Waikoloa development plan faces evacuation, wildfire concerns

A 700-acre Waikoloa development proposal landed before the Leeward Planning Commission with a question that reached beyond zoning and housing numbers: can Waikoloa Village get out safely if wildfire returns? The June 18 discussion centered on Waikoloa Green LLC’s plan for a 716.63-acre parcel above the village, where county officials and residents are already grappling with evacuation bottlenecks on Hawaii Island’s south Kohala coast.

County planning staff said the broader request covered about 709.145 acres and would reclassify 14.868 acres from Agricultural to Urban for a 400-unit multifamily project. The plan also called for 320.024 acres of 275 family-agricultural lots, 264.123 acres for 16 ten-acre agricultural lots, and 110.967 acres preserved as open space and public trail corridors. The Planning Director recommended a favorable change-of-zone recommendation to the County Council, and the staff report laid out three phases, with the multifamily units and access-road work in Phase 1 and tentative completion by 2045. The estimated construction cost was $30 million.

What made the hearing especially tense was the road network beneath the proposal. Waikoloa Village still depends heavily on Waikoloa Road, and the county has spent the past several years treating evacuation as a live public-safety issue. Hawaii County launched the Waikoloa Village Evacuation Traffic Study on Jan. 9, 2026, to examine Waikoloa Road, the Hulu Street emergency route and future growth, using federal hazard-mitigation money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. County evacuation drills began in 2022 after the 2021 Mana Road wildfire forced the village to evacuate, and officials have described the annual Hulu Street drill as a critical lifeline.

In 2024, county and state officials also announced plans for a dedicated emergency evacuation road for Waikoloa Village, with private landowners pledging to fund and grant the route to the county. Officials said the first phase could begin near the Kamakoa Nui skate park and connect to the state highway, but that road remains a planning promise rather than a completed escape route.

Wildfire Safety Advocates opposed the Waikoloa Green application unless the record shows that regional evacuation capacity exists or can reasonably be assured. The group said it formed after the 2021 Mana Road Fire and the 2023 Lāhainā Fire, and argued the parcel is dominated by buffelgrass and fountain grass, both fast-moving wildfire fuel. Hawaii’s Invasive Species Council labels buffelgrass a high-risk invasive species with a high fire-risk score, and U.S. Forest Service material says it can alter fuel loads and fire behavior in Hawaii.

A 2023 community report said Waikoloa Village residents feared being trapped if Waikoloa Road were clogged or closed, a fear rooted in the 2005 fire that led to the existing emergency exit road. That anxiety has only sharpened as new housing advances. Nā Hale Makoa, a 140-unit affordable workforce rental community, was dedicated in Waikoloa Village in May 2026, underscoring how quickly the village is growing while its evacuation backbone is still being tested.