Frequently Asked Questions

The initial phase, under construction now, will open up a number of truly unique experiences, including the world’s largest deep-water standing surf wave, recreation on the adjacent 52-acre Lagoon, and an exciting collection of signature dining, events and shopping. While other future plans are still under review, we remain committed to connecting the retail component with the portion of the trail that is under construction around the Lagoon and along the oceanside of Hoakalei.

Wai Kai Hale Club members already have limited access to the lagoon in compliance with governmental COVID-19 restrictions. The permits we had hoped to obtain in January are still pending, so we are now hopeful approvals will occur in time to allow the facility to be completed in 2023. Once the first phase of Wai Kai opens, residents will be allowed to drive, bike and walk further west on Keone‘ula Blvd, but until active construction is done, access to areas around the lagoon will continue to be restricted.

In 2017, we announced our vision for the retail commercial component, and a decision was made to keep our focus on the non-residential pieces of our project. In 2018 work on the Wai Kai Trail around the lagoon began, and we were negotiating with buyers interested in building the first hotel at Hoakalei as well as looking to adjust the first phase of the retail component to better match the marketplace. We applied for and obtained approval of some of the permits to allow us to proceed. Then came spring 2020 and the pandemic. We had a hard decision to make about whether we move forward with our plans and continue to seek the remaining necessary permits. We believe building Wai Kai is a good investment in the future of Hawai‘i. As for possible delays in the future – we are eager to proceed, but mindful that we can only move as quickly as we are allowed.

Homeowner Association fees are not affected by the addition of the first phase of Wai Kai. The HRCA fee paid by Hoakalei homeowners covers their proportionate share of the costs of maintaining all association-owned property (i.e., landscaping along major roadways, parks, etc.). HRCA fees also cover less visible items, such as drainage structures, retaining walls, and insurance that only benefit Hoakalei resort members (including residents) as part of the community’s required infrastructure. In the future, once development is complete and ownership of the Lagoon and other amenities are turned over to HRCA, the cost to maintain those will be included in the monthly HRCA fee. As each commercial and resort component is annexed into HRCA, they each will also pay fees to HRCA too.

No, not in 2021.

If all goes well, we are targeting a 2022 grand opening for this first phase of Wai Kai, and hope to finished with the permanent Wai Kai Hale Club in 2023. We also anticipate completing a portion of the Wai Kai Trail around the west side of the lagoon by that point in time. We don’t have any further details or a schedule for the remaining components of our project yet.

A fitness pavilion and pools with jetted spa are among the amenities planned at the permanent Wai Kai Hale Club. The permits we had hoped to obtain in January are still pending, so we are now hopeful approvals will occur in time to allow the facility to be completed in 2023.

The street connecting the guard shack to the beach is Laukapuna Street, which runs down the middle of an area that is not yet built. Access to Laukapuna will remain blocked off until it is no longer in the middle of an active construction site.

Pre-pandemic, we used to help organize and support community cleanup efforts, but it has been more difficult to do so under the COVID-19 rules. In September 2020, the City started a capital improvement project to reconstruct the access road and parking lots, which is expected to be finished by spring 2021. For more info, please call the City Dept. of Parks & Recreation at 768-3003 or email parks@honolulu.gov.

Haseko has no intention of continuing to pursue that option, however, it doesn’t prevent someone else from coming in to finish it as a marina if they update and obtain all the necessary entitlements and permits.

The bridge is expected to be substantially done sometime in late 2021, but it will not be open for use for a while, as it is in the middle of an area that is yet to be developed. Until construction is done on both sides, the bridge will not be opened up for use.

A traffic study commissioned a few years ago showed that the south leg of a crosswalk across Keone‘ula Blvd. could be warranted at Kamakana Street, but not on any of the other legs of that intersection, or at Kaiwawalo Street. A traffic signal is not warranted at either intersection. The City is reviewing plans for a raised crosswalk, and our traffic engineers are hoping to receive approval in the next few months. Once the work to install it begins, it should take the contractor about three months to finish. We anticipate additional traffic signals may be needed in the future on Keoneula Blvd. but traffic signals can only be installed once the warrant criteria are met, which is not expected to occur until the entire retail component is finished, and the City approves the plans.

That area will be filled to raise the grade for future residential construction.

Timing and price points for the remaining residences in Hoakalei have not been determined yet.

We do not know of any delays based off legal issues.

We are unaware of any stinky golf course lakes at Hoakalei, however, odors from the Honouliuli Wastewater Treatment Plant on Geiger Road occasionally blow over Ocean Pointe and Hoakalei, depending on the winds.

We recommend you contact your association’s property manager to discuss.

The Wai Kai Hale Club is an association-based amenity for Hoakalei residents. Homeowners in Kipuka, Kuapapa, and Lei Pauku pay for the Wai Kai Hale Club as part of their HOA dues and automatically become mandatory members of the Wai Kai Hale Club. Ka Makana Homeowners have an option to join.

The Ka Makana optional membership is valid for one year and renewed on an annual basis depending on space. The intention is to continue to provide optional memberships to Ka Makana residents as long as the club has capacity.

There are a number of different types of permits needed to complete the permanent Wai Kai Hale Club. We have secured the Conditional Use Permit and are awaiting final permits on the construction plans. The permits we had hoped to obtain in January are still pending, so we are now hopeful approvals will occur in time to allow the facility to be completed in 2023.

Yes.

No. The Wai Kai Hale Club is an association-based amenity that is available to homeowners in Kipuka, Kauapapa, Lei Pauku and future Hoakalei neighborhoods. As such, residents of those neighborhoods will have the right to use the facilities.

No. The Wai Kai Hale Club is an association-based amenity for Hoakalei residents only.

Over the years, different environmental and cultural concerns have been raised around excavating the channel and extending it out into the ocean several hundred feet. Creating an opening to the ocean like at Ko ‘Olina would require the same kinds of permits as the marina and be subject to the same concerns and challenges. It’s part of the reason why the decision was made to finish the project as a recreational lagoon.

The current zoning allows for a hotel, timeshare or vacation ownership.

There is an existing natural shoreline trail that runs along the ocean that is partially our property and partially on state property, connecting Hoakalei to Oneula Beach Park to the east and White Plains Beach to the west. We will continue to respect and honor the public access that occurs on the existing shoreline trail. In the future, there are plans for us to remove a Navy Fence blocking pedestrian access to White Plains Beach from Wai Kai once a replacement vehicular barrier can be installed to prevent illegal driving on the shoreline.

The current plan calls for a mix of mid-rise condos and townhomes.

The water quality in the lagoon right now is actually better than that of many of the popular beaches on O‘ahu. Approximately three million gallons of groundwater flows in and out of the Lagoon each day. In addition, there is a seaweed, called Chara, that grows on the bottom of the Lagoon. It absorbs the nutrients in the water and helps prevent algae blooms and other potential problems. During the last eight years while we have been intensively monitoring the lagoon, all water quality standards governing inland recreational water bodies, as defined by the State Department of Health (HAR 11-54.1.1 and 11-54-8) have been met or exceeded. The scientists are developing a long-term monitoring and maintenance program to ensure the water quality of the lagoon remains as good as it is today. For the latest water quality data, please click here.

The lagoon is more than 20-feet deep and was never intended to be treated as if it were a regular swimming pool. Currently, the state Department of Health has mandated signs be posted around the lagoon stating that swimming is discouraged. However, recreational water activities, such as paddle boarding and kayaking, are allowed.

We can’t speak to the City’s plans. For more information, please call 768-3003 or email parks@honolulu.gov. The Hoakalei Resort master plan does not currently include any new play structures or playground, but future resort and commercial projects may incorporate one of these elements.

The city has very strict rules for parking, depending on the different uses of land. Wai Kai will provide the number of stalls required for cars and bike parking.

That has always been the hope. There have been previous discussions with the PGA and LPGA regarding future tournaments but there is no specific timeline.

No, this is false. All three preservation areas within the Hoakalei Resort are zoned preservation and only the Honolulu City Council can change that. Haseko has NOT asked the City (or any other governmental agency) to eliminate any of the three designated preservation areas within our development. Haseko has had no discussions with anyone about converting any of the preserves into housing. Haseko has no intention of building homes in any of the preserves. All three of the designated preservation areas within our development will remain preservation areas.

HRCA full build-out budget given to all purchasers discloses and assumes HRCA maintains all common amenities, including the lagoon.

Hoakalei Homeowners’ share is estimated to be 30% of the total HRCA budget. Homeowners currently pay $36/month to HRCA – and that amount has remained unchanged since the start of Hoakalei in 2008. When inflation is added to reflect 2021 dollars based on the Consumer Price Index, that amount would be about $57/month.

Commercial/Resort members of HRCA will pay 70% of HRCA expenses. Commercial businesses will also pay for maintenance of the public pathway on their property that is NOT owned by HRCA.

To date, Hoakalei Homeowners have not paid anything towards maintenance of the lagoon, and will not pay anything until after the lagoon has been turned over to the HRCA.

The HRCA fee paid by Hoakalei homeowners covers their proportionate share of the costs of maintaining all association-owned property (i.e. landscaping along major roadways, parks, etc).

HRCA fees also cover less visible items such as drainage structures, retaining walls, and insurance that only benefit Hoakalei residents as part of the community’s required infrastructure. In the future, once development is complete and ownership of the lagoon and other amenities are turned over to HRCA, the cost to maintain those will be included in the monthly HRCA fee.

The lagoon and related amenities that HRCA fees will cover in the future will benefit Hoakalei homeowners by attracting the resort/retail components that residents are understandably eager to see come to Hoakalei. Being a part of a dynamic community also can enhance property values for Hoakalei homeowners, and provide them with easier, more convenient access to all amenities since they live much closer to them than non-residents.

No. Haseko currently is responsible for 100% of the costs to maintain the lagoon, the Wai Kai Hale Club and the remaining undeveloped land around the lagoon, and will remain responsible until development is complete and turned over to future resort/commercial owners and HRCA. The monthly fee Hoakalei homeowners currently pay to HRCA only applies to common areas already owned by HRCA.

These areas are underdeveloped and may create hazardous conditions for residents. There is also large equipment and active construction on, adjacent to and around the roadway…sometimes after hours and on weekends as well. Haseko understands residents are eager to access this area and will provide opportunities as it can.

Associations generally transition from a developer-controlled board in the early stages of a neighborhood/project to a homeowner-controlled board once the neighborhood/project is completed. Some condominium/townhome associations are 100% run by residents such as Ka Makana Townhomes Association and the Kipuka Association. This practice was also followed for the associations in Ocean Pointe.

The HRCA Board is currently comprised of developer seats and will eventually transition to a mix of homeowners and other classes of members such as resort and commercial when the project is completed.

There will be no charge to utilize the public swimming area planned adjacent to the northwest corner of the lagoon. Aside from the public swimming area, the general public will be able to use the waters of the lagoon itself for watercraft recreation purposes by patronizing one of the future commercial vendors/resorts, or as a guest of a member of the Wai Kai Hale Club. These future commercial vendors/resorts will be helping to pay for the maintenance of the lagoon itself as part of their share of HRCA fees.

No, the lagoon is not open to the general public. It is surrounded by an active construction site so access and use are restricted.

The Wai Kai Hale Club is an association-based amenity for Hoakalei residents. When homeowners purchased in Kipuka, Kuapapa and Lei Pauku, they automatically became mandatory members of the Wai Kai Hale Club. Ka Makana Homeowners have an option to join. Currently in its initial phase, the Club offers a beach-like setting with chaise lounges and BBQ grills and private access to the Lagoon for launching small watercraft – all located on the northeast side of Lagoon. Members can participate in stand up yoga classes, monthly Pau Hana events and other social gatherings, however, these are currently restricted due to COVID-19. A swimming pool and permanent restrooms are being planned and designed right now, and construction could begin next year. For more information about the Club, please visit www.facebook.com/WaiKaiHaleClub.

The Master resort covenants Hoakalei homeowners received when they purchased their home describes the mechanism for determining homeowners’ share of HRCA fees. You can find this breakdown in Exhibit C, Table No. 1 of the master covenants. The table lists the different types of class members of HRCA and the assigned Minimum Equivalent Units per class. If you look at column D, you’ll see that the amount shown for Residential is at 30%, the golf course is at 2%, and the remaining Hotel/Industrial/Retail/Marina comprises the remaining 68%. With the proposed change from marina to lagoon, it is anticipated that some of the non-residential uses shown below will be simplified in a future update of the master covenants.

• A. General Classification
• B. Minimum Total Number of Assessable Separate Interests per General Classification
• C. Equivalent Units Per Separate Interest
• D. Total Minimum Equivalent Units Per General Classification
• Residential
• 2314
• .500
• 1157
• Hotel
• 950
• 2.00
• 1900
• Golf
• 74
• 1.00
• 74
• Industrial
• 30
• 1.00
• 30
• Retail
• 500
• 1.00
• 500
• Marina
• 600
• .250
• 150