Latest rebuilding plan for King Kamehameha III Elementary School shows preference for Kuʻia

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Education today released a report summarizing input and opinions from a series of community feedback opportunities on the rebuild plan for King Kamehameha III Elementary School. A total of 485 community members – including faculty/staff, current school family members, alumni, and interested community members – completed feedback surveys, delivered via three formats: at a staff/faculty meeting, two open community meetings, or online.

King Kamehameha III Elementary was one of the sites destroyed in the wildfire that swept through Lahaina in August 2023, displacing students, families, faculty, and staff from a learning environment that had operated on Front Street for over a century. The school currently operates out of a temporary location at Pulelehua near Kapalua Airport.

The Department solicited feedback from the school and local community about the location and design of a permanent campus for the historic school. There were three in-person meetings: one for faculty and staff and one for school families and the public on May 21, 2024, to discuss three potential sites and a public meeting on Nov. 19 to discuss the new site option at Ku‘ia. After each meeting, community members could provide feedback via an online survey. The report was produced by Paʻakai Communications, which was contracted by the HIDOE to facilitate the meetings and assist in feedback collection and analysis as a neutral third party.

Three potential sites were presented to the community in May 2024: the original location on Front Street; Pulelehua, which is near the current temporary location; and Kaʻanapali 2020 – Puʻukoliʻi Village Mauka. A fourth potential site in Kuʻia near Lahaina town was presented for public consideration in November 2024.

Of the two remaining sites presented for feedback in November 2024, participants responded as follows:

As part of its 2025-27 biennium budget request, the Department requested capital improvement funds to build Kamehameha III Elementary’s future site, without specifying a selected location. Gov. Josh Green has included the funding request in his executive budget that will be presented to the Legislature. The new report will be posted at bit.ly/KKIIIReport, a dedicated webpage where community members may continue to find information and updates about rebuilding plans for the King Kamehameha III Elementary permanent campus.  

Click here to view the report.