An oceanfront hotel or time share could be part of new plans for Hoakalei Resort as part of a developer’s move to build a recreational lagoon instead of a small-boat marina at the master-planned community in Ewa Beach.
Hoakalei developer Haseko (Hawaii) Inc. is seeking zoning changes surrounding the 52-acre basin once envisioned for a 600-slip marina but now intended to become a lagoon with no surface connection to the ocean.
The developer outlined the zoning changes sought in a notice posted by the state Wednesday. Haseko said in the notice it has begun preparing a draft environmental impact statement for the lagoon.
Most of the changes involve moving to a less intensive zoning more suitable for uses like paddleboard and kayak rentals instead of a fuel pier and boat repair facilities.
But Haseko also is seeking to increase the area zoned for resort use by 8 acres from about 38 acres to 46 acres,
and to split what is one resort-zoned parcel mauka of the basin into three parcels that include an 8-acre piece bordering the ocean shoreline at one end of the lagoon.
Resort zoning at Hoakalei allows for buildings up to 90 feet. Haseko is permitted to build 950 visitor accommodation units for hotel, time-share or condominium use. A zoning change would not affect the number of resort or residential units Haseko can build, the notice said.
"The proposed zoning district boundaries would accommodate a land use plan that is better suited to a recreational lagoon than the present, marina-focused plan,"the developer said in the notice.
Sharene Saito Tam, a Haseko vice president, said in a statement that multiple resort parcels will allow for quicker development, provide flexibility to have multiple hospitality firms involved with the project, and better distribute guests in the area.
Hoakalei and its neighboring Ocean Pointe residential subdivision are part of a 4,850-home master-planned community originally named Ewa Marina started in 1997.
In late 2011, after much work was done excavating the marina basin, Haseko announced that it would not complete the marina because of what it said was weak demand for slips. Another reason the developer cited was ongoing and possible future legal challenges to its government approvals for the marina channel that attracted much opposition from conservation and cultural interests.
However, the lagoon plan is also controversial. Some Ewa residents complain that a marina with public boat launch access was one reason they supported an original zoning change to develop the $1.4 billion Ocean Pointe/Hoakalei project on former farmland.
In July, eight Ocean Pointe and Hoakalei homeowners filed a class-action lawsuit against Haseko in state court, contending that eliminating the marina will reduce their property values. The plaintiffs also argue that they bought their homes because a marina was the main amenity for which they have been paying community association fees.
Other opponents to the lagoon plan argue that a lagoon won’t produce as much economic benefit as marina-related jobs and activities, such as boat maintenance, slip rentals and potentially hosting an America’s Cup race, which is something Haseko once promoted.
Haseko officials have said that pushing ahead with a marina in absence of user demand wouldn’t produce previously anticipated economic benefits. They also have contended that public activities from swimming to kayaking in the lagoon will appeal to a broader spectrum of the community and could potentially deliver greater public benefits.
The cost to maintain a lagoon with 300 million gallons of brackish water is anticipated by Haseko to be covered by resort and residential association fees as well as fees for recreational activities and public parking.
Haseko said in a recent community newsletter that charging people for parking in a proposed 200-stall lot could raise more than $500,000 a year toward lagoon maintenance, while free public access would still be possible by walking from neighboring Oneula Beach Park or White Plains Beach.
The environmental study will examine potential impacts of a lagoon on a variety of areas from natural resources such as water quality to road infrastructure and residents.
Meanwhile, Haseko has given the lagoon area a name, Wai Kai, and is promoting it as a future resort amenity.
"This uniquely magical place where the waters of the Pacific meet the waters of Wai Kai will soon become an oceanfront destination unlike any other in the Hawaiian archipelago,"Haseko proclaims on its Hoakalei website.
Previous conceptual plans envisioned crescent-shaped sandy beaches, a canoe hale, an amphitheater and a floating pedestrian bridge as part of the lagoon area.
Haseko has previously estimated that it can complete an initial portion of the lagoon — the west end — in late 2015, and the resort units by 2017.
