Hale Mōʻiliʻili, a new affordable high rise under construction at the former Bowl-O-Drome site in Mōʻiliʻili is taking shape — and fast.
The Department of Hawaiian Homelands broke ground on the project, its first high rise development for beneficiaries, last December.
"The development is progressing nicely," DHHL Director Kali Watson recently told Aloha State Daily. "They're about three, four months ahead of schedule, so that was exciting to hear."
Hale Mōʻiliʻili will include a 23-story tower with 271 units — 23 studios, 23 one-bedroom units; 203 two-bedroom units and 22 three-bedroom units — as well as a two-story townhouse with seven three-bedroom units and a 290-stall parking structure.
In a December announcement about the groundbreaking, DHHL noted that the Stadium Bowl-O-Drome bowling alley — which opened its doors in 1955 — closed in 2004 and sat idle since. The nearly 2-acre property borders Old Stadium Park and was originally acquired from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources in 1995.
The Hale Mōʻiliʻili project team said in a statement emailed to ASD in late August that the project was approximately 40% complete.
"The superstructure of the residential tower (and centerpiece) of the development — which will house 271 of the project's 278 total units — is approximately 90% complete. The remaining work is focused on the exterior facade, as well as the interior mechanical, electrical and finishing systems.
"Progress is also underway on other key elements of the project. Crews are set to complete the first floor of the parking structure [in September] with the remainder of the structure scheduled for delivery by next summer. The townhouses and retail spaces will follow, slated for completion just a few months after the parking structure.
"The entire development remains on track for delivery in the final quarter of 2026."
The development team said that the project is ahead of schedule, largely due to "the extensive time investment" in the pre-construction planning stage.
Watson said the high rise condo is the first of its kind under the department's programs, and DHHL is looking to replicate that in different areas.
He also thanked project developer Stanford Carr "for his ability to put the funding together," working with a number of organizations to do so.
DHHL said in December that the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corporation Board of Directors approved $41.5 million in low-interest loans through the Rental Housing Revolving Fund; approximately $4.7 million in annual federal and state low-income tax credits, through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit or LIHTC program; and $80 million in tax-exempt private activity bonds.
It's a different approach, Watson says of the new development, especially it being a high rise in central Honolulu, close to the University of Hawai‘i and within walking distance of amenities, restaurants and other services.
DHHL said in December that tenant income thresholds for Hale Mōʻiliʻili will range from the 30% to 100% of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s annual median income requirements. You can find the 2025 income limits for the City and County of Honolulu here.
DHHL also noted in December that the O‘ahu residential waitlist stood at more than 11,400 people. In April, the department said that it was on track to award more than 2,600 leases in 2025. Read more about that here.
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Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
