What zoning covers the resort hotels along Ali'i Drive in Kailua-Kona?

Most of the Ali'i Drive corridor is zoned CG (General Commercial), which permits hotel and visitor-industry development within the State Land Use Urban district.

How do I find the zoning for a Kailua-Kona parcel?

Look up the parcel's TMK number on the County of Hawaii Planning Department's GIS zoning map, since Kailua-Kona is unincorporated and zoned directly by the county.

Why is so much land above Kailua-Kona zoned agricultural?

The coffee-growing uplands fall within the State Land Use Agricultural district, which the county zones A-5a or A-20a depending on parcel size, limiting non-farm development regardless of underlying demand.

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii · city zoning districts · 10 districts

Kailua-Kona, HI zoning map & districts

Kailua-Kona is zoned under the same countywide Zoning Code (Hawaii County Code, Chapter 25) that governs all of the Big Island, administered by the County of Hawaii Planning Department. As with Hilo, county zoning districts only apply within the State Land Use Commission's Urban and Rural boundaries; land above town in the coffee-belt uplands typically falls in the State Agricultural district and is zoned A-5a or A-20a, reflecting the steep transition from the resort corridor to working farmland.

The code County of Hawaii Zoning Code

Kailua-Kona zoning map

The County of Hawaii Planning Department (with a West Hawaii office in Kailua-Kona) administers the zoning code and GIS zoning map; look up parcels by TMK number.

There is no link to the official map here yet — confirm current district boundaries directly with the Kailua-Kona planning or zoning department.

A published summary is never the authority. The adopted ordinance and the city's official zoning map govern, and both change — verify the district and every standard on your parcel before you rely on it.

How zoning works in Kailua-Kona

Development pressure in Kailua-Kona concentrates along the Ali'i Drive resort and visitor-industry corridor, zoned General Commercial (CG) and Village Commercial (CV) near the historic town center, with hotel and condo-hotel projects processed through the county's resort-node and State Urban district overlap. Residential neighborhoods above town are a mix of Single-Family (RS) and Residential-Agricultural (RA) districts, with the RA designation common on larger lots at the urban-agricultural edge.

Kailua-Kona zoning districts by family

The 10 district codes below are the ones that decide most projects in Kailua-Kona, grouped by what they are for rather than by the order the ordinance prints them.

Key districts in the County of Hawaii Zoning Code — a curated reference, not the exhaustive list. Confirm against the current adopted code.
Code	District	What it is for
Residential 3 districts
RS	Single-Family Residential	Standard single-family district in Kailua-Kona's town-adjacent neighborhoods.
RM	Multiple-Family Residential	Condominium and apartment development near the resort corridor.
RA	Residential and Agricultural	Large-lot residential common at the edge of town toward the uplands.
Mixed-use 1 district
V	Village	Small mixed-use nodes within residential areas.
Commercial 3 districts
CV	Village Commercial	Applied to the historic Kailua Village core.
CG	General Commercial	Ali'i Drive and Palani Road resort/visitor-industry commercial corridor.
CN	Neighborhood Commercial	Local-serving retail nodes in residential areas.
Industrial 1 district
ML	Limited Industrial	Light industrial and service-commercial uses, mainly toward the Kona airport/industrial subdivisions.
Special purpose 2 districts
A-5a	Agricultural (5-acre minimum)	Coffee-belt uplands agricultural district common above town.
A-20a	Agricultural (20-acre minimum)	Large-lot agricultural district furthest from the urban core.

Kailua-Kona zoning — common questions

What zoning covers the resort hotels along Ali'i Drive in Kailua-Kona?: Most of the Ali'i Drive corridor is zoned CG (General Commercial), which permits hotel and visitor-industry development within the State Land Use Urban district.
How do I find the zoning for a Kailua-Kona parcel?: Look up the parcel's TMK number on the County of Hawaii Planning Department's GIS zoning map, since Kailua-Kona is unincorporated and zoned directly by the county.
Why is so much land above Kailua-Kona zoned agricultural?: The coffee-growing uplands fall within the State Land Use Agricultural district, which the county zones A-5a or A-20a depending on parcel size, limiting non-farm development regardless of underlying demand.

Working in Hawaii? Get on the list.

The parcel layer lands in the order demand does. Illinois went first because that's where the deals were; the next state is decided by who tells us what they're trying to underwrite. Tell us where you're building and what you wanted to run — you'll hear from us when Hawaii opens, and sooner if we need a test parcel.

Keep reading

← Hawaii zoning — who holds the zoning power in Hawaii, under which enabling statute, and the reforms that override local rules.

Other Hawaii cities

The zoning reference → — every state, plus city-level district guides like this one.

Kailua-Kona zoning summaries on this page are provided for information, not legal advice. Confirm every project against the current adopted code for the jurisdiction.