The partnership between EAH Housing and Hawaii Island Veterans Memorial Inc. has opened Hale Nā Koa ‘O Hanakahi, a 92-unit senior housing community in Hilo, Hawaii. Design Partners Inc. served as main architect and Maryl Construction Group was the general contractor.
The property marks the first affordable housing community in the state dedicated to military veterans over the age of 62—and their surviving spouses—earning between 30 and 80 percent of the area median income. A total of 50 units received project-based Section 8 rental assistance that also included five Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing vouchers.
The community rises on a 5.6-acre, state-owned site subject to a long-term ground lease. It encompasses three 24-unit buildings and one 20-unit building with one-bedroom apartments averaging 546 square feet. Common-area amenities include a fitness center, a lounge, a coffee bar, a multipurpose room, four laundry facilities and 157 parking spaces, among others. EAH Housing Real Estate Management oversees property operations and maintenance.
Carrying a name that loosely translates as “House of the Warrior”, Hale Nā Koa ‘O Hanakahi is at 118 W. Kawili St. Hilo Bayfront Beach Park, Wailoa River State Recreation Area and Hilo International Airport are all within a 2-mile radius.
Financing for the $58.8 million development included:
- $30 million in Hula Mae multifamily bond financing
- $16.9 million in Rental Housing Revolving Fund loans
- $2.5 million in annual state and federal low-income housing tax credits allocated by the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp.
The tax-credit investor was Enterprise Housing Credit Investments. Bank of Hawaii provided permanent financing, with additional support from the County of Hawaii through its HOME and Housing Trust Fund programs.
Housing affordability, a challenge for Hawaii veterans
Hawaii is not among the most affordable places to live in the U.S. Despite a median veteran household income of $102,000, larger than the median income of all Hawaiian households, many face persistent housing pressures, data from the Housing Assistance Council shows.
In recent years, several developers have advanced large-scale affordable housing initiatives aimed at easing Hawaii’s persistent affordability crisis. EAH Housing, for instance, launched plans for a 303-unit community in Kahului, Maui, designed for households earning between 30 and 60 percent of AMI. Around the same time, Highridge Costa outlined a long-term strategy to deliver up to 10,000 affordable units across the islands through mixed-income redevelopment of public housing sites.
While these projects are still unfolding over multiple phases, they underscore the sustained push among nonprofit and private developers to expand access to affordable homes in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets.
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