More Hale Mua Updates

The Housing and Human Services Committee of Maui County Council decided that the debate over Sterling Kim’s 466 lot subdivision Hale Mua should go in front of the entire county council. The housing and human services committee did not make any recommendations. While there is no general consensus from the council, proponents and opponents of Hale Mua have started to line up. The two most prominent supporters at this time are Mayor Arakawa and new supporter county council member Jo Anne Johnson. Arakawa has been a long term supporter of the project and helped give direction to Kim regarding the infrastructure needed to support the project. Prominent among those that are not supporting the project at this time are the Maui Police department and the Catholic Diocese. The police department has stated its opposition to the project due to traffic concerns and a central Maui police presence that is already over extended. The concerns of the police department were weighing heavily with some of the County Council members. The diocese does not support the project due to its impact on St. Anthony’s school. The school is to be impacted when Imi Kala road is expanded to four lanes. The widening of the road will likely mean that the church will need to forfeit some of its current property. They also have concerns about safety for students and the impact of road noise on the class room environment. The expansion of Imi Kala is part of the infrastructure upgrades proposed to mitigate against increased traffic that will result from Hale Mua. For more information on the ongoing debate, check out Friday’s article in the Maui News.