UPDATE: Council overrode mayor's veto of homeless bill June 3.
Mayor Kirk Caldwell vetoed Bill 6 (2015), CD1, FD1, Relating to Public Sidewalks (“Bill 6”), which he believes will “unlawfully expand the Sit-Lie Laws.” According to Caldwell, Bill 6 goes beyond the intent and purpose of the Sit-Lie Laws because it seeks to:
Honolulu City Council has introduced two bills to address the "Residential A" rate and definition. REALTOR® Schuyler “Lucky” Cole wrote an op-ed that appeared in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser May 17 explaining the bills. Below is a copy of Lucky's op-ed.
Oahu’s affordable housing crisis, and affordable rental units in particular, is expected to see some relief with the passage of Bills 20 and 21, which allow for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) or “ohana housing” as part of the Mayor’s Housing Strategy.
Bill 20 would eliminate the requirement that an ohana unit be for immediate family only. The bill also eliminates the requirement that the unit be attached to or entirely contained within the main house, and allows for only one required off-street parking space, instead of two. The bill requires a minimum three-month rental period for any tenant.
Honolulu City Council is in the process of setting the city budget for fiscal year 2015-2016. This key piece of public policy is important to property owners because it determines the city's priorities and sets the real property tax rate, which will be applied this July.
