The rail. Transit-oriented development. The proposed relocation and replacement of Oʻahu Community Correctional Center (OCC). And now plans for redeveloping the Kuhio Homes low-rise units at Kuhio Park Terrace (KPT). The pressures of development and change are coming to Kalihi. How will these changes impact the community? In what ways will they affect our health and connections? How can we address this new reality, while strengthening and celebrating all the things we love about our neighborhood? These are some of the questions KKV has begun to ask and try to answer through a hui of staff we are calling “Kalihi Futures”.

This group of KKV staff came together in 2022 over a series of Zoom calls and meetings and has since begun to develop a strategy to address development in Kalihi that is centered around the voices of our neighbors, patients, staff and community partners. Kalihi Futures acknowledges that change is happening, and though it may be inevitable, positive transformation can come from uplifting and amplifying community voices to create a vision for our future from within Kalihi – a vision that looks to the wisdom of our past and builds on our hopes for the future.

So far, the hui has coordinated two community events focused on the KPT redevelopment. These events welcomed housing residents to share their stories, discuss what they value about where they live, and learn more about the details of the redevelopment plans. Moving forward, Kalihi Futures is planning more community events to establish resident-led structures of leadership, continuing to organize around our shared values and community-building goals.

It is our intention that the future of Kalihi will have even more space for the people who know Kalihi as home. That it will flourish in ways that honor our ancestors, give our keiki hope, and mālama the `āina. Kalihi is a largely working-class community. It should remain a place where people with limited financial resources can live. A place where our cultures are respected, and our neighbors connected. Things won’t always stay the same, but with change comes opportunity, and we will grow healthier together as we look toward the future.