By TOM CALLIS
Tribune-Herald staff writer
A hurdle to residential development in downtown Hilo would be removed under a proposal before the Windward Planning Commission next week.
At its June 6 meeting, the commission will discuss amending the Hawaii County Code to allow residential density to be increased from a limit of 1,000 square feet of land per unit to 500 square feet, and allow onsite parking.
Currently, residential parking is mostly limited to streetside within the downtown commercial zone, said county Planning Director Bobby Jean Leithead-Todd. The area is bordered by the Wailuku River and Kinoole and Ponahawai streets.
Leithead-Todd, who placed the item on the agenda, said the parking limit was intended to maintain the downtown’s character by encouraging the use of storefronts without setbacks from the streets.
But it limits how many people can live downtown, said Jeff Melrose, Hilo Downtown Improvement Association president.
Melrose said HDIA is supporting the proposed amendments, believing that the demand for downtown housing is there.
“If you want to do this fundamental step in revitalizing downtown, you really have to enable residential improvements, residential development,” he said.
“And our current code is making it a hard thing to do.”
Most downtown housing is limited to a few apartments above storefronts, Melrose said.
“We do believe there are interested people wanting to live downtown,” he said. “There’s just no opportunity for it.”
On-site residential parking would only be allowed for developments with a density between 500 and 1,000 square feet of land per unit.
If the amendments are made, development may not be far away.
Melrose said local architect Vincent Tai is seeking to build a four-story apartment building downtown. That project would be prohibited under the current restrictions, he said.
Tai didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Melrose said HDIA has been seeking to increase residential density downtown for about three years, before it became aware of Tai’s plan.
“We’ve been seeking this for sometime,” he said.
“He (Tai) has been very useful … helping us understand what that’s going to be like.”
Leithead-Todd said the proposed amendments initially came from former County Councilman Donald Ikeda.
Ikeda didn’t return a request for comment.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
