HILO >> An infusion of state money is helping kick-start the transformation of a vacant lot on the Big Island into a homeless village.

West Hawaii Today reported the homeless project called Village 9 will share space on the 35-acre lot in Kona with an affordable housing development operated by the state.

The Hawaii County Council approved a resolution Wednesday allowing the mayor to enter an agreement with the state that brings $184,000 to county coffers to pay for planning expenses. Roy Takemoto, an executive assistant to Mayor Harry Kim, estimated the process would take about seven months, enabling the county to begin construction by the end of the year.

Students to visit Mauna Kea telescopes

The Maunakea Scholars program has expanded to Molokai for the first time, awarding three students, based on their projects, viewing time on one of the world’s most powerful telescopes.

The program’s partnership with the state Department of Education and the University of Hawaii allowed Maunakea Scholars to grow beyond its immediate geographic area, which had limited participation in its first years, according to a news release.

Molokai High School students Taye Mowat and Sunni Chow, who collaborated on the project “In the Life of an Open Cluster,” and Skylar Kuahuia, whose project is titled “The Life Cycle of Sirius,” will have the opportunity to visit the telescopes at the science reserve atop Mauna Kea and spend time at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope’s Waimea headquarters for a night of remote observing.