Honolulu City Council members on Tuesday adopted an amended budget resolution reallocating money from the city’s climate resiliency fund to a set of targeted projects including stormwater planning, mangrove removal on city-managed stream sections and wildfire prevention work. Council Member Morocco moved the measure and it was adopted after amendment.

The amended FD1 increases the cumulative transfer to the climate resiliency fund's current expenses to $7,385,000 and makes multiple project-specific changes, including reducing one stormwater transfer from $2.4 million to $2.1 million for the Department of Facility Maintenance, adding up to $700,000 for stormwater drainage improvements on Kula'aupune Street in Waianae, and moving $750,000 for mangrove removal on city-managed portions of Kaleipulu Stream to the Office of the Managing Director’s Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency (MDO). The FD1 also adds funding for wildfire prevention, a grant program tied to ordinance 205-23, administrative expenses for the fund, and energy audits and climate champions work for city-owned housing projects.

The amendment’s nut graf is that the council reallocated existing climate-resiliency monies to prioritize projects the body said better match council priorities: stormwater and drainage work, mangrove removal in city-owned areas, and wildfire-prevention actions on city property.

During discussion, Department of Design and Construction Director Hakuma Melas cautioned that one of the newly added items — the $700,000 set-aside for Kula'aupune Street drainage work — may be insufficient. Melas said a contractor had provided a $3,000,000 estimate to construct the system as originally designed and that, because the existing work had not been accepted by the Department of Facility Maintenance (DFM), the city may need an extensive study and redesign that could push costs higher. "I don't feel...that $700,000 is sufficient to be able to go through a planning and design process, and then unsure of how much it would be in the end, for construction," Melas said.

Ben Sullivan, director of the Mayor’s Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency, told the council his office "will do everything we can to try to move these projects forward through this fiscal year" and noted that funds revert to the resiliency fund if not spent, giving the administration the ability to return for approval later. Sullivan said his office has already contacted state agencies, including DLNR and the Hawaii Department of Health, about implementation concerns and intends to pursue the projects "as aggressively as possible." He also noted that some originally proposed projects were those the office believed it could move forward immediately.

Council members pressed administration officials on feasibility. Council Member Okimoto asked whether departments were prepared to begin the projects if the transfers passed; Melas and Sullivan both said estimates and readiness varied and that the $700,000 in particular would not cover the full planning and potential redesign for the Waianae drainage work. Council Member Tupelo and others said they supported refocusing the fund on targeted issues, including cesspool and wastewater work that had been council priorities, but asked for clearer cost estimates and a longer-term plan for how the fund will be used.

Council Member Tullibaugh announced he would vote no on the measure, stating a desire for a broader discussion of long-term goals for the fund. The council waived the 48-hour rule for the FD1 amendment and adopted the committee report and amended resolution.

The council also added $300,000 for parks wildfire-prevention activities, deleted a proposed $1,000,000 transfer to the Department of Transportation Services, and included a $625,000 transfer to MDO for a grant program pursuant to section 6.5 of ordinance 205-23. The FD1 allocates $1,000,000 for contracting with nonprofits and advanced resilience activities to leverage outside funds, splits a $750,000 item into two $400,000 transfers for energy audits and a climate champions program for city-owned housing projects, and adds $175,000 for administrative expenses for the fund.

The adopted motion and amendment were described in the committee record as CR 253 and Resolution 205-204 CD1 FD1; the council adopted the amended resolution after noting no objections to waiving Rule 19(g), the 48‑hour rule.

The council’s action is procedural authorization to transfer and spend climate resiliency fund money; for many of the new items the administration acknowledged additional planning, state approvals or procurement steps will be required before construction or removal work can begin.

Members said they expect administration staff to return with clearer costs, timelines, and implementation plans for projects that may require capital improvement program (CIP) funding or state agency cooperation.