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Honolulu City Council Votes to Shut Down Short-Term Vacation Rentals With Bill 41

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The Honolulu City Council voted today at its monthly Hearing with 8 “YES” and 1 “NO” vote to adopt Bill 41. This April 13, 2022 action presented a much stricter approach to this decades-old controversy for the island of Oahu, Hawaii.

Predictably, the Opposition against Bill 41 came from the Board of Realtors and short-term vacation rentals operators. Support came from die-hard community activists and community groups who had been protesting for decades. Labor Union Unite Local 5 and housing advocate groups also supported Bill 41 on the argument that affordable housing is being usurped by the more affluent.

However, there were accusations of corruption, conflict of interest, and it being a “rush job”. There were questions as to who made the decision to draw the boundaries or decide which building was included and which building was out. There were also accusations of “insider trading”; did people in the know invest in these properties before hand?

The Director of Planning and Permitting Dean Uchida chose to recuse himself and was not seen today at the Council Hearing. However, several testifiers mentioned that the DPP Director should have recused himself at the onset. His wife is an Executive Officer with the Aqua-Ashton Hospitality which has interests include short term condo-tel in Waikiki.

I hope the Department of Planning and Permitting comes out with a Q & A information so it it will be easier to understand.

For now, those who have their Non-Conforming Units Certificates ( (NUC) will be grandfathered in. They will have to pay yearly registration fees and probably higher property taxes. This list here shows the exceptions that were provided by DPP in 1987. Other than this list, operators in residential areas are ruled out as illegal.

Notably, the 30-day contract (instead of the 29-days short term rental category) that many vacation rental operators use will no longer be allowed. It’s now changed to 90 days.

Operators can be fined up to an initial fine not to exceed $5,000 and a fine not to exceed $10,000 for each day thereafter that the advertisement is on public display. (This raises questions here too. Not every operator needs to use the standard platforms. What about private alumni or business groups?)

Here are the areas that will be permitted to have new operations:

In the North Shore of Oahu, both the Kuilima West and Kulima East Estates are allowed. Note that this area is zoned “Apartment “, not “Resort” :

Below is the west side of Oahu in Ko’olina. However, certain Makaha areas do not appear permitted even though it was designated as “resort” in the recent Oahu General Plan. However, note the Apartment-zoned areas are now allowed in Bill 41.

Below is the Waikiki area. Note again that these are Apartment-zoned, not “Resort”.

If you wish to read the fine print, here is the council approved Bill 41 document. Note the underlined language.

“Enforcement“ is the buzzword for both sides of this issue.

At the Hearing, City Councilwoman Andria Tupola who casted the lone “NO” vote and expressed her frustrations about getting correct data and clarifications. She noted that the Deputy Director was new and trying to educate herself on this issue. This was a valid point. With our years of observing and participating at Honolulu Hale, one can see the uncertainty, lack of experience, and institutional knowledge. The former Acting DPP Director Kathy Sokogawa knew the DPP workings inside and out through her decades of employment.

The DPP Deputy Director told the City Council that they would be hiring seven new inspectors. The big question is how DPP is going enforce its long list of requisites, besides registrations and so forth. And how DPP is going to handle the thousands of illegal vacation operators?

I believe that the city can expect challenges because there appears to be irregularities, inconsistencies, and discrepancies. But as the City Council likes to say of any bill, ” This is not a perfect bill, we can improve in the future.” Any lawsuit expenses against the city will be paid for by the taxpayers of Honolulu.

Prior to Bill 41, there was Bill 89 that adopted and signed by Mayor Kirk Caldwell on June 25, 2019. Bill 89 would have allowed an approximate 1,700 new vacation rentals through lottery. However, there was no traction from the Caldwell Administration despite holding rule-making discussions.

Upon being elected, Mayor Rick Blangiardi nominated Dean Uchida as the Director of Planning and Permitting. Former Acting DPP Director Kathy Sokogawa resigned and a lot of institution knowledge left with her. Bill 41 was then proposed with this first version that included the Gold Coast. It has since been taken out from the final version. There had been amendments along the process.

What is my take on this?

Before Bill 89 was finally approved and adopted, I initially testified that DPP should start by addressing the most egregious cases first. DPP did not appear to have the organization to enforce so much so quickly. It should take the bite of the elephant incrementally.

Also, I objected to making mom-and-pop bed and breakfast rentals pay more fees and taxes. How would it help our local residents if they had to keep paying more?

Will Bill 41 work? Again, the devil is in the enforcement. How is DPP going to clam down? Through the use of fines and then non-judicial foreclosures? We’ll have to wait and see how this is rolled out.

On the other side of the coin, real estate agents are already farming neighborhoods to list properties to sell. It’s a fact that luxury homes are not going to be affordable even if it’s a long-term rental. There are quite a bit of those in Oahu where properties are owned by LLCs and out-of-state investors.

Will vacation rental owners sell or will they hold? Chances are high that many will hang on because Hawaii is still a politically stable place to invest in. We should see more rentals open up to create a little more rental inventory. Even then, the value of real estate does not need to come down.

Choon James has been a real estate broker for over 30 years. She’s been involved in environmental and social justice activism since her high school years. She was a Honolulu mayoral candidate in 2020. She can be reached at ChoonJamesHawaii@gmail.com 808 293 8888

TESLA CEO Elon Musk’s April Fool’s Tweet

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Apparently Elon Musk made good on his outrage against the lack of Free Speech with Twitter. The US Securities and Exchange Commission reported Musk’s purchase of 73,486,938 shares of Twitter valued at $2.89 billion based on April 1, 2022 Friday’s closing price.

The following tweet was posted after Elon Musk became Twitter’s largest shareholder.

On March 24, 2022, Musk tweeted his question below. It’s a great question that many have been asking. But it takes a larger-than-life person like Elon Musk with 80 million followers to bring it to the collective consciousness.

The marginalization of Free Speech and Free Press has been collectively going downhill. It used to be that journalism and reporting was primarily about bringing the news in print and through radio/TV to the public. We now have too many talking heads and posers.

Now, there are so many options and venues. The internet obviously has opened up new worlds of communications. In the 1970s, when 24/7 cable news was start, there was a group of forward-thinking and public good minded citizens who fought for Free Press and Free Speech. The ideals and intent of the Public, Education, and Governmental (PEG) Access Channels and support services have since been incrementally undermined, neglected, and pushed out by many new communications platforms.

Additionally, many relatively big or small newspapers and communication outfits have been out-paced and out-spent and forced to close. Others have to resort to “pay wall” where unfortunately only those can can afford to pay can read.

There are benefactors who impose and insist on their own idealogy relating to their so-called Free Press and Free Speech forums and businesses. There is censorship by editors on which public comments and accepted and which are not. Many comments have no “threats” or “bullying” or other anti-social behavior. The censored comments are simply under the whims of the editor or publisher’s ideology.

Enter the social media platforms like Facebook, Tweeter, Instagram and Tick-Tock and there goes the opportunity for the general public to read and digest and analyze in details of a good printed report.

Tweeter has now increased its Tweet text content of a Tweet up to 280 characters or Unicode glyphs. It used to be 140 words. That at least increased the attention span a little.

In a way, it forces the tweet to be concise and succinct. In other ways, there are inherent limits to further delving into careful reading or sufficient information.

Still, it’s nice to see Elon Musk take a stand for Free Speech and be able to do something about it. Twitter had taken to censorship of information. A public forum must be open to ALL forms of idealogy. Diversity of thoughts and information enhance better results in the end.

Let the people use their brains, analyze, and decide for themselves.

Democracy can only function and thrive when there’s Free Speech and Free Press. It’s that fundamental and basic.

While we’re at this, remember we can all be like Elon Musk in our own ways and own spaces. Speak up for Free Speech and Free Press where you live. Write a blog. Host a public community radio or television or Pod.

If you see something that is not right in the Public Square, speak up. Object. Raise your concerns. Hold your own water. Stand your ground.

That’s the only way the Free Speech and Free Press can survive and thrive.

Oscars And The Smack That Was Heard Around The World

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Saturday Night Life Comedian Chris Rock had used Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith as the butt of his jokes. Actor Will Smith went onstage to give the comedian a smack . Which is worse? Verbal abuse or physical abuse?

Jada Pinkett Smith has “Alopecia Areata” – a common autoimmune condition that results in unpredictable hair loss and can affect people of all genders and ages.

The Associated Press reported:

” After Rock as a presenter joked to Jada Pinkett Smith that he was looking forward to a sequel to “G.I. Jane,” Will Smith stood up from his seat near the stage, strode up to Rock and smacked him. After sitting back down, Smith shouted at Rock to “keep my wife’s name out of your (expletive) mouth.” When Rock, who joked about Jada Pinkett Smith while hosting the Oscars in 2016, protested that it was just a “GI Jane” joke, Smith repeated the same line.

The moment shocked the Dolby Theatre audience and viewers at home. At the commercial break, presenter Daniel Kaluuya came up to hug Smith, and Denzel Washington escorted him to the side of the stage. The two talked and hugged and Tyler Perry came over to talk as well.“

The wisest advice for the night came from Danzel Washington to Will Smith: “At your highest moment, be careful because that’s when the devil comes for you.”

Hawaii Elections: You Don’t Need Privilege or Pedigree to Run For Office

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Hawaii needs authentic candidates who will consistently put the Public Good and Public Interest First. We need candidates who are not asked to run by their employers, lobbyists or corporate interests or self-promotion.

We need authentic and independent candidates who are not vulnerable or susceptible to corruption or self-interest, and Status Quo.

We need independent candidates who will consistently be bold, be fair, and be thorough and analytical in their decision-making and not simply join the crowd and succumb to peer pressure.

We need candidates who will consistently remember that we live on an island with finite resources. We need candidates who must appreciate and invest in human capital, fiscal accountability, the environment, cultural, social and economic equity, and all other essential and sustainable needs of island living.

We must protect and promote clean water, clean air, clean soil, clean food, and a clean government. We must think of the future and Hawaii’s children and their children. We must put Hawaii and our Residents First!

Elections 2022 is quite messed-up and confusing. There are boundaries changes. When it happens this way, it tends to benefit the Status Quo. Here are some important information to note:

  1. ALL positions on the State Legislature are OPEN this elections because of the Reapportionment.
  2. The Honolulu City Council has vacancies for District 2,4,6,8
  3. Use this Website as your guide. If you don’t understand anything, call them. They’re paid by YOU.
  4. You can pull nomination papers now. The Office will provide you more info to follow.
  5. The Deadline to file for your Candidacy is June 7, 2022.
  6. The Website says that Mail-in Ballots will be in the mail for the AUGUST 13, 2022 PRIMARY by July 26, 2022. I would strongly suggest you expect the ballots in the mail by July 15, 2022. People start voting quickly. I’m saying this because at the 2020 Elections, the Office of Elections spent so much money advertising and telling the public that ballots will be in the mail in LATE July. Even Frank Delima kept saying “LATE July”. But the public began receiving their ballots on July 15, 2020. July 15 is MID July! This switcheroo negatively affected grassroots candidates with limited funds because some had to choose their mailings and were timing their delivery towards LATE July.
  7. General Elections is November 8, 2022. Voters receive their ballots in the mail for the General Election by October 21, 2022. Again, beware of the ballots in the mail dates.
  8. In other words, candidates are in crunch time. It again favors those with name recognition or incumbents but have no fear. Go for it and participate in democracy!
  9. Stand up and step up. We need YOU!

Ketanji Brown Jackson: President Biden’s Nominee to The United States Supreme Court

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It’s unfortunate that Jackson will be forever tainted as Biden’s “first Black female” pick. What’s the next pick? The first Asian female? I submit that Ketanji Brown Jackson’s professional qualifications, achievements, and life experiences would have prevailed on the philosophy of ” Meritocracy” in our Democracy.

As protocol, the encumbent President of the United States gets to nominate someone of his choice. It was President Trump’s choice of Amy Coney Barrett before this. This time around it’s Ketanji Brown Jackson.

This is a short excerpt from The New York Times:

“There have been three main career paths to becoming a federal judge in recent decades: defending corporate clients, serving as a prosecutor or working in politics. 

She spent seven years as a corporate lawyer, in Boston and Washington, including a year at the same boutique firm where Barrett once worked and Kavanaugh spent a summer.

She spent two and a half years as a federal public defender in Washington, representing defendants who could not afford to hire a private lawyer. In that role, unlike many other legal jobs, she could not choose whom she did and did not represent.

More from The New York Times

Her parents worked as public-school teachers and administrators, and Jackson graduated from a public high school in the Miami area (the same one that Jeff Bezos attended). If she is confirmed, she would become only the third public high school graduate on the new court, along with Alito and Kagan. “Every other member of the court is a graduate of a Catholic high school,” The Times’s Linda Greenhouse has written. All the justices — as well as Jackson, a Harvard graduate — attended private colleges.“

I like the fact that she is from a public school. Any position in the public offices of the United States should be open to all who are qualified. Privilege and Pedigree should not be requisites in these opportunities.

Resolution 22-11: Owners slapped with quick lien from DPP and now faces more bullying from their Councilwoman

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The Owners Hopoate Hafoka Taufa and Annetta Kihesina Tuifua Taufa acquired their Hau’ula farm of 12.693 acres zoned Agricultural 2 on November 7, 2019. This acquisition took place just slightly before COVID 19 would hamper much of our social and governmental interactions.

The owner received Notices of Violations (NOV) from the Honolulu City and County Department of Planning and Permitting (DDP). These actions were allegedly due to a few neighbors across the subject property who complained about the owner using the property as a “base yard”. Neighbors have the right to express their complaints and concerns.

On the COUNTY DPP level, below is summary of the owners’ violations on the DPP’s website.

However, the last two violations are inaccurate. Ag-2 zoned properties are exempted from certain required permits. Ag2 owners can have fences up to ten feet without a permit, except a concrete wall.

The last violation is also exempted. Ag-2 owners can have metal containers without a permit.

The standard customary procedure for residents to cure violations from DPP is to submit applications to DPP for building permits. However, according to the owner, the city DPP recently cancelled the pending approval of his permits. This became a Catch-22 for the owner.

How is a resident able to cure a violation if he cannot get a permit from DPP? In the meanwhile, the DPP fines compounded and escalated.

On January 20, 2022, City Councilwoman Heidi Tsuneyoshi introduced Resolution 22-11 to urge the Blangiardi Administration for “eminent domain” on this property.

Councilwoman HeidiTsuneyoshi repeatedly accused the owner of violating for five years. The owners have owned the property for less than 2.5 years.

There were also extenuating circumstances, including COVID19 delay complications. There are obvious cultural differences towards land use issues. The immigrant family from the Kingdom of Tonga also had health challenges; the young mother is now under hospice care.

On February 8, 2022, Resolution 22-11 was heard at the County Council Executive Matters Legal Affairs (EMLA) Committee. Within a half hour period, Resolution 22-11 for “eminent domain” was quickly amended to “Judicial Foreclosure”.

On February 23, 2022, Resolution 22-11 was adopted by the full Honolulu City Council. This process only took 25 working days!

This is a highly irregular situation.

What are we to think about this case?

Why the haste to enforce on this particular property?

Unbeknownst to the general public, HB 1434 submitted by Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi is also pending. The DPP Director and five Honolulu City Council Members also testified or submitted written testimony to the STATE Hawaii Legislature for added powers to seize property through NON-Judicial Foreclosure, due to DPP county fines.