Maui Dentistry Practice Expands Capacity with New Maui Lani Office

Maui Minoʻaka Dentistry, has acquired a new office at the Maui Lani Village Center and will be expanding its capacity to service patients across the island. The move was fueled in part by the growing practice of Dr. Lisa Shitamoto, DDS, and an ongoing need for professional oral health care on Maui.

Dr. Shitamoto served with a group practice and as an associate on Maui before purchasing the office of Dr. Leslie Arakaki in 2018.

“I was so fortunate to have inherited Dr. Arakaki’s wonderful patients,” Shitamoto said. “Since then, the practice has grown, and we’re needing to expand. Purchasing a new office will enable me to better service my patients, and continue providing convenient, comfortable, and exceptional oral health care.”

Maui Minoʻaka Dentistry’s new office will be located on Maʻa Street in a Professional Row office building within the Maui Lani Village Center. Shitamoto is the latest of several health care professionals who have established their practices at the commercial project. Dr. Shitamoto hopes to begin welcoming patients to her new location sometime this fall.

Despite some pandemic-related impacts including shipping delays of materials and equipment, Dr. Shitamoto said she has kept a firm focus on her patients and the Maui’s longer-term oral health care needs. “I want to build lifelong relationships with our patients, and treat everyone as a family friend,” she said. “Maui Lani is a growing center, and there are going to be more community members in the area. There’s a need for dental services, and as some of our older dentists have or are planning to retire, people are looking for a new dentist.”

Dr. Shitamoto added that the Maui Lani Village Center’s central location offers convenience and easy access not only to her patients in Wailuku and Kahului, but also to those residing in Kīhei, Upcountry and Lahaina.

Financing for Maui Minoʻaka’s new office came via a Small Business Administration 504 loan, which allows qualified borrowers to secure long-term, fixed rate financing for new facilities, buildings, land or other eligible assets with as little as 10% down – which Shitamoto described as “huge.” “We couldn’t have done it without this kind of program,” she said. “It’s been very helpful.”

Grant Howe, CCIM R(B) of Commercial Properties of Maui, said that the SBA 504 program has been beneficial for quite a few businesses.

“We’ve seen a number of local business owners realize their dream of purchasing their own office or warehouse with the help of the SBA 504 program,” he said. “It’s really gratifying to see small businesses and family-owned ventures grow and succeed with the support of programs like this one.”

“I’m a Maui native,” said Dr. Shitamoto. “It was really important to me to find a career such that I could come back to Maui and serve my family and friends and community. It’s exciting to be able to do that with a new office and the latest technology.”

Born and raised on Maui, Dr. Shitamoto earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery from the University of Southern California, and completed her Advanced Education in General Dentistry through NYU Langone Dental Medicine. More recently, she was recognized by the Maui Chamber of Commerce as the Mayor’s Young Small Business Person of the Year in 2020, and by her peers in Honolulu Magazine’s list of Hawaiʻi’s Best Dentists 2021.