RELATING TO THE HAWAII COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY.

SB2918

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2918

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to the Hawaii community development authority
.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

����
SECTION 1.
�
Chapter 206E, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to part I to be appropriately designated and to
read as follows:

����
"
�206E-
�
Community
action center; established.
�
(a)
�
The authority shall
establish a community action center in or near the Chinatown area of Honolulu.
�
The community action center shall be a
physical location and shall serve as a community resource for creating positive
changes in Honolulu's urban core.

����
(b)
�
The authority may contract with one or more
nonprofit organizations to administer the community action center and complete
the actions required by subsection (c).

����
(c)
�
The authority shall:

����
(1)
�
Identify and
organize community stakeholders and other community-based organizations that
may contribute to the community action center;

����
(2)
�
Use the
community action center to gather information about existing zoning, design,
and regulatory constraints that inhibit development in Honolulu's urban core and
disseminate drafts of alternative laws, policies, or rules to remove or reduce
the constraints to members of the community for approval prior to proposal to
the appropriate government entity;

����
(3)
�
Open the
community action center with a community design workshop exhibiting Chinatown's
history from its origins as an important Native Hawaiian settlement to the
present day;

����
(4)
�
Use the
community action center to provide design and permitting information to assist
property owners, business owners, and developers who are considering property
improvements to lands within Honolulu's urban core;

����
(5)
�
Conduct at
least two community design workshops per year to facilitate stakeholder
participation in the requirements of this Act;

����
(6)
�
Assess the
physical, social, and economic conditions of every property in the Chinatown area;

����
(7)
�
Analyze
existing uses of every property in the Chinatown area and its preservation,
adaptive reuse, or new building potential to increase mixed-use and economic
diversity;

����
(8)
�
Organize art
projects for vacant storefronts and street improvements in the Chinatown area;

����
(9)
�
Organize
projects to improve the facades of the buildings in the Chinatown area;

���
(10)
�
Seek additional
state funding to develop the Iwilei, Chinatown, and downtown areas of Honolulu into
a living cultural tourism zone;

���
(11)
�
Draft a strategic
economic and physical revitalization design implementation plan for the
Chinatown area with designated projects for Honolulu city council legislation;
and

���
(12)
�
Work with the Honolulu
authority for rapid transportation to better design and integrate the Chinatown
and nearby rail stations with their neighborhoods.
"

����
SECTION 2.
�
No later than twenty days before the regular
sessions of 2028, 2029, and 2030, the Hawaii community development authority
shall submit a report to the legislature on the:

����
(1)
�
Status of establishing the community action
center under section 206E-
��
(a), Hawaii
Revised Statutes; and

����
(2)
�
Actions taken in response to the requirements
under section 206E-
��
(c), Hawaii Revised
Statutes.

����
SECTION 3.
�
There is appropriated out of the general
revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $2,000,000 or so much thereof as may
be necessary for fiscal year 2026-2027 for the establishment of the community
action center and the requirements of this Act; provided that no funds shall be
expended unless matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis by funds from the city and
county of Honolulu.

����
The sum appropriated shall be
expended by the Hawaii community development authority for the purposes of this
Act.

����
SECTION
4.
�
New statutory material is
underscored.

����
SECTION 5.
�
This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Community
Action Center; Chinatown; HCDA; City and County of Honolulu; Matching Funds;
Appropriation

Description:

Requires
the Hawaii Community Development Authority to establish a Community Action
Center in Chinatown.
�
Expenditure
contingent upon the City and County of Honolulu providing matching funds.
�
Appropriation.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.