Maui Council schedule includes two cancellations due to service outage

The Maui County Council and its committees will have several meetings this week, but two committee meetings that had been scheduled for Wednesday had to be canceled due to a service outage of the digital platform that hosts the council’s meeting documents.

• A presentation on Department of Hawaiian Home Lands’ housing projects, which had been set for the Housing and Land Use Committee, is planned for 9 a.m. on July 12, said Presiding Officer Pro Tempore Tasha Kama, who chairs the committee.
• The Disaster, Resilience, International Affairs and Planning Committee intends to reschedule its canceled meeting on the police department’s strategic plan for 1:30 p.m. on July 12, committee Chair Tamara Paltin said.

The week started with a Water and Infrastructure Committee, discussing the renaming of Puamana Beach Park in Lahaina to Puamana Cultural Preserve at Waianuʻukole. During an earlier meeting in May, the committee had considered the renaming of Puamana Beach Park to Waiahiokole Burial Preserve; however, further research prompted a revision in the proposed name change.

The name “Waianuʻukole” can mean two things, according to a presentation by cultural practitioner Cody Pueo Pata:

1. Water of the Nuʻukole (a variety of ʻoʻopu also known as hiʻukole).
2. Grain like the Nuʻukole (ʻoʻopu), in reference to a type of stone used for heʻe lures which was streaked with red and black.

The Efficiency Solutions and Circular Systems Committee meets Thursday at 9 a.m. on systemic inequality with presentations from several University of Hawai‘i faculty members.

On Thursday at 1:30 p.m., the Agriculture, Diversification, Environment and Public Transportation Committee will continue its discussion, which began June 22, on recommendations for managing and conserving various South Maui lands. Testimony has closed for this meeting.

The council will hold a public hearing on Bill 49, establishing a half-percent surcharge on the general excise tax, on Thursday at 6 p.m. The week closes with a council meeting on Friday at 9 a.m., when Bill 49 will be heard on first reading and the council will honor Ja‘lyn Deichert and Joseph Randolph for state track-and-field championships.

For more information, contact the Office of Council Services at 808-270-7838.