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Hawaii County tells homeowner his 38-year-old house is actually illegal

Reason Magazine
Summary
Nutrition label

71% Informative

Shahzaad Ausman purchased a small seaside home in Captain Cook , Hawaii , in 2021 .

The home was first built in 1987 and the original owner had lived in it for years without incident.

The original owner of the home constructed the dwelling in 1987 , he was able to build it 27 feet from the shoreline.

Since then, Hawaii 's state and local coastal development regulations have been amended to require development be setback 40 feet .

Austin , Texas , votes to update the city building code to allow apartment buildings up to five stories to be built with just one staircase.

Advocates argue single-stair reform enables mid-rise apartment buildings to fit on smaller lots.

Austin 's reforms will make it easier to build small sunlight-filled apartment buildings with large family-friendly units.

The owners of historic homes in affected neighborhoods are demanding their properties be de-landmarked so they can cash out too. - Yet another report finds that Los Angeles' "mansion tax" is killing new apartment construction..

VR Score

76

Informative language

75

Neutral language

54

Article tone

semi-formal

Language

English

Language complexity

46

Offensive language

not offensive

Hate speech

not hateful

Attention-grabbing headline

not detected

Known propaganda techniques

not detected

Time-value

short-lived

External references

16

https://www.planning.hawaiicounty.gov/resources/special-management-area-smahttps://www.sightline.org/release/wa-legislature-passes-nation-leading-parking-reform-bill/https://t.co/p58THou3wihttps://hellgatenyc.com/andrew-cuomo-chatgpt-housing-plan/https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/single-staircase-apartments-austin-texas-city-council-approval/269-785745df-56c7-4ab6-8f26-d94df920f75e#:~:text=AUSTIN%2C%20Texas%20%E2%80%94%20On%20Thursday%2C,codes%20was%20introduced%20in%202024.https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2024/10/07/hawaii-news/epic-fail-homeowner-sues-county-over-building-permits/https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25898048-2025-03-28-88-129-kai-llc-v-boa-dkt-97-findings-of-fact-conclusions-of-law-11/https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/reports/2025/02/small-single-stairway-apartment-buildings-have-strong-safety-recordhttps://www.grassrootinstitute.org/2024/12/permitting-issue-in-paradise-leads-to-total-dismay/https://www.civilbeat.org/2025/03/study-maui-cautious-phasing-out-vacation-rentals/https://twitter.com/andersem/status/1911149312383586633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfwhttps://escholarship.org/content/qt7jg7m22v/qt7jg7m22v.pdf?t=suik98&v=lg#page=2https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary/?BillNumber=5184&Year=2025&Initiative=falsehttps://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2022/02/01/hawaii-news/40000-open-building-permits-set-to-expire-as-county-streamlines-permit-process/https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=Hv2J6ucL6L2LCA7p&v=0LilfqOPrZY&feature=youtu.behttps://t.co/lIQrZrt1ph
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