A new event, set for this weekend, aims to help O‘ahu residents affected by recent storms.
The City and County of Honolulu's Department of Planning and Permitting will host a "Rebuild O‘ahu" event from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 18, at the Community Assistance Center in the Waialua District Park gym, 67-180 Goodale Ave. in Waialua.
In March, two back-to-back Kona Low storm systems battered the Islands in as many weeks, bringing heavy rain, flooding and destruction across the state. The two storms have been declared a federally recognized disaster.
Saturday's event brings a number of city and state departments together with other vendors and partners, who will be on-site to offer guidance and resources, DPP said in an announcement Monday.
"These storm victims have obviously been through a lot. As a community, we want to be proactive and help them get back to some sense of normalcy and clarity as best we can by providing resources and guidance on how to repair and rebuild their homes and businesses," DPP spokesperson Davis Pitner told Aloha State Daily in an email. "By assembling city agencies, state partners and private vendors together in one space, we are bringing resources directly to residents and business owners, professional advice, and information they need to build back stronger and safer."
In addition to DPP, other participating organizations include the Building Industry Association, American Institute of Architects, General Contractors Association, Honsador Lumber, Fellows Construction, Haloa Construction, Cessa Corp, University of Hawai‘i, city real Property Tax, Honolulu Board of Water Supply, Honolulu Office of Economic Revitalization, state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Honolulu Department of Community Services and Honolulu Department of Customer Service.
"Together, these partners will offer a comprehensive range of support to help residents rebuild," the announcement notes. "Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about the rebuilding process, including which emergency repairs require permits and which do not."
DPP staff can answer questions about building permits, grading, flood and special management area requirements, assist with creating HNL Build accounts and help guide participants through the permitting process.
Pitner says that simply knowing where to start might be the single greatest challenge homeowners face in the rebuilding and recovery process.
"After a disaster, the path to recovery can feel overwhelming and paralyzing," he told ASD. "Navigating the building permit process, understanding flood zone regulations, and distinguishing between what types of work you can and can’t do is a lot to handle alone, among all the other challenges storm victims are facing.
"We organized this event to reduce the confusion. Our goal is to provide the answers and resources residents need to move forward with confidence."
Interested? DPP is offering free one-on-one prescheduled appointments with staff throughout the day. The 20-minute sessions "will focus on helping participants navigate the process to repair or rebuild their home or business, including about zoning, permitting pathways and any required approvals," the announcement says.
Walk-ins will be accepted, but DPP says advanced registration is "strongly encouraged." You can sign up here ahead of the event.
Pitner says it's difficult to predict the anticipated turnout Saturday but noted that the city has received more than 1,400 damage reports following the recent storms.
"While the severity of these cases varies, many of the affected properties will likely require repairs, some of which may require homeowners to obtain permits to rebuild."
Long permitting times and related backlogs have long plagued DPP.
"Currently, we are experiencing a couple of backlogs in our building permit process, one is in the prescreen phase due in part to adjustments in technology and staffing, and also in our commercial electrical review due to staffing," Pitner says. "But when these backlogs arise, we focus in to eliminate them.
"In 2025, we overhauled significant technologies and platforms that we continue to adjust to and streamline in 2026, which is normal for large, complex implementations such as these. But overall, our residential code review and commercial code review times are doing well, on average at two weeks and two months, respectively. Each project is different and may encounter issues with other agency reviews or the applicant’s time revising or holding on to the application."
Noting, again, the more than 1,400 damage reports due to the storms, Pitner says DPP hopes Saturday's event will give the department a better idea of incoming applications.
Pitner says, too, the department will expedite building permits for those affected by the storm and will waive building permit plan review and building permit fees for storm-affected landowners. Those who require emergency work can proceed with that work, as long as a building permit application is submitted within 48 hours, he noted.
Find storm-related frequently asked questions here — including info on emergency building permit repair work and the types of work that do not require a permit — and instructions on how to apply under the "Kona Low Rebuild" designation here.
As part of the ongoing recovery effort, DPP also recently launched the Rebuild Donation Match Registry, a new initiative from the city that aims to connect residents and businesses affected by the storms with donated construction materials and volunteer services.
Residents must have reported home damage from the storm to participate in the program. Those who have not yet done so, can submit a report by visiting oneoahu.org.
You can submit a request or donate materials or services here.
Those with additional questions can email DPP at dpp@honolulu.gov.
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Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
