Honolulu’s housing crunch might be in for a jolt. Councilmember Andria Tupola has rolled out legislation to loosen zoning and building rules in a bid to speed up affordable rental construction across Oʻahu. Her proposal would widen where projects can be built and allow denser developments along transit corridors, potentially letting building heights rise to match whatever the underlying zoning already allows. The full City Council is set to take public testimony at 10 a.m. next Wednesday at Honolulu Hale, according to Aloha State Daily.
Tupola walked through the measure and its guardrails with Aloha State Daily, explaining that at least 80% of units in qualifying projects would have to be rented to households earning 100% of area median income or less, with rents capped using HUD rent limits. She told the outlet those units would be locked in as affordable for at least 15 years after a certificate of occupancy is issued. Tupola also stressed to the paper that the bill focuses on changing development rules rather than adding new city funding, changing taxes or altering developer fees.
What the Bill Would Change
According to the city’s legislative file, a prior ordinance already broadened where affordable rental projects can go; the Bill 44 (2025) text shows one example, allowing such projects in certain business zoning districts. Tupola’s Bill 18 would push further by eliminating maximum lot- and building-area caps and scrapping fixed program height limits so projects could be built up to the maximum heights permitted by the underlying zoning. Supporters say those tweaks are meant to strip away design constraints that bog projects down and to encourage more construction near transit corridors.
How Big the Gap Is
The urgency behind the council’s latest push is spelled out in a state planning study. The 2024 Hawaiʻi Housing Planning Study estimates the state needs about 64,490 additional housing units through 2027, with the City and County of Honolulu responsible for roughly 25,710 of that total. The report also finds that about 18,676 of Honolulu’s needed units, roughly 73 percent, are for households earning 80% of AMI or below, which puts a spotlight on rentals for lower-income residents. Those figures have fueled an ongoing debate at City Hall over whether zoning fixes by themselves can move the needle fast enough.
Where Bill 7 Left Off
The city’s earlier incentive program, widely known as Bill 7 (Ordinance 19-8, 2019), relaxed zoning and offered fee and tax breaks to spur affordable rentals on small parcels. In practice, it has been a mixed bag. Honolulu Civil Beat reports that only a handful of projects have been finished, adding about 189 units so far, while dozens more Bill 7 projects are still tied up in review or construction. Proponents of Tupola’s measure say the new changes are meant to broaden the toolbox so more developments can make it through the technical hurdles that continue to delay occupancy.
Critics Point to Delays and Rents
“It is incredibly frustrating,” Makiki Neighborhood Board chair Nathaniel Char told Honolulu Civil Beat, after one Bill 7 project in Makiki sat empty for months while awaiting final sign-offs. Opponents and some neighborhood groups argue that loosening zoning alone does not fix permit backlogs or runaway construction costs, and they worry that projects allowed under easier rules could still end up with rents too high for lower-income residents. Testimony submitted ahead of the upcoming hearing has already called for ADA‑compliant units and clearer accessibility requirements.
What to Expect at the Hearing
The bill is scheduled for public consideration at 10 a.m. next Wednesday, and Aloha State Daily notes that written testimony had already begun trickling in. Residents who want to weigh in can submit written comments or register for oral testimony through the City Council’s testimony portal and the meeting instructions on the legislative website. The hearing will give council members a chance to juggle neighborhood concerns, affordability targets and the question of whether Tupola’s proposal should be narrowed, expanded or folded into a broader overhaul of the program.
Whether Bill 18 ultimately clears committee and then the full council will hinge on how lawmakers balance speed, neighborhood impacts and long-term affordability guarantees. The upcoming hearing is shaping up as a test of whether zoning tweaks can keep pace with the deeper permitting and cost pressures that developers and advocates say also need fixing.
