Is This Legal?  Do You Mind?  Do You Care?

Kakaako, our local version of Singapore with all the tall buildings, was planned with an urban feel.  The sanctioned graffiti murals throughout the district are supposed to appeal to “a younger crowd”.  Here’s a few examples:

 

 

I get it.  Turn Kakaako into an urban funky scene with hip art on the walls and cools shops and restaurants.  It’s a strange marketing concept for an area with some of the most expensive condos in the state.  If the idea was to dress up Kakaako for the hipsters to buy condos and live in, I don’t think they did the research as to how much Oahu’s hipsters can afford for housing.  I worked with many clients from the mainland whose desire to move here was for the weather, but didn’t want to lose the city life they were accustomed to.  I’ve financed many units in the district, and the feedback I’ve received is mixed.  Some love it, while others ultimately decided to buy somewhere else.  I get it.  The neighborhood was going for a certain feel and image.

 

The Outdoor Circle is an organization that was founded in 1912 by seven women that had a dream of making sure Hawaii stayed beautiful.  From their website:

 

“…Their united goal was to beautify Hawai‘i.  They started in Honolulu by planting trees and creating a campaign to oppose billboards which dotted the landscape at the time.  Their efforts grew to include the entire island of Oahu as well as other islands across the state.”

 

The outdoor circle has been instrumental in keeping Hawaii green and making sure billboards and obtrusive signs are never allowed.

 

 

What about all the buildings in Kakaako covered with murals?

 

Murals are art.  And art is an expression of one’s thoughts.  And under the 1^st Amendment, art is protected speech.  The murals are legal.

 

 

But what if you wanted to surround your house in a mural?  What if your neighbor wanted to, and really loved a certain 19^th century Dutch painter?

 

These are real photos!  A couple in Mount Dora Florida had a special reason why they painted their home to look like Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night painting.  They initially had just the perimeter wall painted in the Van Gogh theme.  The couple have a child with autism and wanted to make sure that if the child ever left the home, it would be able to find its way back.  Shortly after they turned the wall of their home into a giant homage to Van Gogh the complaints started pouring in.  I personally enjoy Van Gogh’s works, yet Starry Night has always fascinated and creeped me out at the same time.  The city of Mount Dora sued the owners claiming they covered their home in graffiti, which violated the city’s sign ordinances.  The city issued fines of $10,000.  The family doubled down and painted the rest of their home to match the wall.  The couple then retaliated by suing the city in federal court on the grounds that the art is free speech protected under the Constitution.

 

The city decided to settle.  They revoked the fines and paid the family $15,000 for their legal fees.  The house still looks like this today and has become somewhat of a tourist attraction.

 

 

The trend for mural art on Oahu has spread from the urban center to East Oahu.  Kalanianaole Highway is several miles of homes hidden behind various types of walls.  Some are beautiful with expert craftsmanship, while others look like they’re ready to fall over.  A non-profit group had the idea to offer homeowners along the corridor an opportunity to dress up their concrete block walls with a somewhat impressionist ocean themed mural.  A handful of owners accepted the offer.

 

 

 

 

In my mind, like them or not, they seemed not too in your face.  Driving down the highway at highway speeds, you can almost miss them.  But recently an owner painted their wall in a way no one driving into Hawaii Kai can miss.

 

 

 

“E Komo Mai Maunalua”

 

In doing research for this article, I reached out to the city regarding murals and signs.  This one seems problematic.  While this wall does contain artistic features, the wall also contains a written message.  In fact, this is a giant welcome to our neighborhood sign.  And since it is a sign, signs must conform to the county’s building codes.  While no one at the city could give me direct answers, they did point me to the county's building codes which clearly regulate signs.  Signs used to signify a neighborhood are limited to 24 square feet.  That’s a sign no greater than 3 x 8 or 4 x 6.

 

Living in Hawaii Kai I’ve asked neighbors their thoughts.  To be honest, the feeling is mixed.  Some like it, others not.  The paintwork took a lot of time to complete.  I personally think the scroll work is beautiful.  It looks like the artist was trying to make a Hawaiian bracelet.  But no matter how you try and claim this is art, it is a giant sign.

 

Will the city’s building department enforce their regulations on this sign?  I can see the headlines now “The city is forcing a message of welcome in Hawaiian to be removed.”  I’ll let you know if I hear back from the city and if anything changes on Kalanianaole Highway.

 

I think the Outdoor Circle has the right approach.  Here’s their position on murals:

 

“The Outdoor Circle supports limits on the placement and number of outdoor murals to ensure that individually and collectively they aesthetically enhance the built environment and protect Hawaii's natural beauty, scenic view planes and urban view corridors…”

 

 

 

 

I Don’t Get It…

I wrote a piece last week about a bizarre set of data from the state’s tax office suggesting that less than 400 individuals have left Maui since the Lahaina fire.  Well…it happened again!

 

The federal government mandates that every state conducts a “point-in-time” census of homelessness every two years.  HUD (Housing & Urban Development) uses the data to determine funding needs in each state.  The City & County of Honolulu has been doing this survey every year to get a better handle on how many people on Oahu are homeless.

 

The methodology is rather important.  One a specific night, volunteers go about to count the number of homeless across the island.  That area includes all public areas, as well as those living in shelters.  Those living on the street are counted in the Unsheltered Census, while those living in shelters are counted in the Sheltered Census.

 

This year the City announced that due to budget issues they will conduct the survey, but they aren’t going to do a physical count on people living on the streets.  Their report will be based on reported numbers of those in shelters.

 

Last year’s count showed 38% of homeless lived in shelters.  If they’re not going to count the other 62% why do the census at all?  Why spend some money to do something half-right?

 

 

 

 

And now the week’s economic news…….

 

Home Sales Rise Nationally

With little major economic data, it was a quiet week for mortgage markets, as investors looked ahead to the upcoming Fed meeting.  Mortgage rates ended the week nearly unchanged.

 

In December, sales of existing homes rose modestly from November to the highest level since February and were 9% higher than a year ago.  The median existing-home price of $404,400 was up 6% from last year at this time.  Inventories remain stuck at historically low levels, standing at just a 3.3-month supply nationally, far below the 6-month supply typical in a balanced market.  On a brighter note, though, inventories were 16% higher than a year ago.

 

Additional inventory is still badly needed in many regions, especially at the lower end of the price range, and the headline figure for the latest home building data was surprisingly strong.  Overall housing starts in December jumped 16% from November, far above the consensus forecast, to the highest level since February 2024.  However, the strength was almost entirely due to volatile multi-family units, which surged 58%.  Single-family starts rose just 3%, and single-family building permits, a leading indicator of future construction, increased by an even smaller amount.  A separate survey of home builder sentiment on housing market conditions from the NAHB came in close to expectations.

 

The news on mortgage applications this week was somewhat positive.  According to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), applications to refinance fell 3% from last week but were a massive 42% higher than one year ago.  Purchase applications rose 1% from the prior week and were up slightly from last year at this time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Next Week

The next Fed meeting will take place on Wednesday.  No change in the federal funds rate is expected, and investors will look for additional guidance from officials on their plans regarding future monetary policy.  For economic reports, New Home Sales will be released on Monday.  Fourth quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the broadest measure of economic activity, will come out on Thursday.  Personal Income and the PCE price index, the inflation indicator favored by the Fed, will be released on Friday.

 

 

 

Until next week….