Pre-fire Front Street Improvements Project continues; work completion slated for May

Work on the County of Maui’s pre-fire Front Street Improvements Project will continue with updates to features of the historical roadway between the intersections of Baker to Pāpalaua streets and Lahainaluna Road to Dickenson Street. The stretch of Front Street from Lahainaluna Road to Papelekane Street remains closed.

On Wednesday night, area residents received follow-up information on the pre-fire County Department of Public Works (DPW) project, which has been discussed at previous Lahaina Community Meetings.

The project started last year with repairs on the seawall and beach access. Work will continue in coming weeks with construction on replacing the railing, sidewalk, benches, bike racks, trees, lighting and trash receptacles. The project’s anticipated completion is May.

Key design changes of the pre-fire Front Street Improvements Project include:

• The design shifts from colonial-style, New England whaling town aesthetics to plantation architectural elements for trash receptacles, light posts and other streetscape items to align with nearby building styles and harbor surroundings
• Incorporation of native planting (milo trees will be used)
• At-grade planters to improve visibility from the street
• Additional bike rack parking
• Wood railing will be replaced with a stainless-steel railing with wood top rail for durability

In the works since 2015, the DPW Front Street Improvements Project was approved and funded after multiple community meetings, public hearings and other community outreach, along with extensive consultation with cultural groups and government agencies.

To view a video recording and slides from Wednesday night’s meeting, visit https://mauirecovers.org/.

For general information on DPW, visit https://mauicounty.gov/publicworks.