Department of Hawaiian Home Lands outlines plans for roughly 535 project leases in Ewa Beach, Nānākuli and Waimanalo

The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands detailed plans and timelines for three Oahu project-lease areas during an orientation, saying the department expects to award roughly 535 project leases across Ewa Beach, Nānākuli and Waimanalo as it leverages a 2022 Act 279 allocation.

Kali Watson, Hawaiian Homes Commission chair and director of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, told beneficiaries the department is moving from past averages of about 100 leases per year to a much faster pace. "We're going to do about 400 new homesteads" in the Ewa Beach project, Watson said, and described other work on expansions and Kupuna housing. He said the department has set up multiple housing pathways so beneficiaries can choose what fits their situation.

Why it matters: the orientation laid out how DHHL intends to pair its $600 million state allocation with infrastructure spending and private development, the timeline for site studies and the practical steps beneficiaries must take if they want to be considered for a project lease. Officials stressed that the project-lease model grants an undivided interest in a future subdivision and allows, once a lease is held, the designation of a 25% successor in certain cases.

Funding and infrastructure: Acting Land Development Division administrator Kalani Fronda said much of the Act 279 allocation went to infrastructure work. "About 511 million went towards that," Fronda said, explaining water, sewer and road work often consume the largest share of site budgets before vertical (building) development can begin. Fronda added that private development partners have proposed roughly $2 billion in vertical investment alongside DHHL infrastructure spending.

Project-area snapshots: Fronda described Ewa Beach as about 80 acres with capacity for roughly 400 homesteads, Nānākuli as roughly 6.5 acres estimated for about 15 project leases (with dirt-moving possible in early 2027 because many studies are complete) and Waimanalo as a larger site with about 120 project leases and plans for subsistence-agriculture half-acre lots.

What beneficiaries must do: Helen Yuen, who is coordinating financial assessments with DHHL partners, said the department needs household documentation to size and plan homes to match affordability. "I need to know how much bodies and how much money," Yuen told the audience, explaining that pay stubs, Social Security statements, tax returns, bank statements and debt information will be used to assess what housing product fits each household. Yuen described three submission options: an online link, a mailed packet or a short in-person drop-off appointment.

Legal and succession rules: Juan Garcia of DHHL's Homestead Services Division outlined successorship and transfer rules. He said applicants may designate a successor (a qualified relative who must be 18 and 50% Hawaiian) prior to death; as a lessee, a person may designate a 25% spouse, child, grandchild or sibling as a successor once they hold a project lease. Garcia also spelled out publication and claim deadlines: applicants must file claims within 180 days after the department's annual publication (typically in November), while claims related to a deceased lessee who failed to name a successor must be submitted within 120 days after lease-interest publication (typically June and December).

Deadlines and next steps: DHHL repeatedly urged beneficiaries to submit the interested-response form by June 5 to be eligible for invitation to the project-selection meeting scheduled for July 18, 2026 at the Hawaii Convention Center (Exhibition Hall 3/Kamehameha Hall 3). Staff contact information and online copies of the slides and recording were offered for follow-up questions and one-on-one financial counseling.

What the department did not decide today: presenters emphasized that the orientation was informational; no formal awards or individual lease decisions were made during the session. Officials urged attendance at the July selection meeting and engagement with partner financial counselors to prepare for possible lease awards.

The next procedural step is the June 5 submission deadline for the interested-response form; those who submit will receive invitations to the July 18 project-selection meeting.