Statewide Survey Finds Support for Kauhale Tiny-Home Communities for Homeless, Working Poor

A statewide Ward Research survey commissioned by HomeAid Hawai‘i found 87% of adult residents support building community kauhale to house people who are homeless, and 92% support kauhale aimed at the working poor, figures HomeAid is citing as it moves to scale with plans for 30 kauhale on all islands by year’s end. HomeAid says the model pairs clusters of tiny homes with shared communal spaces and services to move people off the street and into stable housing.

The Ward Research poll of 714 adult residents was fielded Nov. 3 to Nov. 21 and carries a margin of error of ±3.7%. Familiarity with kauhale was mixed: 16% of respondents said they were very familiar and 50% somewhat familiar, while 21% were not that familiar and 12% not at all familiar. When asked where they had heard about kauhale (multiple responses allowed, n = 632), 54% cited news reports, 29% cited social media and 29% named Governor Josh Green, 25% cited word of mouth, and 10% cited personal experience.

Support for kauhale to house people who are homeless skewed strongly positive: 49% of respondents said they strongly support the concept and 38% somewhat support it, while 7% somewhat oppose and 4% strongly oppose. Among the 74 respondents who opposed kauhale for the homeless, 26% cited questions about attitudes or behavior of people experiencing homelessness, 25% said kauhale do not address the main issues, 19% feared they become problem areas, 10% said priority should be the working class, and 8% opposed free housing. Ward Research and reporting noted there were no significant subgroup differences in overall support.

HomeAid says the kauhale approach is already in active use. The nonprofit reports completing five kauhale projects on O‘ahu and developing projects on Maui and Hawai‘i Island; HomeAid also reports it has developed 6 of 24 planned projects and built homes for 2 others, claiming $36.6 million in development cost savings and an estimated $27.5 million a year in avoided public costs across health care, emergency services, courts and public safety. HomeAid cites Ka La‘i Ola in Lahaina as a model: the project broke ground in April 2024, first residents moved in on Aug. 9, and HomeAid says Ka La‘i Ola currently houses 140 families across 153 modular units and will include playgrounds, a community center, a resiliency center and shared gathering spaces.

On O‘ahu, crews continued working on utility access at the Hookahi Leo Kauhale complex in Iwilei while Phase II construction remained in progress; Star-Advertiser and Hawai‘i Tribune-Herald photo captions show HomeAid field project manager Ryan Stutz at the site and in the common kitchen area. HomeAid materials list Alana Ola Pono Kauhale (Iwilei) and Ka Malu Ko‘olau Kauhale (Kāneʻohe) as deep-affordability examples, with rents reported between $150 and $400 a month. Carvalho, quoted in Hawaii Business, described the work as “deep affordability” and said, “We’re truly talking deep affordability, in the amount of like $350 to $750 a month for rent.” A HomeAid resident said, “It is the first time in years I can think about next month instead of next hour.”

HomeAid credits the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation on Homelessness with accelerating delivery: “None of this progress would be possible without strong state leadership and the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation on Homelessness, which has allowed Hawai‘i to deliver homes that our most vulnerable people can afford today, not years from now.” Variations in reported rent ranges and project counts appear across HomeAid materials and press accounts; Ward Research and HomeAid data point to broad public backing even as HomeAid works to reconcile site-level rents, unit counts and timelines while building toward 30 kauhale statewide.