HLU-28 Bills 67, 68 (2024) BILL 67 (2024) AND BILL 68 (2024), COMMUNITY PLAN AMENDMENT AND CHANGE IN ZONING (CONDITIONAL ZONING) FOR QUEEN KA?AHUMANU CENTER (KAHULUI) (HLU-28)
Aloha Committee Chair Kama, Vice-Chair Cook, and Committee Members,
I am submitting this testimony in strong support of Bill 67 and Bill 68, and the requested change in zoning and community plan amendment for the Queen Kaahumanu Center. Allowing the Queen Kaahumanu Center to transition from Heavy Industrial zoning to Central Business District is a sensible change that reflects the actual uses of the property, while also creating many new opportunities for both the property and the residents of this island. The Business zoning designation will still allow for all the uses already occurring on the property, and it will add the possibility of residential uses to address our housing crisis and transform a center of commerce into a community.
As a resident of Wailuku, I pass the Queen Kaahumanu Center pretty much every day, and it has become a common spot for me to take my toddler on rainy days. On all these occasions, I marvel at how great the architecture and location of the property is, and how underutilized it is. This impressive structure in the heart of town tries hard to bring in the community with activities and events, but the decline in brick and mortar retail activity over the past two decades has resulted in our mall becoming a mere husk of what it once was. Unfortunately, as a consequence of being zoned Heavy Industrial, there aren’t many ways for the Queen Kaahumanu Center to adapt. Allowing the requested community plan amendment and change in zoning could change that.
Aside from supporting this from a common sense perspective, I also support this community plan amendment because it is in line with feedback received from pretty much every community plan and outreach effort related to housing over the past few decades. Having been directly involved in both the Comprehensive Affordable Housing Plan and the Kaahumanu Community Corridor Plan, I know the community is strongly in support of mixed use development and adaptive reuse of commercial spaces to address our housing crisis, and I know that the Queen Kaahumanu Center has often been cited as an optimal location for such adaptive reuse and redevelopment. Notwithstanding, by virtue of its Heavy Industrial zoning, it is far more likely for the Queen Kaahumanu Center to be converted into an Amazon warehouse instead of housing. That wouldn’t be good at all, but that is what the property is zoned for, so there would be nothing we could do to stop that. Let’s avoid that scenario by making a change in zoning that will both preserve and enhance the character of the area.
As a local attorney specializing in housing policy and land use regulation, I’ve learned a lot working with government entities, businesses, and nonprofits that are all focused on addressing Maui’s housing crisis. I’ve looked at all the plans, heard the community input, read the books on zoning, and looked at what other communities are doing. The Queen Kaahumanu Center’s request is a clear step in the right direction, and the Housing and Land Use Committee should support it and encourage similar efforts from other industrial and commercial property owners.
Aloha Committee Chair Kama, Vice-Chair Cook, and Committee Members,
I am submitting this testimony in strong support of Bill 67 and Bill 68, and the requested change in zoning and community plan amendment for the Queen Kaahumanu Center. Allowing the Queen Kaahumanu Center to transition from Heavy Industrial zoning to Central Business District is a sensible change that reflects the actual uses of the property, while also creating many new opportunities for both the property and the residents of this island. The Business zoning designation will still allow for all the uses already occurring on the property, and it will add the possibility of residential uses to address our housing crisis and transform a center of commerce into a community.
As a resident of Wailuku, I pass the Queen Kaahumanu Center pretty much every day, and it has become a common spot for me to take my toddler on rainy days. On all these occasions, I marvel at how great the architecture and location of the property is, and how underutilized it is. This impressive structure in the heart of town tries hard to bring in the community with activities and events, but the decline in brick and mortar retail activity over the past two decades has resulted in our mall becoming a mere husk of what it once was. Unfortunately, as a consequence of being zoned Heavy Industrial, there aren’t many ways for the Queen Kaahumanu Center to adapt. Allowing the requested community plan amendment and change in zoning could change that.
Aside from supporting this from a common sense perspective, I also support this community plan amendment because it is in line with feedback received from pretty much every community plan and outreach effort related to housing over the past few decades. Having been directly involved in both the Comprehensive Affordable Housing Plan and the Kaahumanu Community Corridor Plan, I know the community is strongly in support of mixed use development and adaptive reuse of commercial spaces to address our housing crisis, and I know that the Queen Kaahumanu Center has often been cited as an optimal location for such adaptive reuse and redevelopment. Notwithstanding, by virtue of its Heavy Industrial zoning, it is far more likely for the Queen Kaahumanu Center to be converted into an Amazon warehouse instead of housing. That wouldn’t be good at all, but that is what the property is zoned for, so there would be nothing we could do to stop that. Let’s avoid that scenario by making a change in zoning that will both preserve and enhance the character of the area.
As a local attorney specializing in housing policy and land use regulation, I’ve learned a lot working with government entities, businesses, and nonprofits that are all focused on addressing Maui’s housing crisis. I’ve looked at all the plans, heard the community input, read the books on zoning, and looked at what other communities are doing. The Queen Kaahumanu Center’s request is a clear step in the right direction, and the Housing and Land Use Committee should support it and encourage similar efforts from other industrial and commercial property owners.
Mahalo,
Jason Economou