Council committee backs temporary sewer deal for new Central Maui school

A Maui County Council committee voted 9-0 on Monday to recommend passage of a bill that would let the county provide temporary wastewater service to the new Central Maui school in Waikapū if the school opens before the county’s planned Central Maui wastewater plant is completed.

The Water and Infrastructure Committee, chaired by Council Member Tom Cook, advanced Bill 116 (2026), Committee Draft 1, which would authorize Mayor Richard Bissen to enter an intergovernmental agreement with the Hawaiʻi School Facilities Authority. The bill now goes to the full Council for the first of two readings.

Under the memorandum of understanding attached as “Exhibit A” to the bill, the county would make 14,500 gallons per day available from the existing Wailuku-Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility. The allocation applies only if sewer capacity is available when the school’s building permit is approved and the new Central Maui Wastewater Reclamation Facility is not yet operating when the school opens.

During fiscal 2027 budget deliberations in April, council members learned while discussing sewage rate fee hikes that the estimated cost of the new Central Maui plant had risen sharply from $130.6 million projected in the project’s final environmental impact statement in February to $298 million to $420 million, an increase of two to three times more in two months.

The authority expects the first phase of the school to open in fall 2031, with temporary capacity needed starting in July 2031, according to the memorandum. The county’s Central Maui facility, which is still in design, is projected to begin operations at the end of 2029 or later.

According to a progress report in September, the first phase of the new school will open to middle school students in 2031. Before the end of this year, a final approved master plan for the overall campus will be available, authority officials said. Over time, the campus will grow to support up to 1,650 students, housing a middle school and an elementary school.

Department of Environmental Management Director Shayne Agawa told the committee the department expects the new plant to be running first.

“We’re confident that the wastewater treatment facility will be in operation before the school comes online,” Agawa said.

The temporary agreement would end once the Central Maui facility, a pump station and a sewer force main are operating, according to the memorandum. Agawa said the capacity would then return to the county.

The school authority would be responsible for moving the school’s wastewater to the county system on Waiʻale Road. The plan is to pump it to a lift station that Waikapū Country Town Development would build on an adjacent lot and to Waiʻale Road from there. The county would have no obligation or liability for the lift station or related pipelines, the memorandum states.

The bill would also let the mayor sign amendments to the agreement as long as they do not increase the county’s financial obligation or extend its duration. County code requires council approval for intergovernmental agreements that place a financial obligation on the county.

The school’s first phase is expected to serve about 600 students, based on most recent discussions with the authority, and that the figure matches the sewer capacity requested, Agawa said, although he did not want to speak on behalf of the school facilities authority.

Responding to Council Member Tamara Paltin, Agawa said the county holds environmental permits for the new 14.9-acre facility but still needs construction permits. He said the county is also working through land entitlements, which he described as a zoning change, a district boundary amendment and, he believed, a community plan amendment.

The committee also voted 9-0 to amend the bill to correct references in its title and text to the name of the existing Wailuku-Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility, consistent with the memorandum. Agawa said the facility has carried that name for more than 20 years.

Council Member Keani Rawlins-Fernandez said she supports the agreement and hopes it adds pressure to get the county’s new wastewater facility built.

“Maybe it’ll help put pressure on the state if there’s anything they need to do to help us get our things all set. I think this is great,” she said. “I’m super supportive of our kids being out of overly crowded classrooms so that they can get more one-on-one time with teachers and supporting our teachers in not having such crowded classrooms. The quicker we can get the school up and going, the better.”

Council Members Shane Sinenci and Nohelani Uʻu-Hodgins also voiced support.

Public testifier Travis Liggett urged the committee not to add flow to the Wailuku-Kahului facility until it has effective disinfection, and he asked the Council to advance design funding for ultraviolet disinfection there.

In other committee action, members recommended full Council adoption of a resolution referring a bill to the Maui Planning Commission for a change of zoning for six parcels at the Māʻalaea Triangle (the Maui Ocean Center and Maui Harbor Shops) to B-2 Community Business District zoning.

The proposed land use changes are characterized as a “zoning cleanup.” Most of the 10.36 acres of property already is in B2 Community Business District zoning. However, there’s a mix of other zoning designations including light industrial, open zone and future roadway.

The mix of zonings leaves buildings nonconforming, difficulties with rebuilding in case of a natural disaster and possible difficulty in getting minor permits. The property owners, Maui Ocean Center and Maui Harbor Shops, cannot consolidate or subdivide the property, according to a presentation to the committee from land use consultant Will Spence.

Committee members also heard a presentation on the Department of Public Works’ Adopt-A-Street pilot program, which is managed under the county stormwater program.

In the pilot program, volunteers commit for two years to twice-a-year cleanups to prevent litter from reaching storm drains and the ocean. Roselani Scoop Shop in Pāʻia was the first project sponsor and conducted its first cleanup of a section of Baldwin Avenue in October 2025. Later, Island Fresh Cafe and Maui Yoga cleaned a second section of Baldwin Avenue as part of the program.

Committee members expressed enthusiastic support for the program, and Cook said he’s grateful to the Department of Public Works for its work. “This is a really good community county collaboration,” he said.

The committee took no action on the matter.