La‘ikū will provide 16 two-bedroom, one-bath units at 560 sq. ft. each. The homes are being built on approximately two acres of land that was previously acquired by the HDOT as part of the Lahaina Bypass project. Monthly rent for homes in La‘ikū will be $1,750, which tenants can pay via personal funds, rental assistance from FEMA, or insurance proceeds. The $3.9 million project is funded by HCF and the state of Hawai‘i and developed by CNHA, which has a five-year revocable permit to use the HDOT parcel at no cost. Completion is scheduled for September 2024.

Structural evaluations of the Pioneer Mill smokestack documented concerns about its condition, prompting the County of Maui Department of Public Works to close Lahainaluna Road between Honoapi‘ilani Highway and Kuhua Street, effective 3 p.m. Monday, July 22, 2024.

Maui County Council members unanimously approved today a resolution authorizing a global settlement of all wildfire litigation filed against the county for wrongful deaths, injuries and property damage stemming from the Aug. 8-9 wildfires in Lahaina and Upcountry.

The County of Maui Department of Environmental Management’s Wastewater Reclamation Division announced that it has amended the Sewer Service Status from “red,” which indicates a property does not currently have active sewer service, to “green,” meaning the sewer service is active for a property, in the following areas: Near Puʻunoa Place and Ala Moana Street near the Jodo Mission; and south of Lahainaluna Road near Paunau Street.

Lahaina homeowners impacted by the August 2023 wildfire are encouraged to attend the County of Maui Office of Recovery’s Homeowners Webinar on Thursday, July 25, 2024, at 5:30 p.m.

Koholā Brewery is set for a grand opening July 21 as a taproom and restaurant at the Wailea Village shopping center. This marks the second comeback for the independent craft beer brewery founded in Lahaina in 2014.

The Hawai‘i State Board of Education (Board) today approved the Hawai‘i State Department of Education’s (HIDOE) recommendation to grant a waiver that would allow for the closures of the Lahaina public schools on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024, to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Lahaina wildfires. 

The US Environmental Protection Agency recently completed its Drinking Water and Wastewater mission in Lahaina as part of a multi-agency emergency response to the 2023 Maui wildfires. This mission is helping the County of Maui restore drinking water and wastewater services to the community in the wildfire-impacted areas of Lahaina.

The Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunset will host Lahaina Restoration Foundation President David Allaire on Aug. 6 for a talk on post-wildfire recovery efforts.

The meeting will include a presentation on the status of sampling and monitoring of the Olowalu Temporary Debris Storage site, sewer infrastructure updates and an update from the Parks Department. The US Army Corps of Engineers will report on the status of debris clearing.

Hawaiian Electric recently installed the first camera station in Lahaina and has plans to deploy a total of 78 stations in elevated fire risk areas on the five islands served by the company, with each location having two cameras to provide a full 360-degree view. The camera feeds will be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

This June, the local Maui and Honolulu chapters of AIA (American Institute of Architects), including AIA Maui President and Principal Architect at Hawaiʻi Off Grid David Sellers, welcomed AIA National President Kimberly Dowdell and AIA National CEO Laksiha Ann Woods to Hawaii. The visit to the AIA Hawaii chapters was its first in over 20 years.

Lance DeSilva, Forest Management Supervisor, DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife said he hopes to get things settled down by Wednesday, “But we’ll stay out here as long as we have to,” he said.

With the one-year anniversary of the Lahaina and Upcountry wildfires drawing near, business owners are pausing to reflect on their resilience and ability to withstand adversity, including losses of life, property and livelihood.

The Rotary District of Hawaiʻi (D5000) contributed $10,000 to the Lahaina Restoration Foundation to shift a “winter wonderland” event in December from its usual location at the Lahaina Banyan Tree to the Royal Lahaina Resort in Kāʻanapali.

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa researchers are undertaking a five-year, $3.8 million study of government’s response to the Lahaina wildfire disaster and its impact on residents.

Maui Council Member Yuki Lei Sugimura, who represents the Upcountry area says the anxiety for residents near the Haleakalā Crater Road fire is heightened due to their prior experience with the destructive wildfires in 2023. Sugimura commented on the structure and organization in determining potential evacuations, saying, “They are doing a lot more than we ever knew a year ago.”

Lahaina wildfire survivors will have an opportunity to participate in a Remembrance Ride to see recovery efforts for their beloved town within weeks of the one-year anniversary of the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfire disaster.

Firefighters battling the Haleakalā Crater Road fire have been challenged by difficult terrain, lava fields on the mauka side of the fire, soft soil when cutting firebreaks, swirling winds and low humidity. Maui fire officials note that while each fire is different, they have identified new technologies and organization that have helped to keep agencies better connected.

Akakū Maui Community Media, along with sister access stations ‘Ōlelo on Oahu, Hō’ike on Kaua’i and Nā Leo on Hawai’i Island, won two Hometown Media Awards at the Alliance for Community Media national conference in San Jose, California in late June, for a collaborative effort to broadcast a statewide vigil following the Aug. 8. 2023 Maui wildfires.