East Honolulu retaining walls on Kuliouou, Hawaii Loa Ridge, and Niu Valley hillsides fall under ROH 21-4.40, which caps fill-bearing walls in required yards at 6 feet with terraced heights combined.
ROH/LUO Sec. 21-4.40 governs retaining walls throughout East Honolulu. Walls containing fill within a required yard cannot exceed 6 feet in height. Terraced walls are measured as a combined height when the horizontal separation is narrow, preventing stacked-wall workarounds. On the steep slopes of Hawaii Loa Ridge, Kuliouou, Mariners Ridge, and Kamiloiki, walls above the 30-inch building permit threshold also require engineered drawings, geotechnical review, and drainage analysis. DPP coordinates these reviews with grading permit requirements under Chapter 14. Retaining walls in shoreline setback areas near Maunalua Bay face additional coastal-zone scrutiny.
Oversized or unpermitted retaining walls can lead to DPP stop-work orders, mandatory rebuilds, geotechnical remediation, doubled after-the-fact fees, and lien-eligible abatement costs.
East Honolulu, HI
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East Honolulu, HI
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East Honolulu, HI
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East Honolulu, HI
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East Honolulu, HI
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East Honolulu, HI
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