Aloha State News

HONOLULU, HI — The Hawaiʻi Public Housing Authority (HPHA) has announced a Master Developer that will be responsible for redeveloping part of the state’s public housing inventory. Highridge Costa Development Co. will complete the work in multiple phases and create more than 10,000 affordable housing units for nine properties throughout the state. This effort is called the Ka Lei Momi Redevelopment Project and its vision is to replace and create housing units for extremely low-income individuals, families, and workforce employees.

“The Ka Lei Momi Project is the start of our journey to revitalize multiple communities within our public housing inventory,” said HPHA Executive Director Hakim Ouansafi. “Redevelopment presents an exceptional opportunity to close the gap between the need and supply of affordable housing in Hawaiʻi while also transforming our existing low-density public housing properties into modern, mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-oriented communities. The only option to serve the waitlists and give choices to our residents to remain near their ohana, is to build more housing especially in areas where there is concentration of poverty.”

This announcement follows the recent bill signings by Governor Josh Green, M.D., that bring relief to the housing shortage, support for individuals facing homelessness, and a supportive housing pilot program. “All of these pieces work together to really help alleviate the housing crisis,” said Governor Green. “We are grateful to the leadership of both the House and Senate for supporting our shared vision to meaningfully generate significant relief for our working families and our most vulnerable communities.”

“Governor Green has made a commitment to affordable housing in a bigger way than we’ve seen in any other state in the nation,” says Michael Costa, President and CEO, Highridge Costa. For Moe Mohanna, President of Highridge Costa Development Company, he says the goal is to deliver new housing communities that will change the lives of kamaʻāina. “At Highridge Costa, we sincerely believe everyone deserves a safe, attractive place to call home, and we’re humbled and honored to help make that dream attainable through our work as master developer for Ka Lei Momi in partnership with HPHA.”

Property Name	Location	Existing Units
Mayor Wright Homes	Honolulu	364
Puʻuwai Momi	ʻAiea	260
Kaʻahumanu Homes	Honolulu	152
Kamehameha Homes	Honolulu	221
Hale Laulima	Pearl City	36
Nānākuli Homes	Waiʻanae	36
Lanakila Homes	Hilo	N/A
Kahekili Terrace	Wailuku	82
Kapaʻa	Kapaʻa	36
Total		1,187

About Highridge Costa Company:

Since 1994, California-based Highridge Costa has been changing lives through the development, preservation, ownership and operation of quality new and repositioned affordable, workforce and senior housing. With nearly 310 communities and more than 30,000 affordable homes throughout Hawai‘i, the continental U.S. and Puerto Rico, Highridge Costa focuses on attractive, architecturally significant, multifamily living environments that integrate seamlessly into rural, suburban and city neighborhoods. Itsexpertise with federal Section 42 Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), with tax-exempt mortgage-backed revenue bonds and with other federal, state and local housing finance and grant programs make it one of the nation’s most knowledgeable developers and asset managers in the highly specialized housing tax credit industry. Learn more at hcosta.com.

About the HPHA:

The Hawaiʻi Public Housing Authority is the sole statewide public housing agency in the State ofHawaiʻi.  Its mission is to develop and provide safe, decent, and affordable housing to Hawaiʻi’s low-income families, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. The Authority administers approximately 6,200 federal and state low–income public housing units on five islands; more than 4,000 rental assistancevouchers; and 3,000 Performance-Based Contract Administration (PBCA) units.

Digital assets from the signing ceremony can be credited to the Office of the Governor.

Original source can be found here