HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Jasmine Wong has played countless rounds of golf in her life, but three weeks ago, it came down to 36 holes to become a champion.

“This is something that I dreamed of, especially when I first got to Iolani,” Wong said.

Wong’s journey on the green began at 6 years old.

“It’s like every other kid probably, like you just see your dad hit golf balls at the range and you’re just watching and then you’re like, ‘dad, can I hit something because I’m bored,’ and so he gave me his pitching wedge and then I just started swinging and he was like, ‘oh, you’re actually not bad at this,’” Wong said.

The natural talent found her much success.

Wong made the ILH first team the past two years — and this season, she took home conference honors for Girls Golfer of the Year.

Yet the lone box unchecked, a state championship victory.

“I took a little peek at the leader board, since it was electronic and they kept live scoring and so right at the last two holes, I felt the pressure kind of build up and that’s when I was realized I’m like, oh shoot I could like possibly get this,” said Wong.

She did it by the thinnest of margins, winning by a single stroke, to capture the Raiders’ first individuals girls golf state title.

“Coming down to the final holes … there was a couple bogeys down there, which kind of made it a little bit more tense, but she held it together and we’re really proud of her to do that,” said head coach Kevin Ing.

Ing has spent over 50 years coaching various Iolani teams, from football to baseball and now girls golf.

In that half decade, he’s never seen drive quite like hers.

“Jasmine is so focused on everything that she does, whether it’s her golf, her academics — she’s just amazing, she’s just always focused and that’s probably her strongest part of her is her determination to get things done right,” said Ing.

Wong says winning a state championship has been on her bucket list, and she’ll carry this accomplishment with her as she continues her golf career at Gonzaga.

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(BIVN) – The inaugural Hawaii Island Ground Golf Mayor’s Cup Tournament will be held on June 21, 2024, at the Old Kona Airport Beach Park Baseball Field.

The County of Hawaiʻi Parks and Recreation, Elderly Recreation Services, Office of the Mayor, and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Hawaii announced this past week that the event will welcome participants aged 18 and older.

The event will start at 10 a.m. after a 9:30 a.m. check-in. There will be a lunch at noon.

“We’re thrilled to host the inaugural Mayor’s Cup Ground Golf Tournament, celebrating the growing popularity of this sport on our island,” said Mayor Mitch Roth. “Having had the chance to play, I can personally attest to the skill and precision required to succeed. We eagerly anticipate testing our abilities together in a few weeks.”

From the County of Hawaiʻi:

Ground Golf, which combines elements of golf and croquet, originated from Hawaiʻi Island’s sister city in Yurihama, Japan. The sport has since become popular on Hawaii Island, especially among the kupuna. The tournament promises a day of friendly competition, community building, and physical activity in a beautiful outdoor setting.

The registration fee is $12, which includes lunch, the County says. Due to limited space, registration will close on May 30, 2024, the County says. Participants can register in person at the Elderly Recreation Services Office (127 Kamana St., Hilo), the West Hawaii CSE Office (74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Hwy), or online at jccih.org.

Hawaii lawmakers recently decided to create a new incentive for affordable housing development under a state program, but it could have a bigger negative effect on affordable housing required by counties.

The Legislature passed a bill, which if enacted, would give developers credits for affordable units completed under a state program that already has incentives that include exemptions to general excise taxes, county development fees, height limits and density in return for making at least 50% or 60% of a project affordable for moderate-income households.

Such credits could be used by developers so they don’t have to build affordable housing required by counties as part of market-priced housing projects.

The legislation, Senate Bill 1170, was primarily pushed by the Hawaii chapter of NAIOP, a national commercial real estate trade association whose members include developers. Several individual developers also testified in support of the bill.

Opposing the bill were the the City and County of Honolulu’s Office of Housing, the city Department of Planning and Permitting, and Hawaii County’s Office of Housing and Community Development.

The state Office of Planning and Sustainable Development expressed concern with SB 1170, and said that the bill’s stated goal won’t be achieved if the bill is enacted.

NAIOP claims that higher interest rates and other development costs have made the state’s 201H affordable housing program “nearly unusable” by developers.

By adding credits to the program’s existing incentives, a 201H project developer could theoretically monetize credits to help finance a 201H project, perhaps by selling credits to another developer that needs to satisfy a county affordable housing requirement.

The state agency administering the 201H program disputes NAIOP’s claim about developers not using the program, which is known by its chapter number in Hawaii Revised Statutes.

“While we recognize the concern that a high-interest rate environment may negatively impact affordable housing production in Hawaii, HHFDC is processing 201H applications this year when interest rates are higher than they have been in a number of years,” the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp. said in a statement Friday. “In fact, the number of 201H applications that we’ve processed is actually consistent, if not higher, than in recent years.”

In written testimony while SB 1170 was being considered by lawmakers, HHFDC did not take a position for or against the bill. Instead, the agency informed lawmakers that it shares the concern about high interest rates negatively affecting affordable housing production in Hawaii, but that it defers to counties for judgment on issuing credits for 201H projects.

DPP Director Dawn Take­uchi Apuna said in written testimony that SB 1170 would benefit developers at a detrimental cost to county affordable housing programs and policies.

“We oppose this bill because it creates credit value that developers can sell or use themselves to fulfill affordable housing requirements imposed by the counties,” she said. “It amounts to ‘double dipping,’ developers of 201H projects receive fee waivers and exemptions, as well as the monetary value of credits.”

Susan Kunz, Hawaii County’s housing administrator, said in written testimony that giving developers affordable housing credits for 201H projects won’t expand the supply of housing but will undermine the county’s ability to do so.

Under SB 1170, 201H projects that receive federal or state tax credits that require units be reserved for households with low incomes would not be eligible for affordable housing credits.

Another limitation under the bill is that credits will only be available through July 1, 2031.

HHFDC said in its statement that enacting SB 1170 may result in more 201H project applications, but that it is difficult to forecast how many more. Enacting the bill also could benefit 201H projects already planned, including Kuilei Place and Pahoa Ridge.

Kuilei Place is a planned 43-story tower complex in Moiliili with 1,005 condominiums being developed by Kobayashi Group and BlackSand Capital.

In return for making 603 Kuilei Place units, 60% of the total, affordable to households with moderate and high-moderate incomes, the developer received benefits that included about $12 million in city fee exemptions plus building height and density beyond what zoning permits in the area.

Kobayashi Group testified in favor of SB 1170.

Pahoa Ridge is a 211-unit tower planned near Old Waialae Road. Benefits approved under 201H for Pahoa Ridge in January include density, height and lot coverage bonuses. The tower is to be about five times more dense, can exceed the area’s 150-foot height limit by rising 210 feet and can cover 85% of the lot instead of a maximum 40% under zoning.

One of the developers of Pahoa Ridge, Form Partners, testified in favor of SB 1170, saying that the cost to produce affordable homes is well above what they can be sold for.

Lawmakers hardly engaged in public discussion of the bill during two committee hearings in the Senate and two in the House.

A joint House-Senate conference committee meeting to agree upon a final draft of the bill resulted in one concession to counties. The committee on April 26 amended the bill so that 201H credits may be applied to satisfy only up to 50% of affordable housing obligations imposed by a county unless a county wants to allow more.

Final votes approving SB 1170 on May 1 were 46-5 in the House and 22-2 in the Senate.

Gov. Josh Green has until July 10 to sign bills into law or let them become law without his signature. For Green to veto any bills, he must give notice to the Legislature of such intent by June 25.