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Committee backs rezoning at Hilo to let engineer expand office space
Summary
The council committee forwarded Bill 11 to the full council with a favorable recommendation to change a Hilo property’s zoning from single-family residential to industrial-commercial mixed, allowing conversion of a dwelling into office space for an engineering firm.
The Committee on Legislative Approvals and Acquisitions voted to forward Bill 11, which seeks to change the zoning classification of a Hilo property from single-family residential (RS-10) to industrial-commercial mixed (MCX-20), to the full Hawaii County Council with a favorable recommendation.
Planning Department staffer Jeff Darrow presented the application Jan. 7, 2025, saying the applicant — identified in the record as Nimra Y. Tamimi — owns an engineering consulting firm on the adjacent lot and proposes converting an existing 2,716-square-foot dwelling at 781 Lau Kapu Street into an office building on a 22,900-square-foot parcel. Darrow said the conversion would house up to 10 employees, "half of which will be relocated from the existing business next door." He also noted the applicant will seek a change-of-use building permit from the Department of Public Works and final plan approval from the Planning Department to address parking and landscaping requirements.
Darrow summarized maps and photographs showing the property’s location and noted that the Planning Director and the Windward Planning Commission forwarded favorable recommendations, with the planning director recommending approval "with conditions." Applicant Tamimi told the committee that if an entrance is located on Lanikaula Street it would be limited to "right in, right out" as one of the rezoning conditions. Tamimi also said a property dimension "is a 100 feet" along one street and "about 200 feet" on the other.
Council members asked few substantive questions. One committee member representing the district said the house has been vacant and that rezoning and redevelopment would likely prompt sidewalk and curb upgrades that better match nearby commercial properties.
Council Member Kerkowitz moved to forward Bill 11 to the council with a favorable recommendation; the motion was seconded by Council Member Huestis. The committee recorded seven ayes with two members excused (Miss Kimball and Kanali'i Kleinfeld). The bill will proceed to the full council for further review and any required permit decisions by the Department of Public Works and the Planning Department.
