More Maui SMA and Shoreline Rules Meetings Scheduled

The Maui County Planning Department will hold two more meetings—Oct. 18 and Oct. 23, 2018—on its proposed revisions to the Maui Planning Commission’s rules on Special Management Area (SMA) permits and the shoreline area.

Even though authority for SMA and shoreline permitting rests solely with the planning commissions, the meetings offer important opportunities for the public to learn about and give input on the department’s proposals. The changes are recommended by a staff team that has been working for years to streamline the SMA process and to respond to climate change and sea level rise.

The department has been asked to present the proposed rule changes to the County Council’s Planning Committee meeting at 9 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, in the Council Chamber. On Tuesday, Oct. 23, the department will hold a workshop with the Maui Planning Commission in the Planning Conference Room, Kalana Pakui Building, 250 S. High St. in Wailuku. The workshop will take place after another item on the agenda is heard; the regular meeting starts at 9 a.m.

After these meetings and additional outreach, the department will finalize the rules, which have to be the subject of a public hearing before they can be adopted by the Maui Planning Commission and signed by the mayor.

“The proposed changes to the SMA rules will simplify the review and permitting process, and they aim to reduce the number of SMA assessments that the department must do every year,” Mayor Alan Arakawa said. “The shoreline rule changes will factor in sea level rise in our shoreline planning, which absolutely needs to be done.”

Planning Director Michele McLean said the meetings are important for feedback.

“We have received a lot of valuable input from the meetings that we have held to date,” she said. “After these additional presentations, we will make revisions to both sets of rules, and then we hope to schedule these for the commission to adopt before the end of the year.”

The draft rules can be found online. Scroll down to “Hot Topics” and click on “Proposed Amendments to Maui SMA Rules” and “Proposed Amendments to Maui Shoreline Rules.”

For more information, contact the department at 270-7735 or at planning@mauicounty.gov.