The Hawaiʻi County Office of the Auditor has released its report on the handling of affordable housing credits issued by the Office of Housing and Community Development (OHCD). And it isn’t pretty. The County Council requested the audit after the … Continued
The two fraudulent housing schemes that Alan Rudo and his co-conspirators devised resulted in the award of 316 excess housing credits to two companies that had signed agreements to develop a total of 158 low-income apartments, 122 in Kealakehe, 106 … Continued
Former ʻEwa Feedlot Update Falls Short As Board’s Questions Go Unanswered Hawaiʻi Land & Livestock’s plans for a 110-acre lot adjacent to the state’s largest slaughterhouse keep evolving. And with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources looking to … Continued
The long-running dispute over what activities are permitted on the Big Island’s agricultural land is as far from being resolved as it ever has been. Last year, the 3rd Circuit Court found that the state Land Use Commission was wrong … Continued
Cliff Sheds, Price Soars: A coastal house in Hilo had to be partly demolished a few years ago, when county inspectors deemed it unsafe. The house, perched atop a cliff near Honoliʻi, had begun to slide into the ocean. Debris … Continued
Aquarium Permits: On January 30, Environmental Court Judge Jeffrey Crabtree granted a motion filed last year by the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC) to amend a statewide ban on the issuance of aquarium collecting permits that had been in … Continued
Hawaiʻi Housing Scandal: Federal court schedules concerning the criminal conspiracy to defraud the Hawaiʻi County Office of Housing and Community Development have been set, cancelled, and set again. On November 2, U.S. Magistrate Judge Rom Trader approved a request to … Continued
Dawn Chang, a member of the state Land Use Commission, had a question for David Hamilton, president of the non-accredited University of the Nations-Kona, relating to the school’s plans for developing about 62 acres of undeveloped land adjoining the existing … Continued
What on earth is going on at the University of the Nations-Kona? More specifically, what is the Land Use Commission going to do with the messy situation that confronts it? The development proposal that prompted the LUC to redistrict 62 … Continued
Clawing Back: Hawaiʻi County is arguing that the federal government should give it the land in Kealakehe that was purchased as part of a fraudulent housing scheme, $938,428 in cash forfeited by former housing employee Alan Rudo, and 45 affordable … Continued