Upcoming development-related meetings

Tuesday Feb 5 – Maui Planning Commission
North Beach timeshare and Palauea Beach development
9am public testimony; 250 High St., lower level (Maui Planning Dept) Wailuku

Issues: (Both items deferred from Jan. 22 meeting)
1.  Approval for hundreds of  more  time share condos (Starwood Resorts) for the North Beach site in Ka'anapali (old Ka'anapali airport area).
Concerns: No public water supply. Project will construct its own diesel power plant on the shoreline to run a desalinization plant to provide water to the units. Desal plant will inject its effluent, hot brine, into a shoreline injection well on site.  Several Commission members want an update of 1988 environmental review ( EIS) to disclose any impacts of the power plant and the desal operation on reefs. Developer says they are all very "green' and no review is needed.
Affordable housing: Project will pay $40k into a fund for every 6 units, around $2 million total while they make multimillions? That won't buy much affordable housing.

2. Palauea Beach (called "White Rock" Beach by some) just south of Kea Lani hotel in Wailea-Makena. Commission is being asked to accept a Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) to amend the Kihei-Makena Community Plan and allow 4 more luxury homes to be built on last undeveloped 2 acres of Palau'ea Beach.
Concerns: EA very weak and leaves a lot of important discussion out. Community Plan specified no conversion of coastal beach or Open Space designated lands to higher designated use (like residential). Very significant cultural area – from shore to uplands – five burials already discovered on beach lands. Bad archaeological review. Many lineal descendents of Palauea ahupua'a LCA owners still live in Maui. None are being consulted. EA does not deal with impacts of septic systems for beachfront residents on nearby ocean (no sewer available). No discussion of loss of shaded beach area and streetside parking areas now enjoyed by public.

Conclusion: Planning Commission should ask for full EIS to discuss real impacts and propose mitigations.

Wednesday Feb 6 – Maui County Land Use Committee
 4 luxury condos with 4 swimming pools next door to Kalani Heiau in Makena
Minimal archaeological review. Is this a good idea?
 1:30 pm County Council Chambers 200 High St (County Bldg) 8th floor.
Public testimony at beginning of meeting

Issue: Approval of  a Community Plan Amendment for 4 huge (4000 sq ft) "condos' each with its own swimming pool proposed for the old Lonokailua-Bak-Awai homestead in Makena (across from Maluaka Beach/ Keawalai Church ) TMK: 2-1-07:66

Concerns:
Water – 4 separate swimming pools? Is this where our scarce Iao aquifer water should be going?
Archaeological review of this land concluded only "old ranching walls" were present and could be destroyed. This was questioned by citizen's who believe many sites on the parcel related to Makena's major Kalani heiau located immediately mauka on property under separate ownership. Some researchers believe the lands around Kalani heiau and Keawalai church were part of a chiefly compound. Surrounding sites to this property date back as far as 1000AD and many dates in 1400's. Family members also indicated a "night marchers trail' led through the lands. This parcel should have thorough  archaeological review and a cultural impact statement should be prepared.

Friday, Feb 8 County Council Hearing:
Wailea 670 "conditions" for Change in Zoning (CIZ)
 9am (sign up earlier if possible) County Council Chambers
200 High St (county Bldg) 8th floor. Public testimony at beginning of meeting.

Issue: Council Land Use committee members spent 26 meetings discussing Wailea 670's proposal for 1400 units just south of Maui Meadows. Only 3 of these involved public testimony. Because W-670 refused to submit a complete CIZ Application as required by County Code, the Committee spent many hours trying to get information and drafting "conditions"  to try to "patch together the gaps' in this project that was recycled from a 1980's plan.
These conditions are a lot like putting lipstick on a pig – a cosmetic touch to distract the public with no real solutions for the project's shortcomings. Now the whole council will review the project with the 28 proposed "conditions" two more times.  Some Council members may try to amend the conditions. Public testimony as to the inadequacy of the conditions will support Council members who want to see this project answer the hard questions. A review of conditions will be posted on savemakena.org by Feb 2. Those who can't attend the hearing can send letters to newspapers or the county council with their concerns.

Concerns:
Affordable housing. This is not really about building a neighborhood with a genuine mix of affordable housing. Now law requires 50% affordable housing, but W-670 will build first 250 units offsite as rental apartments in Kihei industrial area. No one know what "affordable' housing will end up on site, what it will cost and when it will be built.
There is no water, sewage or road capacity for this project.  Everything will be based upon promises that have little public disclosure of plans or impacts. Palauea – Keauhou (the ahupua'a in the south part of the 670 acres proposed for W-670) is a very archaeologically/culturally  significant area but very sketchy review has been done. Most known sites that developers are offering to preserve will be features in golf courses of landscapes.
No proof of clear land titles. Important remnant of native dryland forest spans around 110 acres. Developer has constantly minimized need to protect habitat for native plants, insects and animals. Small preserve areas surrounded by condos and golf courses are proposed. No adequate parklike buffer with adjoining Maui Meadows that has no park of its own.
Drainage and wastewater impacts last discussed in 1988. Times have changed, yet injection wells are still proposed for the project. A proposed desal plant is also an unknown chemistry experiment with our groundwater.
Developer emphasizes economic benefits. No guarantee that these will really happen. Economic benefits promised before when this project was under other ownerships, never materialized. Current investors include large international corporations like Cargill Corp and Lehman Bros with shamefull records of exploiting the environment and workers.