Maui County · issues
Civic issues
Topics getting the most attention in Maui County public meetings, ranked by how frequently they come up.
Piilani Promenade subdivision bond and drainage questions
Bill 58 would redirect $6 million in leftover bond proceeds to renovations of the 24 North Church Street building for the Prosecuting Attorney in the Wailuku-Kahului Community Plan Area.
Notice to owners of redesignated parcels (6850 Makena Road)
The Makena Golf and Beach Club's representative asked for fixes: allow stormwater retention basins in gulches, field-verify gulch map lines, align affordable-housing policies with HUD rules, and correct the Makena Landing 'government facility' listing.
Youth-led Commission on Children and Youth
A Maui High School student testified with 56 signatures for turning the Commission on Children and Youth into a youth-led body, giving young people a standing voice in county decisions. Council Member Johnson voiced support.
Structural reform of county boards and commissions
A messy meeting for the Independent Nomination Board process: Faith Chase's police commission bid failed, East Maui water authority nominees were disqualified over license-area rules, and the chair called for repealing the INB provision.
HRS Chapter 179D dam and reservoir safety barrier
Member Cook warned that state law makes liability so 'toxic' that detention basins to stop South Maui mud floods aren't being built. The committee agreed to raise it in future legislative lobbying.
Māʻalaea Triangle zoning cleanup
A Maalaea condo owner asked the plan to treat Maalaea as its historic mixed-use harbor area rather than a residential extension of Kihei, noting most complexes sit in the sea-level-rise exposure zone with no town infrastructure.
Adopt-A-Street litter and stormwater program
Volunteers adopt stretches of road, pick up litter twice a year, and keep trash out of storm drains and the ocean. The county supplies gear and hauls the bags; the program has three groups but capacity for about ten.
Restoring Hawaiian place names and history in the plan
Historian Lucienne de Naie warned that big detention basins and developments are planned over poorly-surveyed archaeological sites — repeating past mistakes like the Wailea hotel zone built atop a major burial ground.
Honua'ula (Wailea 670) fire station and retention basin overlap
Kay Anderson of Wailea 808 told the committee the Wailea Golf description in the draft plan is outdated — the Maui Planning Commission approved an updated plan in March 2025 that the community hasn't had a chance to review. The committee will need to fix it before final approval.