Windward Hotel Near Kahului Airport Proposed for Completion in 2023
A Draft Environmental Impact Statement has been filed for the proposed 200-room Windward Hotel in Central Maui.
The hotel is planned for construction on five acres within the Maui Business Park Phase II, off of Lauʻō Loop in Kahului.
The applicant, R.D. Olson Development, says the hotel will primarily serve users of the Kahului Airport, as well as others requiring accommodation in Central Maui.
According to the draft document, it is anticipated that the Windward Hotel project will be constructed in a single phase with an anticipated construction start date in 2021. The Draft EIS estimates that the hotel will be open for business in 2023.
The developer intends to purchase the project site parcels from Alexander & Baldwin, LLC, which currently owns the lands in fee simple. Prior to its development, the lands comprising the site were actively used as agricultural sugar cane fields operated by Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar Company.
According to the draft document, the hotel will vary from one to four stories in height, with elevator towers, and will include amenities, such as a swimming pool, dining area, sundry shop, meeting room, business center and other support services and accessory uses for the hotel operation.
In addition, the project will include associated onsite and offsite infrastructure improvements, including but not limited to water, sewer, roads, drainage and electrical. There’s also plans for a shuttle to provide free transportation within a two mile radius of the hotel, including pick up and drop off to and from the Kahului Airport.
According to the DEIS, the proposed hotel use will require a Motion to Amend the State Land Use Commission Decision & Order A03-739, a Change in Zoning, and Wailuku Kahului Community Plan Amendment. After all Land Use designations have been obtained, a Special Management Area Use Permit will be required to authorize the project’s development action
in the SMA.
A statutory 45-day public review and comment has started with comments due by Nov. 22, 2019. Comments should be sent to the approving agency with a copy to the applicant (R.D. Olson Development; 520 Newport Center Dr., Suite 600, Newport Beach, CA 92660) and the consultant (Chris Hart & Partners, Inc.; 115 North Market St., Wailuku, HI 96793).