, especially affordable homes, on Oahu.
"What you’re going to see is a mix of housing opportunities in Ho’opili from affordable rentals. You’ll see senior housing, multi family housing, single family housing," said Cameron Nekota, D.R. Horton – Schuler Vice President.
Plans for Ho’opili have been in the works for more than five years. And Friday afternoon, D.R. Horton – Schuler came one giant step closer towards getting the green light.
The State Land Use Commission voted eight to one in favor Ho’opili, thereby re-classifying about 1500 acres of agriculture land to urban land.
"We’re really excited that the commission took the action it did today," said Nekota.
But not everyone’s excited.
Anthony Aalto of the Sierra Club is one of the active members of the Stop Ho’opili campaign.
"We’re obviously considering an appeal so in that sense we think it’s just one more battle in what is a long war," said Anthony Aalto, Sierra Club Oahu Group Chair.
The proposed development is located where Honolulu’s rail line is being built.
The project calls for 11,750 homes, along with three to four million square feet of industrial and commercial space.
That’ll create an estimated seven to eight thousand jobs for the Ewa area, which Nekota says will help ease the traffic.
"I think the best relief is to give people the opportunity to live and work in the same area," said Nekota.
"The concept of a mixed use pedestrian friendly community is something we very much support. We just think it’s in the wrong place. They want to put it on 1500 acres, the last 1500 acres that is so productive, so special that it was called the Golden Triangle," said Aalto.
Aloun Farms, Sugarland Farms, and Syngenta Seed Company are the tenants currently on the land where Ho’opili is set to be built.
You may know it as the area where Aloun Farms holds its annual pumpkin patch.
D.R. Horton – Schuler has come up with the Hoopili Urban Agriculture Initiative, which aims to preserve some of the ag land.
"There’s no way we’re going to be able to replace what’s there now, but it’s really just building a lifestyle around agriculture and sustainability," said Aalto.
D.R. Horton – Schuler now needs to present its plan to the Honolulu City Council for re-zoning. So there are still a few more government layers before construction can begin.
Best case scenario for the developer: people can start moving in by the end of 2014.
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
