How the County can pay for public improvements

Whenever in the opinion of the Council it is desirable:To establish, open or construct any public highway, as defined by statute, including in connection therewith the construction of a sidewalk, bikeway, sanitary sewer system, storm drainage system, water system or street lighting system; orTo extend, widen, alter, grade, pave, curb, macadamize or otherwise improve, to an extent exceeding maintenance or repair thereof, the whole or any part of any existing public highway, including in connection therewith the construction or improvement of a sidewalk, bikeway, sanitary sewer system, storm drainage system, water system or street lighting system; orTo construct or improve a sanitary sewer system, storm drainage system, street lighting system, water system, sidewalk, or bikeway independently of any other construction or improvement; orTo acquire property for or construct or improve pedestrian malls; orTo acquire property for or construct or improve off-street parking facilities as provided in Chapter 56, Hawai'i Revised Statutes; orTo acquire property for or construct or improve parks or playgrounds as provided in Section 24-1.3 hereof,such acquisitions, betterments, or improvements may be made and done under the provisions of this Chapter; provided that in the case of a sidewalk which is to be constructed independently of any other improvement, the highway along which the construction of such sidewalk is proposed shall have a right-of-way width at least equal to the width indicated by County standards; and the cost thereof (including the cost, if not assumed by the County under the discretionary power contained in Section 24-2.1, of acquiring, whether prior to or after the commencement of the proceedings for such betterments or improvements, any new land therefor) shall be assessed against the land specially benefited, either on the frontage basis or according to the area of the land or any other assessment method which assesses the land according to the special benefits conferred, or any combination of the aforesaid methods of assessment; provided that wherever the frontage or area basis assessment are mentioned in sections and provisions contained hereinafter such valuation method may be used, either alone or in combination with one (1) or more of the aforesaid methods of assessment; and provided further that the County may issue and sell bonds to provide the funds for such improvements, which bonds for an improvement or improvements initiated by the County pursuant to Section 24-3.1 only may, in the sole discretion of the Council, be either general obligation bonds of the County (or the funds for such improvement or improvements may be provided from the special assessment revolving fund or from both the special assessment revolving fund and the issuance and sale of general obligation bonds) or bonds secured only by such assessments as a lien upon the lands assessed, and for an improvement or improvements initiated pursuant to Sections 24-3.2 and 24-3.3 shall be only bonds secured only by such assessments as a lien upon the lands assessed; and for such purposes the Council may create, define and establish improvement districts, all according to the provisions of this Chapter.Nothing in this Chapter shall prevent the County from compelling abutting property owners at their own expense to construct, maintain and repair sidewalks and curbs in front of the abutting property under any other statute or ordinance, now existing or hereafter to be enacted.Nothing in this Chapter shall prevent the County or the Board of Water Supply from constructing, improving, maintaining and repairing any sanitary sewer system, storm drainage system, street lighting system or water system, as the case may be, as empowered by any other statute or ordinance, now existing or hereafter to be enacted.Nothing contained in this Chapter shall prevent the County from making the betterments or improvements referred to in Subsection (a) of this Section, if property owners and the Council mutually agree to share the cost of such betterments or improvements and the estimated amount of such cost to be borne by the property owners is deposited with the County prior to the award of the construction contract; provided that the proportionate share of the cost to be borne by the property owners and the County shall be subject to revision upon the determination of the actual cost of the betterment or improvement.