{"id":219099,"date":"2025-07-28T08:38:51","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T18:38:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=219099"},"modified":"2025-08-01T10:04:42","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T20:04:42","slug":"uh-p3-program-uh-hilo-housing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/07\/28\/uh-p3-program-uh-hilo-housing\/","title":{"rendered":"UH<\/abbr> P3<\/abbr> program secures another opportunity to expand housing for the UH<\/abbr> community"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Apartment
Rendering of potential re-design<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2019s public-private partnership (P3<\/abbr>) program has secured its third major housing opportunity, this time to redevelop and manage the Hale K\u0101wili Apartments on property adjacent to the UH<\/abbr> Hilo campus. The Community Development Alliance Corporation Hilo (CDAC<\/abbr> Hilo), a not-for-profit organization, has agreed to a 45-year lease for the 100-unit (208 beds) housing facility at 430 West K\u0101wili Street in Hilo. Under the agreement, CDAC<\/abbr> Hilo assumes ownership of the existing facilities and will take full responsibility for operating, maintaining, and upgrading the property, effective July 1, 2025.<\/p>\n

\"Apartments\"
Hale K\u0101wili Apartments<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“This is about keeping our students, faculty, and staff, along with their families housed, supported and part of our campus ʻohana,” said UH<\/abbr> Hilo Chancellor Bonnie D. Irwin. “Affordable housing plays a huge role in whether or not students can stay and succeed.”<\/p>\n

Built in 1972, Hale K\u0101wili is the only privately owned apartment-style housing in Hilo that serves only UH<\/abbr> Hilo students, faculty, and staff, offering two- and three-bedroom units. As part of the agreement, CDAC<\/abbr> Hilo must submit a full redevelopment plan within five years which may include demolishing and rebuilding the current structures.<\/p>\n

“CDAC<\/abbr> is honored to provide housing for faculty and students at the Hilo campus,” said CDAC<\/abbr> Chief Executive Officer Jared Everett. “Helping universities provide affordably-priced, quality housing is our mission, and we look forward to working with the university on this project.”<\/p>\n

P3<\/abbr> program success<\/h2>\n

Hale K\u0101wili, adjacent to the UH<\/abbr> Hilo campus, is the UH<\/abbr> System\u2019s newest initiative to expand privately financed student housing.<\/p>\n

Two earlier projects serve the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa community: the Walter Dods, Jr. RISE Center<\/a>, which opened in fall 2023, and Hale Haukani<\/a>, scheduled to open in fall 2025.<\/p>\n

In every case, the residences are designed, financed, and operated by private, non-profit entities. UH<\/abbr> programs occupy dedicated space within the mixed-use buildings: the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship (PACE) classrooms and makerspaces in RISE, and the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Children\u2019s Center in Hale Haukani.<\/p>\n

By working with experienced private owner-operators, UH<\/abbr> can meet growing housing demand without new state capital appropriations or tuition increases, while focusing UH<\/abbr> funds on core academic and research facilities, including renovations to existing UH<\/abbr>-owned housing stock.<\/p>\n

“By working with private owner-operators, we can add badly needed beds—both on and near our campuses—while concentrating UH<\/abbr> resources in maintaining our core residence halls,” said UH<\/abbr> President Wendy Hensel. “Because these projects are financed and operated by private entities, they expand our housing capacity without increasing tuition and with limited state investment.”<\/p>\n

The UH<\/abbr> Office of Strategic Development and Partnership (OSDP<\/abbr>), under the Office of the Vice President for Budget and Finance, negotiated these agreements on behalf of the University.<\/p>\n

“We\u2019re excited about the progress that the University has made with its public-private partnership program,” said OSDP<\/abbr> Director Michael Shibata. “These projects could not have been executed without the support of University leadership and the ongoing work with internal and external partners.”<\/p>\n

The university continues to evaluate other P3<\/abbr> opportunities that could support major projects across UH<\/abbr> campuses throughout the state.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UH<\/abbr> secured a third public-private partnership to focus on growing student housing options and redevelop and manage the Hale K\u0101wili Apartments near UH<\/abbr> Hilo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":219131,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1193],"tags":[1641,14],"class_list":["post-219099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-administrative","tag-student-housing","tag-uh-hilo","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t