In Case You Missed It

The first home to be rebuilt in Kula after the August 2023 wildfires was commemorated on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, with a blessing, representing another step forward in recovery after the fires.  After all final inspections were completed last week, homeowner Thomas Liu, 83, said he will be moving out of a rental and into the completed two-bedroom, 860-square-foot cottage this month while work continues to rebuild the main house on his Kulalani Drive property. 

Moana 2 has arrived in Maui movie theaters with early community screenings drawing a swell of fans ahead of the Nov. 27 official opening in theaters. It’s been eight years since the original release, and movie goers were eager to see what new adventures abound beyond the reef for the wayfinder and her voyaging friends.

Hisako Film Lab, founded by Maui-raised filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton, is partnering with Maui Huliau Foundation to offer an after-school filmmaking program available to youth in grades 9-12 from all schools.

Former Maui County Council Chair Kelly T. King and 30 Maui County voters have filed an election contest with the Hawai’i Supreme Court seeking to void the results of the South Maui County Council race and to order the holding of a new election.

Dozens of students at King Kekaulike High School on Maui planted hundreds of native shrubs, grasses and ferns in November. It is part of a massive restoration effort by the University of Hawaiʻi’s East Maui Watershed Partnership—between federal, state and private landowners—to preserve the native forest.

With the rebuilding of homes underway and the commercial cleanup nearly finished, businesses say the timing is crucial to rebuild and provide jobs for returning residents.

The Maui Invitational has been away from the Lahaina Civic Center for three of the past four years. It returns with an impressive field next week.

In the first round of the Lahaina HERO Awards program, 300 Lahaina teachers, staff members and administrators will receive a monetary award ranging from $2,500 for eligible full time salaried employees to around $1,000 for part time staff and casual employees. The governor also announced a $20M Lahaina workforce housing project to build a 47 unit rental complex at Lahainaluna High School.

The first two completed homes under the Housing for Healthcare initiative were blessed in a private ceremony held with the two new tenants and their families, both Maui healthcare professionals who lost their homes and belongings in the devastating Lahaina fires last year. The families moved into their homes this month.

Civic engagement in Lahaina remained strong Tuesday evening, with about 100 community members and staff gathering to discuss potential sites for King Kamehameha III Elementary School’s permanent location.

The Ah Hees are days away from their final inspection and plan to spend Thanksgiving surrounded by loved ones more than a year after they were displaced by the August 2023 fire.

The last day of Maui Bus operations at Queen Kaʻahumanu Center is today, with the opening of the new Kahului Transit Center taking place tomorrow. The blessing and planned opening comes more than three years after it broke ground in February 2021, and reported delays in project completion. 

Hawaiian Airlines today began welcoming Hawai‘i residents to Huaka‘i by Hawaiian, a free program that offers kama‘āina guests greater value when flying with the carrier. Members will enjoy a free checked bag – inclusive of surfboards, golf bags, and other sports equipment – on Neighbor Island flights, 10 or 20% off one Neighbor Island booking per quarter, and network-wide deals monthly.

It’s been more than week since 30-year-old Hannah Kobayashi of Maui went missing during a layover at Los Angeles International Airport. She was on her way New York City to visit family, but missed her connecting flight at LAX that was scheduled to depart at 11 p.m. on Nov. 8, 2024.

The two candidates were separated by fewer than 100 votes in the closest Maui County Council contest of the election. With no recount triggered and the deadline for cured ballots passed, the only other option is a legal challenge.

298 Maui County voters cured deficiencies with their ballot envelopes. Results were updated by the State Office of Elections at 7:10 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024 and are posted below. The slim margin in the South Maui Council race narrowed from 117 votes after the third printout to 97 votes in the final summary report, with incumbent Tom Cook defeating Kelly Takaya King.

A draft environmental assessment has been completed for an 1.6-mile, southerly extension of Waiʻale Road that would, literally, pave the way for the Waikapū Country Town development. The new 80-foot-wide road would provide access to 1,433 homes, including 500 affordable units, as part of the master-planned Waikapū Country Town development, according to the draft document.

Two charter amendments passed with nearly 60% of the vote. The third, which proposed consecutive terms for board members with no waiting period, was narrowly defeated.

The new Maui Bus Kahului Transit Center is set to open on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, at 18 Vevau St., near Kahului Public Library and fronting Kahului Lani Apartment Complex. All Maui Bus services currently operating from Queen Kaʻahumanu Center will relocate to the new Kahului Transit Center. The final day of service at Queen Kaʻahumanu Center will be Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. The announcement comes more than three years after it broke ground in February 2021, and reported delays in project completion. 

Two nēnē born and raised on Maui were killed by cars in separate incidents on Sunday, according to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. Endangered nēnē are the Hawai‘i’s State Bird. One of the birds was part of a pair that witnesses report were being fed by someone in a stopped car on Amala Place in Kahului. The other nēnē was hit near the air cargo bypass of the airport.