#Keani rawlins-fernandez

The Maui County Council passed a bill on first reading Friday that would allow for factory-built housing in the Lahaina burn zone, a measure intended to accelerate housing recovery for survivors of the August 2023 wildfires.

A proposal to provide expedited property tax relief to local homebuyers stalled Tuesday after Maui County finance officials cautioned that the county’s tax system is designed to be “retroactive” and cannot easily handle mid-year adjustments for now. #propertytax #Maui

Maui County Council members voted 8-1 Wednesday to move forward with a proposal to create new hotel zoning districts for thousands of vacation rentals, a measure designed to soften the economic blow of the county’s controversial short-term rental phase-out. The approval of Resolution 25-230 refers a proposed bill to the Maui, Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi planning […]

The Maui County Council’s Housing and Land Use Committee on Monday deferred action on the creation of new hotel zoning districts following an executive session that lasted over an hour.

The Maui County Council reached a standstill Friday over a resolution intended to implement key recommendations of a Temporary Investigative Group aimed at implementing the phase-out of transient vacation rentals in apartment-zoned districts.

Mayor Richard Bissen today signed Bill 9 into law after Maui County Council approved the measure on second and final reading, marking what he calls “a historic step toward restoring housing availability for residents” and “realigning zoning policy with its original residential purpose.”

The Maui County Council members passed Bill 9 on second and final reading Monday by the same 5-3 vote that advanced the controversial measure earlier this month. Later Monday, Mayor Richard Bissen signed the bill into law. Bissen introduced the measure to phase out transient vacation rentals in apartment-zoned districts in May 2024. While the […]

The Maui County Council passed the contentious Bill 9 on first reading Monday, advancing a measure that would phase out thousands of transient vacation rentals currently operating in apartment-zoned districts, mostly in South and West Maui. The measure passed by a vote of 5-3 following a daylong meeting that included hours of emotional public testimony […]

The Maui County Council failed to reach a majority decision Tuesday afternoon in appointing a successor to the late Council Member Natalie “Tasha” Kama, effectively handing the selection authority to Mayor Richard Bissen.

Maui County Council Member Tasha Kama died at 9:25 p.m. Sunday, surrounded by her loved ones, according to a family statement posted on the Kahului council member’s Facebook page. She was 73.

The Maui County Council filed a bill Friday that would have authorized the mayor to enter into an interdepartmental agreement allowing the Maui Police Department to respond to alarms at Hawai‘i Army National Guard facilities.

Maui County Council members killed a bill aimed at maintaining affordable workforce housing when they failed to muster a fifth vote needed for passage, even after the measure passed unanimously out of committee 8-0 last month. After a tense debate, however, they abruptly resurrected the bill by invoking a rarely used “vote for reconsideration.” In […]

Maui County Council members have given initial approval to Bill 92, which authorizes the mayor to enter into an agreement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation for Maui County to participate in a Joint Terrorism Task Force, Honolulu Division. Passed Friday, the measure advances to the full Council for second-and-final reading.

The Special Committee on Real Property Tax Reform will hold its first meeting at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Council Chamber, Council Chair Alice Lee announced Friday. Lee, who also serves as the committee’s chair, said the meeting’s agenda includes several measures, including an administration proposal to allow a partial home exemption or long-term-rental exemption for property owners who […]

After a lengthy debate over process and public input, the Maui County Council delayed action Tuesday on a resolution that would grant exemptions and modifications to the Hale Mahaolu Ke Kahua affordable housing project in Waiehu. The Council agreed to lay the measure on the clerk’s table until its next regular meeting on Sept. 8, […]

In a move to address lingering concerns about a proposed law to phase out transient vacation rentals, the Maui County Council’s Housing and Land Use Committee voted 8-0 on Wednesday to form a Temporary Investigative Group. The TIG, a “permitted interaction group” under Hawaiʻi’s Sunshine Law, would investigate policies and procedures for vacation rentals in […]

On a day full of intense tension and high drama, the Maui County Council voted 5-4 to approve amendments on second-and-final reading for the hotly debated Honuaʻula project. But the final vote of the Council meeting came amid a noisy floor fight between Council Chair Alice Lee and Council Member Keani Rawlins-Fernandez.

The Maui County Council’s Water and Infrastructure Committee unanimously recommended approval Monday of a bill to establish paid parking zones at South Maui beach parks. The measure ensures local residents with a valid Hawaiʻi driver’s license get free parking and first dibs on spaces at popular South Maui beach parks.

A Maui County Council committee recommended approval Monday of a resolution expressing support for conveying public land in the vicinity of the Kahului Community Center and Kokua Pool for a 100-unit workforce rental housing project by Hale Makua Health Services in partnership with Alaka’i Development.

Maui County Council members unanimously gave final approval Friday to a bill establishing agricultural tourism as permitted accessory use in agricultural districts, except on Molokaʻi. Bill 75 also advances the Countywide Policy Plan directive: “Promote the teaching of traditional practices, including aquaculture; subsistence agriculture; Pacific Island, Asian, and other forms of alternative health practices; and indigenous Hawaiian architecture.” The measure will […]