In Case You Missed It

Maui attorney, Jan K. Apo, who is representing hundreds of families impacted by the August 2023 Maui wildfires, lauded Monday’s federal court decision to remand some 90 Lahaina fire cases back to the state court on Maui. 

Maui County Council members were sharply divided Friday over a proposal to use Maui County’s condemnation power of eminent domain to obtain a nearly 20-acre former quarry next to the Central Maui Landfill for the final disposal of toxic Lahaina fire ash and debris.

In addition to containing the recently-renegotiated Compacts of Free Association, the package includes the text of Sen. Hirono’s Compact Impact Fairness Act to restore access to a range of federal benefits for COFA citizens who reside in the US, including nearly 20,000 in Hawaiʻi. The package, which passed in the US House of Representatives on Wednesday, now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.

The second of two Lahaina Gateway signs that were stolen shortly after the August wildfires, was returned to the Lahaina Restoration Foundation on Friday. It was found cut into three pieces, but executives say they are able to piece the sign together and will reinstall it in West Maui.

So far in 2024, NOAA has received six confirmed reports of vessel strikes to humpback whales in Hawaiʻi. Within the span of a few weeks in February, a Hawaiian spinner dolphin yearling and a humpback whale calf stranded dead in Hawaiʻi. Both of their injuries were consistent with vessel strike, according to NOAA.

Early wildfire detection and wind sensors are on their way to Kīhei and Lahaina, public officials announced at a press conference in South Maui today.

The bill would direct key federal agencies to use AI tools to improve weather forecasting, crack down on illegal deforestation and optimize electrical grids.

The median price for a single-family home on Maui in February 2024 was $1,250,760, up 15.9% from the same time last year. The median price for a condo was $744,500, down 18.6% from the same time last year.

Mayor Richard Bissen and officials from the County’s Office of Recovery announced temporary modular home group housing projects being planned in coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the State of Hawaiʻi and private developers to provide an estimated 4,000 interim housing units for wildfire survivors. The information was shared at the Disaster Recovery Community Update meeting held at the Lahaina Civic Center on Wednesday night.

Maui Academy of Performing Arts has received a $1,000,000 donation for its new black box theatre in Wailuku from philanthropist Susan Naylor Moulton. Currently under construction, the Naylor Family Theatre will open in spring 2025.

Preliminary data on coastal water quality monitoring in West Maui was presented Wednesday at a public speaker series featuring Andrea Kealoha, Ph.D., an assistant professor of Oceanography at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

While thousands of wildfire survivors remain displaced, Maui County Council members heard Tuesday a proposal for the state to purchase the former 216-room Maui Sun Hotel property in central Kīhei and convert it into long-term affordable workforce housing and a public prekindergarten facility.

The community is encouraged to attend the County of Maui’s Weekly Disaster Recovery Community Update Meeting at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 6 at the Lahaina Civic Center to hear about the County’s interim housing plan.

Maui County’s Department of Finance was under-staffed and ill-prepared to collect transient accommodations tax money beginning in November 2021 when a state law allowing the county to tap millions of visitor-generated revenue went into effect, according to a report by the Office of the County Auditor.

This week on Maui, a musical tribute to Gutsy Women honors Women’s History Month, An African American dance company shares its drumming roots, and Maui Arts & Cultural Center has its annual gala fundraiser. Coming up fast are the Tony Award winning musical Kinky Boots, Maui Pops Orchestra’s music of the Roaring ’20s, and a historic play reviving the memory of Hawaiʻi’s Prince Kūhiō.

Maui musician Kamalei Kawaʻa secured a spot on Team Chance during the Blind Auditions of NBC’s “The Voice” by singing “Redemption Song” by Bob Marley and the Wailers. Just seconds into his audition, Chance the Rapper turned his chair in the hopes of securing Kawaʻa for his team.

Upcountry, Maui post offices are nō ka ʻoi when it comes to service. The US Postal Service recently recognized the Kula, Makawao and Pukalani Post Offices as among its very best postal retail offices in the entire nation.

A new AARP Hawaiʻi/Smart Growth America report about the potential danger of losing affordable housing in Hawaiʻi has triggered a response from the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corp., which is responsible for increasing and preserving the supply of affordable housing statewide.

The group Hoʻomakaukau Maui Hikina – “East Maui Ready” Leadership (EMR) is issuing a standing advisory requesting that both Waiʻoka and Kaihalulu areas of East Maui be avoided when looking for recreational spots to visit.

The Hawaiʻi State Senate Committee on Ways and Means passed out several bills aimed at addressing key priorities for the Senate, including bills to assist in wildfire recovery, agriculture, economic development, homelessness and housing.