A master planning effort to potentially transform about 80 acres along Honolulu’s over $10-billion rail line into mixed-use, transit-oriented development is underway, city officials say.
The city’s Department of Housing and Land Management and Department of Transportation Services are pushing a $2.7 million planning initiative to help guide TOD redevelopment within the city’s urban core.
The focus is on the Iwilei-Kapalama TOD sub-corridor, anchored by the future Kuwili and Niuhelewai Skyline stations near Dillingham Boulevard.
To that end, the city recently issued a request for proposals, or RFP, seeking a multidisciplinary planning and development team to deliver the TOD project.
“This RFP is for master planning and pre-development only—it does not fund or authorize construction, ” Kevin Auger, DHLM’s director-designate, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “While this planning effort is not directly funding construction, it will shape a long-term implementation framework—related to accessibility, infrastructure, and climate resilience.”
The 80-acre area in question is bounded by Nuuanu Canal to the east, H-1 Freeway and Halona Street to the north, Waiakamilo Road to the west, and North Nimitz Highway to the south, he said.
“This sub-corridor includes major landholdings by the city, state, and key institutional landowners such as Kamehameha Schools, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Castle &Cooke, ” Auger asserted.
Other area sites include the city’s Iwilei Center and neighboring parcels at nearly 5 acres ; the state’s Liliha Civic Center at 3.8 acres ; and Hawaii Public Housing Authority’s Mayor Wright Homes site at 14.8 acres, which is fully entitled to redevelop into a 2, 445-unit, mixed-income community over the next 15 years, according to Auger.
“Within this larger district, the city has prioritized the 17-acre Kuwili Station TOD Redevelopment Area—a core portion of the corridor anchored by the Kuwili Skyline Station and inclusive of recent city acquisitions like the Iwilei Center, ” he said. “This area will receive focused attention in terms of conceptual site planning and infrastructure coordination.”
“The area has significant redevelopment potential to support new affordable housing, mixed-use communities, and improved connectivity around transit, ” he added.
Released on May 23, the city’s RFP seeks a planning team to deliver three core outcomes :—A connectivity strategy to improve access to transit.—A conceptual development plan for the Kuwili Station TOD redevelopment area.—A coordinated infrastructure investment strategy that spans city, state and private partners.
The city said this initiative is backed by a $2 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration’s TOD Pilot Program, awarded via the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021. The project has an additional $700, 000 state TOD Capital Improvement Planning Grant administered by the state Office of Planning and Sustainable Development.
The deadline for developers’ offers is scheduled for June 26, the city said.
“The city will accept proposals from all qualified planning teams, regardless of where they are based, ” Auger said. “Proposals will be evaluated based on qualifications, technical expertise and the ability to deliver an implementation-ready plan.”
“While familiarity with Hawaii’s planning context and community engagement practices is a strength, the city’s top priority is selecting the most capable team to advance its goals for equitable, transit-oriented redevelopment, ” he claimed.
This is a long-term, phased redevelopment effort, he added.
“The current RFP focuses on planning, infrastructure strategy, and community engagement—not construction, ” Auger said. “The selected planning team will conduct its work over the next two years, with final deliverables expected by 2027.”
He noted the project’s timing is aligned with the extension of Skyline rail service into the Iwilei-Kapalama area, where the Kuwili and Niuhelewai stations are scheduled for public ridership by 2031, as part of rail’s final segment.
“By completing this district-wide planning effort in advance, the city aims to coordinate infrastructure investments, land use decisions, and housing delivery so the benefits of transit-oriented development can be realized more quickly and equitably, ” Auger said.
The number of future housing units for the rail area also awaits study.
“Preliminary modeling suggests that the Kuwili Station TOD Redevelopment Area, or 17 acres, could accommodate up to 2, 500 housing units, though a more accurate estimate will emerge through the master planning process, ”
Auger said.
For his part, DTS Director Roger Morton stated that placing future housing near rail will benefit Honolulu.
“Through this partnership, we can integrate mobility, housing, and infrastructure planning from the ground up—and set a new standard for coordinated development that can be replicated across the Skyline corridor, ” Morton said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the city is pending its selection of an experienced builder to convert Iwilei Center’s aging warehouse space into a new mixed-use, TOD project.
In January 2024 the city closed a $51.5 million deal to purchase the Iwilei Center—a 3.8-acre property at 850 and 866 Iwilei Road and 505 Kaaahi St., respectively.
By March 2025, the city announced it issued a request for qualifications, or RFQ, for redevelopment which aims to site about 500 to 700 housing units near Skyline.
“This site sits within the 17-acre Kuwili Station TOD Redevelopment Area, making it a key early opportunity to activate the city’s TOD Neighborhood Plan for this area, ” Auger said.
The final deadline for developers to submit an RFQ was April 30, the city said.
“The city is currently in the process of selecting a preferred negotiating partner for the Iwilei Center project, ” Auger asserted. “While no formal award has been made yet, once a partner is selected, they will work in close coordination with the city and the planning team procured through the Iwilei-Kapalama RFP to ensure consistency with district-wide infrastructure and land use strategies.”