Community groups Maui Tomorrow and the Wailuku Good Government Coalition filed a lawsuit Monday against the Maui Redevelopment Agency (MRA), a county agency that claims to operate in accordance with state law pertaining to the Urban Renewal Law. The community groups, represented by attorneys Lance D. Collins and Bianca Isaki, claim that the MRA does […]
Lance Collins
Is Regulation to Blame? Perspectives on the prevalence of out-of-state homebuyers and lack of attainable housing in Maui County
“The [Hawai‘i state] legislature pronounced that the problem of the critical shortage [of housing for low- and middle-income earners] was the high cost of housing. The causes of this high cost were said to be the ‘cost and availability of land, the cost of development, the cost and availability of financing, the cost added by […]
Is the MRA Legal? Councilmember Keani Rawlins-Fernandez challenges the Maui Redevelopment Agency’s authority
A meeting of the Maui Redevelopment Agency regarding possible zoning changes to Wailuku Town drew passionate community testimony on Friday, Nov. 15, sparked largely by news of a six-story, 156-room hotel planned for the area at the corner of Market and Main Streets. The changes within the MRA’s draft zoning code amendment include, most notably, […]
Charter Crisis: After council vote to settle Lahaina Injection Wells lawsuit, administration questions power
[Update: On Oct. 9, Council Chair Kelly King published a letter sent to US Supreme Court clerk Scott Harris to address the “crisis of the charter.” “A resolution to appoint special counsel to represent the Maui County Council will be considered next week,” she wrote. “I respectfully request the U.S. Supreme Court dismiss Case No. […]
Op-Ed: Leave Policy Measures to the Next Council and Mayor – The lame-duck council should protect democratic norms and refrain from rushing through policy changes
On Maui, we have an extraordinary situation where six new council members and the mayor will be taking office in less than a month. Even the current mayor, term-limited, was resoundingly defeated for his bid to return to the council. For this reason, the outgoing council should commit to refraining from voting on any […]
Access Denied: ‘Āina warriors fight for the shoreline
A New Wave of ‘Āina Warriors A few years ago, I was approached by the HK West Maui Community Fund to help document shoreline access points in West Maui. The website Westmauibeachaccess.org was created with the information gathered. It lists West Maui’s shoreline access points, maps, and photographs. The website also includes links to the cases, […]
Maui groups sue DLNR over Ka`anapali tour boats
Lahaina resident Randy Draper has spent many, many years fighting for beach access public parking in West Maui. Back in 2016, we wrote about his pressure on the County of Maui to make sure they’re enforcing the public access rules on the big Ka‘anapali resorts. He’s still at it, of course–now he’s part of a […]
Judge Cardoza grants 10-day stay on all Maui Lani sand-removal activities
In a lawsuit filed last week to stop Maui Lani Partners from excavating any more sand–and potentially disturbing the Kakanilua battlefield, which took place in Central Maui’s sand hills–Judge Joseph Cardoza has granted a 10-day stay, stopping all sand-removal activities by Maui Lani Partners. “IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that for a period of ten days, beginning […]
Maui community groups say they succeeded in reducing environmental, cultural impacts of Makena Resort development
For too long, the future of Mākena has been a giant unknown for Maui. The threat of development has loomed large, and the Maui Planning Commission’s vote in March to accept a “No Significant Impact” finding on ATC Makena Holdings’ plans for the South Maui region scared a lot of people. So much so that […]
Quizunderstood: Do you know how many people showed up to see Oprah Winfrey at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center?
1. On June 23, Governor David Ige released a list of bills he intends to veto. Which of the following was NOT on the list (meaning it will become law)? A. SB 895–Relating to Criminal Trespass B. SB 1240–Relating to Aquatic Life C. SB 410–Relating to Collective Bargaining D. HB 523–Relating to Recycling E. HB […]
Coalition of groups file suit in Maui Environmental Court over Makena Resort approval
Back in March, the Maui Planning Commission voted 5-3 to accept the Final Environmental Assessment (FEA) and Finding of No Significant Impact for ATC Makena Holding’s proposed 47-acre Makena Resort project (on the site of the old Makena Golf and Beach Club) that seeks to put in a 158-unit gated luxury community on the mauka side of […]
‘Tourism Impacts West Maui’ now available from University of Hawaii Press
On a happy note, the new book Tourism Impacts West Maui, published by the North Beach-West Maui Benefit Fund at the end of 2016, is finally available from University of Hawaii Press (which distributes the book). “West Maui has been the site of rapid, drastic changes to landscape, communities, governance, and economy. This collection addresses the […]
UPDATED: New book ‘Tourism Impacts West Maui’ provides radical alternative to ‘official’ Lahaina history
Living for hundreds of years with the self-sufficient ahupua`a land-tenure system and a communal subsistence economy, Hawaiians, particularly commoners, were unaccustomed to the concept of fee simple land ownership. This unfamiliarity, coupled with numerous legal and logistical constraints, led to foreign acquisition of large amounts of land intended for Native Hawaiians. Many Hawaiian families were […]
‘Tourism Impacts West Maui’ book launch at Lahaina Public Library
The official launch for the new book Tourism Impacts West Maui happens at the Lahaina Public Library this Saturday, Dec. 3. As we all know, West Maui is continually affected by rapid change to landscape, governance, and economy all due to the impact tourism has on our island. The event will feature community presentations and talk story sessions […]
West Maui Land Court Applications now available in new online archive
Those of you who enjoy looking at musty old Hawaii Land Court applications from the comfort of your own home are in luck: Thanks to years of diligent work from the North Beach West Maui Benefit Fund, a huge trove of old West Maui Land Court applications is now online–all free to read and download. […]
Free Parking: The County of Maui finally gets serious about ensuring public beach access parking in Kaanapali
As one of Hawaii’s most popular resort destinations, Ka‘anapali dates to about 1962, when the Royal Lahaina Resort opened. The Sheraton followed a year later, and soon resorts were popping up periodically into the early 1980s. For visitors, there are few more accessible resort locations than Ka‘anapali. The situation for residents–who are guaranteed coastal access–the […]