HCDA authorizes $6 million purchase of Block P2 parcels in Kakaʻako to secure community facility and possible housing

The Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority voted April 2 to authorize its executive director to execute a purchase-and-sale agreement for two contiguous parcels in Kakaʻako—identified as Block P2, parcels at 952 Kauaʻihaʻu Street and 955 Waimanu Street—at a negotiated purchase price of $6,000,000.

The action, taken at the authority's regular meeting in the American Brewery Building, follows a state budget appropriation of $5,000,000 intended to plan, design and construct a community facility in the Kakaʻako Community Development District. "The staff report is contained in tab 2 of your packet. What I'm asking is for the board's authorization to allow me to enter into a purchase and sale agreement for Block P2," Craig Nakamoto, executive director of the Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority, told the board during his presentation.

Why it matters: Board members and staff framed the purchase as a way to secure a site for a community facility—initially envisioned for Mother Waldron Park but deemed infeasible because of limited park space and the city's management of the park—and to preserve the parcel for future affordable housing development. The authority indicated a short-term plan could include leasing the existing building to a community organization while a longer-term affordable-housing project is pursued.

Key facts and board action - Parcels: two…