HPM Building Supply has partnered with HOPE Services Hawai‘i on the Sacred Heart Community Affordable Housing Project to change the lives of homeless kūpuna for the better.

The project is the first affordable rental housing development dedicated to homeless kūpuna, aged 62 and older, in Hawaii Island’s Puna district. We are proud to work together with HOPE Services and other Hawaii organizations who share our respect for kūpuna and are taking responsibility for their well-being.

A HalePlus home is lifted and placed onto its foundation.

12 HalePlus studio homes have been installed on the development site in Pahoa next to the Sacred Heart Shelter, the micro-shelter village constructed to house evacuees displaced by the 2018 lower Puna volcanic eruptions. Those micro-shelters are what inspired our HalePlus program—providing smaller, affordable homes to meet Hawaii’s housing needs. According to recent reports, the number of homeless on Hawaii Island increased 5% from last year, and at HPM, we are committed to doing our part to reverse that trend.

Each 480-square-foot studio has its own kitchen and bathroom. We built the homes with ADA compliance and ADA accessibility in mind for the seniors’ safety, including features like ramps to accommodate mobility challenges. The project also includes a resource office where residents can connect to services for seniors, such as transportation and meals. The homes will be provided as long-term rentals, with 30% of a kūpuna’s income going toward rent and the remainder subsidized.

A look at a HalePlus studio's kitchen and bathroom before the furnishings arrive.

Building and Engineering Partners

HOPE Services Hawai‘i led this project with assistance from the following building and engineering partners:

• Project Manager: Hawaiʻi Island Community Development Corporation
• Civil Engineer: EPI - Engineering Partners, Inc.
• Installation & Site Contractor: Ludwig Construction, Inc.
• Supplier: HPM Building Supply
• General Contractor for HPM: James Onaga Jr. and Gerald Yamada
• Government Partner: County of Hawaiʻi
  
  

Funders

The following funders donated $2.2 million toward the cost of the property, site work, and construction and installation of the 12 units and service center:

• Interfaith Communities in Action
• Roman Catholic Church in the State of Hawaiʻi
• Hawaiʻi Community Foundation
• Friends of Hawaii Charities
• The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation
• Atherton Family Foundation
• Hawaiian Electric Industries Charitable Foundation
• Big Island Candies
• Anonymous Donor
  
  

Community Partners - HOPE Home Design Contest Participants and Supporters

HOPE Services launched the HOPE Home Design Contest, in which the following community volunteers and participants furnished and decorated one to two units. Photos of the furnished units were posted online on HOPE Services’ Facebook and Instagram, and the community was invited to vote for their favorites.

• Bay Clinic
• HFS Federal Credit Union (HFSFCU)
• Hawai‘i Community Federal Credit Union (HCFCU)
• Target
• County of Hawai‘i Mayor’s Office
• Sidney Fuke Planning Consultant
• Creative Arts/Aloha Grown
• East Hawai‘i Vicariate
• Hawaiian Electric Industries Charitable Foundation
• Huaka Body
• Big Island Substance Abuse Council (BISAC)