Ka‘ahumanu Avenue Community Corridor Virtual Town Hall, March 31

A Kaʻahumanu Community Corridor Virtual Town Hall meeting is slated to take place from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., on Wednesday, March 31. The meeting’s featured speaker is Jeff Speck, an international expert in planning walkable, bikable communities.

Participants will also hear findings of the first round of community input from more than 1,000 Maui residents who shared their suggestions for the Kaʻahumanu Avenue Community Corridor study. Those in the Virtual Town Hall will be invited to share their ideas through live polling, small group discussions and question-and-answer sessions.

Speck will speak about ways to create a safer, more affordable and accessible community in Central Maui. “My mission is to make communities as walkable as possible,” said Speck. “Maui residents may want to return to a time when island towns like Lahaina, Wailuku and Pāʻia had a more robust mix of homes, businesses, shops, and cultural activities, and car ownership was optional.”

Speck has long been an advocate of walkable cities and has developed plans in several American communities, big and small. He has written or co-authored several books on community planning, including “Walkable City Rules: 101 Steps to Making Better Places.” He is the principal of the urban design and consultancy firm Speck & Associates in Brookline, Mass.

The Kaʻahumanu Avenue Community Corridor study is led by the Maui County Department of Planning with support from a project team including the County Departments of Transportation, Parks and Recreation, Housing and Human Concerns, Public Works, the Maui Metropolitan Planning Organization and the State Department of Transportation. The project is funded by a grant from the Hawaiʻi State Legislature with Maui County matching funds.

To register for the upcoming meeting, go to www.kaahumanucommunitycorridor.org.