Appendix

Figure 1 . Waipahu with 6ft sea level rise ( source: NOAA)

Figure 2. Social Vulnerability Maps provided by the Social Dynamics Group (Britta, Grace, and Marc).

Figure 3: Transect of the Kapakahi stream with four sections: T1 (commercial), T2 (transportation corridor), T3 (Residential and industrial) and T4 (Wetlands).

Table 1: Suggested Action and Potential Benefits by Transect

PRACTICUM SUMMARY

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning (DURP) entered into an agreement with Waipahu Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Collaboration to research how transit projects affect communities. Specifically, they wanted an in-depth, multi-scalar, and multidisciplinary study completed on a specific TOD area, Waipahu. From this study, a practicum report was generated that focused on four main subjects; climate change, economic development, housing, placemaking, and transportation. Below is a summary of this report that contains historical background, descriptions, and recommendations in regards to each section.

Scientific evidence suggests that the Earth’s climate is changing (IPCC, 2014). Increasing global temperatures, erratic precipitation patterns, more frequent and severe storms are all observable elements that are indicating global climate change (CMB, 2017). Coastal communities throughout Hawai‘i will be affected by the changing climate. Coastal erosion, seasonal flooding, inundation, wave effects, and pressures on the groundwater table all pose serious threats to economic assets and infrastructures. Improving or upgrading these systems and assets, making them more resilient to the impacts of climate change and sea level rise (SLR), comes with significant financial costs (Pope, 2017).

Waipahu is situated at the base of the Waipio, Waiawa, and Waikele watersheds, with the low-lying coastal area highly prone to rain-induced flooding as well as SLR (Figure 8). SLR and flooding are more severe and frequent with rain events that are climate-change related. An additional impact that can be expected in Waipahu is the increased probability and severity of heat waves as a result of global warming and climate change. Waipahu’s proximity to the leeward side of the island and coastal plain of ‘Ewa help keep the typical areal climate slightly warmer and drier than other parts of the island. Additionally, increases in density, such as those proposed by TOD, are commonly associated with losses of green space that are replaced by impervious surfaces contributing to the urban heat island effect.

Recommendations in regards to flooding include building community resiliency, restoration of the natural ecosystem, managed retreat, suggested building design for new constructions and remodels. Recommendations for heat include public service announcements, update enforced building codes and built form, increase urban tree canopy, reduction of impervious surfaces, and strategic use of urban form

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is known for its ability to stimulate economic growth. While economic development is one of the key goals of TOD expressed by the State of Hawaiʻi, there is no specific mandate for what an economically vibrant neighborhood looks like. Following is a summary of a framework for fostering equitable economic development around TOD areas that empowers surrounding communities and mitigates TOD-related displacement.

Traditional economic development strategies have focused almost exclusively on attracting outside industries and supporting private business growth to compete on a global scale. However, there has been a shift towards a more holistic approach, focussing on enhancing regional resources, the social and natural environment, to encourage economic development. Strategies for this economic development include building regional partnerships, workforce development, localization, and quality life improvements.

The transit-oriented community-based economic development (TOCBED) is part of the local development strategy for community-based economic development (CBED). It strives to uplift community voice with the aim of reaching and benefiting all in the community, particularly those commonly left in the margins (Kirkpatrick, 1995). There are ten strategies of CBED that have

been adapted into the approach of TOCBED. The strategies include enhancing regional identity, building local industry clusters, connecting to anchor institutions, advancing innovation, building entrepreneurial and business capacity, building workforce capacity, democratizing ownership, diversifying investment, promoting regional assets, and fostering network leadership. Based on these ten strategies of CBED, recommendations for economic development in Waipahu centered around three major themes: providing infrastructure, facilitating financing, and incentivizing partnership. Transit-oriented development offers a unique opportunity to catalyze and enhance CBED within communities along the rail corridor.

State-owned parcels could provide a cohesive center for encouraging the partnerships required to sustain development in the long term through land packaging, developing facilities for community enterprises and working with the City and County of Honolulu to promote location development. Sustainable economic development for a transit village further requires the cooperation of the entire village. In order to incentivize such partnerships, the State can encourage workforce development between schools and local businesses, help communities negotiate community benefits agreements (CBAs) in TOD areas, coordinate TOCBED initiatives with other programs (e.g., housing).

Supporting small business growth is an important mechanism for empowering local residents to improve their job opportunities. Small businesses, however, require different types of financing than do larger corporations. The State, besides outright grants for business projects, can support the development of businesses by facilitating an ecosystem that can grow economic activity more sustainably through encouraging community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and revolving loan funds. These can help seed TOCBED projects by coordinating a network of technical assistance providers for the projects.

TOD presents an opportunity to address the current housing crisis on Oahu. Based on the current market, Waipahu is a neighborhood that is generally affordable for people who want to live near Honolulu but cannot afford to live in the central city. Based on common patterns of redevelopment, access to the rail and newly developed areas will raise the land value, resulting in a decrease in the affordability of housing. The specific housing needs of the Waipahu community based on community testimonial, individual household data, and Waipahu-level data, all fall within the larger county and state context. Our recommendations are derived from identifying specific community needs and finding potentially feasible solutions given the variety of approaches and precedents. The purpose of these recommendations are to 1) focus housing policy on long-term, low-income, family-oriented rentals to avoid displacement of residents in Waipahu and future Honolulu TOD, 2) get to know the nuances of the community preferences and cultural norms in order to determine specific best practices going forward, and 3) set precedent for future TOD to improve the affordable housing supply for the C&C of Honolulu. We stress the importance of community knowledge and goals in deciding best housing practices for Waipahu and for future rail stations.

The three key areas that are central to developing a city’s sense of place are open space and connecting green networks, food citizenship and access, and beautification and urban design elements. The practicum draws on community surveys and interviews to make recommendations for Waipahu development near the Pouhala Train Station. Some of the recommendations include implementing green pedestrian pathways with permeable surfaces, starting community-run gardens, and beautifying Waipahu with culturally-significant trees and increasing the safety through building design and increased lighting.

In a transit-oriented development (TOD), placemaking centers around a high-quality pedestrian experience in a mixed-income and mixed-use environment with less dependence on vehicles. Placemaking can emphasize a community’s strength and character, building on social capital as well as environmental and cultural capital. The practicum reviews the role of placemaking in increasing environmental, cultural, and social capital by paying particular attention to community needs, and City and State TOD goals. From our research and community input, we learned that Waipahu is lacking in equity, safety, and health. Residents desire safer green spaces and increased walkability. To have access to healthy, fresh food, education on growing vegetables with aquaponics, and local art to uplift Waipahu and give residents a sense of belonging, a positive sense of place.

The practicum provides recommendations for specified parties regarding best practices to meet the expressed goals for TOD in Waipahu and to prepare for emerging trends in transportation. This includes a review of the town of Waipahu, existing conditions, community planning goals, city goals, and an overview of TOD and planning for multi-modal accessibility, to identify problems, barriers, opportunities, and ultimately formulated recommendations.

Our recommendations include:

• Zoning for horizontal and vertical mixed land use and compact development at maximum appropriate densities to maintain local character while supporting public transit systems; • Improved public transit systems through increased funding, improved connectivity and efficiency using autonomous shuttles, bus-only lanes, and improving cycling infrastructure; • Change in parking policies that include an elimination of parking minimums, development of parking maximums, and policies that encourage district level shared parking. New parking structures to be built as adaptable structures that can be easily adapted to other uses in the future. •Developing Form-Based Codes in TOD Zones that create more walkable environments • Cities need to assess existing laws and municipal codes that will impact any deployment of Autonomous vehicles (AV) technology. Modifications to existing codes may be appropriate, or cities may have to think about the development of a new autonomous vehicle or smart infrastructure code • Waipahu, which has state-owned parcels of land close to the transit station, is a good candidate to employ Shared Autonomous Vehicles (SAVs) for first/last mile transit which will boost the reach of rail to a much larger area. To begin with, a normal shuttle service with a driver may also be employed to assess the effectiveness of such a service until driverless option becomes feasible. • In the age of electric/ autonomous vehicles, Waipahu, as well as Honolulu, may begin to think about associated infrastructure like pick up/ drop off zones, and charging zones to address changing needs in the future.