In 1954, my parents put a down payment on a piece of property in the Kaka'ako district and eventually built a small two-story office building. For the past 20 years, our rents have generally remained the same and have even fallen in some instances to help our longtime tenants survive in this poor economy. Meanwhile, our property taxes have soared to approximately $60,000 per year for a lot just more than 20,000 square feet.

At a time when we need to stimulate the economy and help to create jobs for the construction industry, Senate Bill 1350, CD 1 does just the opposite. This bill, which was approved by the state Legislature and is awaiting the governor's signature, intends to encourage large landowners to build more reserved housing in Kaka'ako. In reality, it hurts small landowners and prevents them from making even the smallest property improvements.

There is an old saying: "The devil is in the details." The details of this bill are hellish, indeed. SB 1350 CD1 places a six-month or longer moratorium on anyone owning a lot of 20,000 square feet or larger from even applying for a building permit. Anyone who has applied for even the simplest building permit knows it will take several months to a year or longer to obtain. Why would lawmakers want to shut down and intentionally delay property improvements or development for more than six months? And why did the Legislature only single out Kaka'ako-area landowners?

The bill forces exactions on all Kaka'ako landowners with lots greater than 20,000 square feet, even those with purely commercial enterprises. Our lot is 20,448 square feet. Under this bill, if we want to renovate and expand our existing building or change the use of our property, we would be forced to provide 20 percent of the total floor area of the project for reserved housing should we decide to build apartments, or 10 percent of such floor area for reserved housing should we decide to leave the building in commercial use, but upgrade it. We would be forced to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to build the required reserved housing units, in addition to our other costs — even if we keep the use of our property strictly commercial. And, we would also have to build the reserve housing units prior to or concurrently with the planned renovation or expansion.

Small landowners like us are caught in a "Catch-22" situation. On one hand the city is raising our real property taxes; on the other hand, the state government is telling us we can't do anything with our property for at least six months. The Legislature should be offering incentives to landowners and businesses who wish to invest in their properties rather than shutting them down for at least six months and placing unreasonable economic burdens on them going forward. There are already zoning laws and building codes that everyone must follow. The reality is that even under the present zoning and building laws that would apply to a small lot size as ours, we are limited in what we can do.

How did the Legislature come up with the figure of 20,000 square feet, triggering the additional burdens to be placed on the landowner? Why should someone who owns a lot that is only 449 square feet smaller than mine have the freedom to operate without these burdensome requirements? Is this a plot to drive the land values down on small landowners like us, who won't be able to fix up their properties unless they spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to build reserved housing on their lots? It just does not seem fair.

I have always believed that Kaka'ako should be a diverse neighborhood that includes affordable residential housing. I embrace the vision that was put forth long ago, that Kaka'ako should be a community where one could live, work and play. I would ask that the governor and her attorney general study the ramifications of this bill as it is not "equal treatment for all" and will have a devastating impact on a majority of landowners in Kaka'ako as well as the state's overall economy.

Linda Wong owns land in Kaka'ako. She wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.