Several neighbors of Puna Geothermal Venture might not have to wait much longer to get money for their homes and then some as Hawaii County catches up on the flurry of relocation requests it received during the last two years.
The county has 27 pending requests with the geothermal relocation fund, established in 1996 with geothermal royalties to purchase homes of people adversely affected by the power plant. Many came in during 2012 when more homeowners became aware of the option when geothermal again became a hot political topic.
Noise issues and potential health impacts are among the concerns cited by homeowners hoping to relocate.
To handle the large influx, the county Planning Department contracted with Prudential Orchid Isle Properties (recently purchased by Clark Realty) earlier this year to process the requests and help make determinations on the properties’ value.
Progress so far has been slow but it could soon pick up.
Rose Delfin, Realtor with Clark Realty, said she expects to soon contact homeowners in the first group of five homes the county plans to purchase.
“We will be meeting with owners of those properties shortly,” she said.
A purchase would be made if a homeowner accepts the county’s offer, which can be up to 130 percent of assessed value.
Delfin said the large amount of paperwork that goes with processing the requests and the transition to new ownership have hindered progress.
“Everything, right now, is a work in progress,” she said.
So far, the county purchased five homes through the relocation program, all at 130 percent of their assessed value. The purchase costs all together totalled $646,407.
Four were re-sold through auction for a total amount of $216,100.
Joaquin Gamiao, planning administrative officer, said homes in good condition will likely continue to be purchased at 130 percent of their assessment.
“That’s what the ordinance allows for,” he said.
Relocation applicants said the higher purchase price helps them cover what’s remaining on their mortgages, particularly if more is owed than the homes are worth.
After being purchased, each home would then be auctioned, with proceeds going back into the fund to cover additional acquisitions.
How quickly the county can move through the pending requests will depend on how much it receives in auction proceeds and in royalties. The county receives about $600,000 a year in geothermal royalties, though that number can vary.
Currently, the fund has nearly $3.8 million, including $1 million in reserve. The Planning Department plans to purchase only five homes at first, and acquire more when it has the funds.
In total, the Planning Department estimates the 27 requests will cost more than $5 million, based on a purchase price of 130 percent of assessed value, Gamiao said, which could result in the purchases taking years to resolve.
County Council also authorized the fund to be used for “community benefits,” such as capital projects and other services for lower Puna.
But with so many pending requests, Gamiao said there isn’t enough for other uses.
Other uses of the program included funding for a Pahoa council office and security at Isaac Hale Beach Park and the Pahoa Community Center.
The Parks and Recreation Department has since funded those security services from other sources. The council office is being relocated to a county-owned building.
The pending requests will mostly be dealt with on a first-come, first-serve basis, with those that purchased their homes before 1989 given priority.
Of the requests, two involve homes purchased in 1988. The rest belong to more newcomers. Of the other 25 homeowners seeking relocation, 21 bought their homes since 2000.
One purchased their home in April and applied for relocation in July. Another lives in Arizona and, according to their relocation application, bought their home for their future retirement.
Gamiao said each of the 27 requests meet qualifications, which are essentially that there is a home on the property. Another two were rejected because they involved vacant land.
Previously, the Planning Department limited relocations to homes purchased before Oct. 3, 1989, and within a mile of PGV. Since then, the ordinance has more accurately interpreted to only give those properties preference, Gamiao said.
All of the pending requests appear to involve land within about a mile of the plant, finished in 1992.
On the application forms, not all give reasons for their requests.
Those that do cite issues about noise and concerns about health effects, with some writing on their application they felt duped about impacts from PGV when buying their home.
Michael Hale is one of them, writing he felt a “bit hoodwinked.”
Hale, a 43-year-old business consultant, bought his home in Leilani Estates in 2000 and said in a phone interview the humming sound from the plant at night is a constant irritant.
“It became a problem, actually, the first couple of weeks of moving in,” he said. “It was basically you hear it every night.”
Hale also said he lives in a low spot and worries about the possibility of hydrogen sulfide, which is denser than air, leaking from the plant and collecting near his home.
He said he was aware of PGV when he bought the home but didn’t know it was that close.
“I didn’t realize I was going to hear it,” Hale said.
He said he would have a hard time selling the home on the market because of more awareness of geothermal power production, and thinks the relocation fund is a good option for homeowners in the area.
Whether he sells to the county will depend upon how much it can offer.
“Basically, I’m kind of looking at it whether it pays my mortgage or not,” he said. “If their offer comes in and I can pay my mortgage, I can do it.”
Jeffrey and Portia Ownbey said they think the 130 percent rate is fair.
“I don’t think anyone should feel bad for relocating,” Jeffrey Ownbey said. “I don’t want to move. You got to protect yourself and your family.”
The couple moved to their home on Lauone Street in 2011. At first, they didn’t hear the plant. But that changed shortly with drilling that lasted for months. Jeffrey Ownbey described it as “living next to an airport.”
Afterward, the couple said they noticed a humming sound from the plant that hasn’t stopped. They also noticed a rotten-egg smell, a sign of hydrogen sulfide, during heavy rainfall.
“We thought we were making a good decision,” Jeffrey Ownbey said. “We figured it would be the last place we’d buy.”
Noise levels at the PGV property boundary can hover at about 55 decibels, though the plant’s authorized limit is 70.
Mike Kaleikini, senior director of Hawaiian affairs at PGV, said the plant is still looking at adding noise-reduction barriers to dampen the sound. Additionally, he said PGV supports efforts by the county to increase hydrogen sulfide monitoring, though it thinks current levels are adequate.
“Personally, I think we were doing a very good job of the monitoring and the capabilities that we have,” he said. “But again … we support the county’s initiative to have additional monitoring.”
To prevent abuse of the program, Gamiao said the county will prevent applicants from receiving relocation help more than once. It also might take additional steps to prevent sellers from stripping their homes of cabinets and other fixtures, as was apparently done with the last relocation in 2012.
Still, any other safeguards or restrictions might be politically difficult to achieve.
Puna makai councilman Greggor Ilagan introduced a bill last May that would have prevented additional relocation requests from being accepted within 90 days of its adoption.
Ilagan said he wanted a sunset to limit abuse of the program and allow the fund to be used for other services in Puna.
“I didn’t want to see people buying foreclosed property and then turning it around and relocating them and taking advantage of the county,” he said.
Ilagan said many of his constituents opposed the bill and he removed it from consideration. He said he doesn’t have plans to bring forward any other legislation regarding the program.
“I think it was difficult because it’s a touchy subject,” Ilagan said.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
