All beds are full and a waiting list has formed at the month-old medical respite village on Punchbowl Street in Honolulu, according to the governor's office.
The 10 tiny homes were built for patients discharged from hospitals who would otherwise be released onto the street.
Pūlama Ola Kauhale has seen 13 total intakes, three patient discharges and over 180 shower uses by members of the surrounding community.
“A month in, a full facility proves that space for healing is needed. High community shower usage identifies that our neighbors in this area needed the hygiene resource. But the project’s impact has already gone beyond that,” said Darrah Kauhane-Floerke, executive director of Project Vision Hawai’i, in a recent press release. PVH operates the facilities.
The Governor’s Office on Homelessness said it will continue to press forward toward building permanent kauhale statewide.
Several projects across the state are under consideration for resources that the state Legislature appropriated to support kauhale projects.
“It’s only been a month, but we’re already seeing people at Pūlama Ola pulling together to take care of the space and each other,” said James Koshiba, the governor’s coordinator on homelessness, said in a press release Monday.
“It’s similar to what I’ve seen happen within houseless encampments across the island. Community is at the heart of kauhale, and Pūlama Ola is demonstrating what is possible,” he said.
