Blessing held for affordable rental developments in Kona

KAILUA-KONA, HAWAII (HawaiiNewsNow) - A blessing was held Wednesday for the Kamakana Villagaes at Keahuolu on the Big Island that will provide 170 homes for families and seniors in Kailua-Kona.

The $52 million affordable rental developments is a product of a partnership between the Michaels Development Company and the Hawaii Housing Finance & Development Corporation.

"With a shortage of housing across the state, Kamakana Villages at Keahuolu will provide much needed homes for families and seniors in Kailua-Kona," said Monika Mordasini Rossen, vice president of development,

The two developments, Hale Makana Ohana and Hale Makana O Kupuna are being built for families and seniors, respectively.

Hale Makana Ohana will include 50 one-bedroom and 35 two-bedroom units. Hale Makana O Kupna will include 80 one-bedroom units and 5 two-befroom units.

Eligible residents must meet maximum houshold income limits that are at or below set Area Median Income which is determined annually by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

For both developments, there will be four units for families and 17 units for seniors at 60 percent AMI, 60 units for families and 51 units for seniors at 50 percent AMI, 20 units for families and two units for seniors at 30 percent AMI.

Additionally, there will be 30 units for families and 15 units for seniors with Project Based Section 8, which allows qualifiers to pay 30 percent of their income for rent.

The current AMI and anticipated rents are as follows:

Construction is slated to be completed at the end of 2017. Leasing information will be available in Spring 2017.

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