Community invited to online Maui County meeting June 13 on Hoaloha Park adaptation plan

Popular for canoe regattas and other ocean activities, Hoaloha Park, along the Kahului Harbor shoreline, is the first County beach park that needs public feedback to help develop an adaptation plan, which finds ways to make parks more resilient to climate change, county officials announced.

County of Maui Department of Parks and Recreation and project consultant SSFM International will hold a virtual community meeting from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 13, to gather feedback on Hoaloha Park’s adaptation plan. Register via Zoom by following this link.

Community members are encouraged to also submit Hoaloha Park ideas, memories, photos, stories and other comments through the project website (https://ssfm.konveio.com/hoaloha-park-adaptation-plan), which includes an online survey that will be available through June. Information will be used to understand how the park is used by the community, develop a historic and cultural profile of the park and gather ideas for improvements. 

Developing an adaptation plan to address coastal threats and to make the park more resilient to climate change is part of the Department of Parks and Recreation’s strategy for County beach parks described in its Beach Park Vulnerability and Adaptation Study. This will be the first adaptation plan for County beach parks and the first beach park adaptation plan in the state.

“This project will set an example for the County as well as the state in making our beach parks more resilient to the impacts of climate change,” Department of Parks and Recreation Director Patrick McCall said in a news release. “The community’s mana‘o and participation in this planning process is critical to ensure that our beach parks serve the needs of our residents and that they remain special places for current and future generations.”

A second community meeting will be scheduled this fall to explore adaptation options for the park, and a draft plan will be created early next year. The public will be invited to review and comment on the draft plan before it is finalized.

Located in the heart of Kahului, Hoaloha Park is used for canoe paddling, surfing, swimming, stand-up paddleboarding, fishing and wing foiling. The areas around the park are evolving and will include affordable senior housing, a mixed-use Kahului Civic Center Complex, hotel renovations and the Ka’ahumanu Community Corridor Plan changes to infrastructure.

For questions about the Hoaloha Park adaptation plan project, email David Yamashita, David.yamashita@co.maui.hi.us, or Melissa May, mmay@ssfm.com.