Aloha Councilmembers:
This is Mavis from Hana District Office, Member Sinenci’s. I’m writing to address something to Public Works. Was told from a friend traveling backside (Kaupo) to Hana this past weekend, that the area where the road is falling into the ocean, has a large crack on both sides & he fears the whole road in that area will fall into the ocean, hopefully not when people are traveling over it. I believe this area is scheduled to be worked on, just want to mention it as it doesn’t sound safe.
Mahalo,
Mavis Oliveira-Medeiros for
Gerard Shim
(808)866-7409
I am writing to first thank you for voting to refer Bill 52 mandating municipal wastewater disinfection to the ADEPT Committee. I appreciate your commitment to restoring the health of our nearshore ecosystems and recreation areas located close to municipal injection well discharges in Kihei and Kahului that remain untreated with respect to disinfection.
I am also writing to ask Budget Committee Chair Sugimura and other committee members to consider introducing and passing an amendment to pay for installation of UV disinfection of injection well discharges at the Kahului WWRF.
Through a FOIA response, DEM stated it would be around $6,000,000 to install UV disinfection in Kahului, based on the cost of a similar past upgrade in Lahaina. I encourage you to inquire with DEM for an updated estimate to install UV in Kahului.
Lahaina has employed UV disinfection for all effluent since 2015. Kihei has never had consistent disinfection, but DEM disclosed through a FOIA response that they are a few months away from activating a new UV channel for the injection well discharges in Kihei to achieve 100% municipal wastewater disinfection in South Maui in the near future.
This leaves only Kahului with no solid plans to install reef-safe UV disinfection. Passing Bill 52 would mandate this, but our community also needs funding to implement the hardware upgrades required to comply with a new law
It would be really neat if Member Kama or Chair Lee with Kahului or Wailuku constituencies who flush into the Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility would include such a budget amendment on their funding priority list. There can be no better legacy for a Council Member than protecting the keiki from infections.
If the funding for upgrades necessary to comply with a new wastewater disinfection Bill 52 is already included in the budget when the legislation is up for discussion later this spring in the ADEPT Committee, the Council will be well positioned to make universal municipal wastewater disinfection in Maui a reality. This will be real progress toward mediating the human and ecological harm from injection wells.
Hawaii is the US state with the highest incidence of staph infections, and studies show that "children, native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are disproportionately affected by CA-MRSA infection." Maui Memorial saw "record breaking" demand for medical care in early 2023, and a lot of those patients are in to treat skin & tissue infections. Eliminating wastewater discharges that are untreated with respect to disinfection as a source of contamination in the community can reduce hospital patient numbers.
I attached supporting information such as reports of fecal indicator bacteria exceedances at places like Cove Park in Kihei, Kahului Harbor and Baby Beach in Sprecklesville.
Thank you for your public service work especially during the budget season. We are so lucky to have leaders like you who are willing to sit through all those hearings to make sure our community stays on the right track.
Mahalo nui loa!
Travis Liggett
President, Reef Power LLC
reefpowermaui.com
FlushAware.com
Aloha e Budget, Finance, and Economic Development Committee,
I am writing on behalf of Hawaiian Community Assets, Inc (HCA) and Hawaii Community Lending, Inc (HCL) to provide recommendations for the County of Maui Fiscal Year 2024 budget. The following recommendations are related to the priorities in the Maui County Comprehensive Affordable Housing Plan that was funded by the Office of Council Services and released July 2021.
1. Increase Capacity at Department of Housing and Human Concerns. As shared during our presentation on the final housing plan and more recently on February 28, 2023 to the Affordable Housing and Land Use Committee, the County of Maui Department of Housing and Human Concerns (DHHC) lacks the capacity to deliver affordable housing to our local people.
When released in July 2021, the County housing plan identified a lack of capacity within the current affordable housing system as a major barrier in achieving the goal of 5,000 homes targeting households under 120% AMI in the next 5 years. This included a lack of capacity among builders, community development nonprofits, County Councilmembers, and within the DHHC. The plan called for more staffing at the DHHC so they could move County lands into production and coordinate the build of 1,302 new rental and for-sale units for local families, the establishment and funding of public-private partnerships, and education of key stakeholders - all to increase our collective capacity to reach the 5,000-home goal.
Despite these recommendations and the ever-increasing need for housing among our people, only 675 homes have gone into construction since July 2021. It appears DHHC has taken no apparent action on moving County lands, including properties on Lanai, in Central Maui, and in South Maui, into production for housing since the plan was completed. Requests for proposals and new grants remain unreleased, leaving millions of dollars on the table that could provide the critical education and capital families need to move into homes and to prevent foreclosure.
Delays in housing production, as well as funding out of the Affordable Housing Fund and other housing programs such as the Homeowner Assistance Fund, are due, in part, to the fact that the DHHC maintains a staff of approximately 14 full-time positions as compared to Hawaii County’s 51 full-time positions, despite their similar population sizes.
Our organizations recommend to fund the DHHC to create a staffing plan that will ensure they are able to hire and retain the expertise needed to meet the demand for housing among our County residents.
Furthermore, additional funding should be committed to hire and maintain experts to establish the new Department of Housing so it can be proactive on housing development when they open their doors on July 1, 2024.
2. Ensure Access to HUD Housing Counseling to Comply with Bill 111. During the last legislative session, the County Council passed a series of bills to ensure our local people have access to affordable rentals and for-sale homes. One such bill included Bill 111 which requires the County to establish and maintain an affordable housing list consisting of local residents who are required to complete HUD housing counseling. HUD housing counseling is offered by nonprofits located on Maui. Certificates of completion from HUD housing counseling qualify individuals and households for public assistance such as Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers and Federal mortgage programs requiring as little as 0% down. Furthermore, HUD housing counseling agencies promote fair lending laws by being required to refer homebuyers to a minimum of 3 lenders once they have reached the financial capacity to qualify for a mortgage.
To ensure compliance with Bill 111 for the establishment and maintenance of an affordable housing waitlist, our organizations recommend the DHHC receives a minimum of $750,000 in funding to enter into fee-for-service contracts directly with on-island, nonprofit HUD housing counseling agencies in order to serve local residents on the affordable housing list with these services, now required by County code.
3. Fund Deferred Payment Loans and Individual Development Accounts. In the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, the County Council ensured $2 million and $250,000 in funding for Deferred Payment Loans and Individual Development Accounts, respectively. The funds were passed through to Hawaii Community Foundation (HCF) for administration. At the end of December 2022, HCL had applied through a Request for Qualifications to be the program manager for the Deferred Payment Loan program, while HCA and Hale Mahaolu applied through a Request for Qualifications to be program managers of the Individual Development Accounts. The two programs are standard tools used by community development nonprofits and affordable housing systems across the nation to target affordability for low-income homebuyers by providing the capital necessary to mortgage qualify and purchase a home.
HCL, HCA, and Hale Mahaolu chosen as program managers for the programs in 2022 and funding is pending DHHC review and approval before funds will be released to HCF. In anticipation of County funds to be released at some point in 2023, our organizations reached out to developers with 2.96 and 2.97 obligations and homebuyers enrolled at the Maui Financial Opportunity Center. We determined there is a demand for $13.2 million in Deferred Payment Loans and $750,000 in Individual Development Account match funds.
Our organizations recommend the County fund $13.2 million in Deferred Payment Loans and $750,000 in Individual Development Accounts to be administered by the DHHC or contracted nonprofits.
Mahalo for the opportunity to share our recommendations for the Fiscal Year 2024 County of Maui budget. Should you have any questions or need additional information, please contact HCL Executive Director, Jeff Gilbreath, at 808.587.7653 or jeff@hawaiiancommunity.net.
Sincerely
Jeff Gilbreath
Executive Director
Hawaii Community Lending
Written testimony received 04-18-2023
Aloha Councilmembers:
This is Mavis from Hana District Office, Member Sinenci’s. I’m writing to address something to Public Works. Was told from a friend traveling backside (Kaupo) to Hana this past weekend, that the area where the road is falling into the ocean, has a large crack on both sides & he fears the whole road in that area will fall into the ocean, hopefully not when people are traveling over it. I believe this area is scheduled to be worked on, just want to mention it as it doesn’t sound safe.
Mahalo,
Mavis Oliveira-Medeiros for
Gerard Shim
(808)866-7409
April 17, 2023
Aloha Council Members,
I am writing to first thank you for voting to refer Bill 52 mandating municipal wastewater disinfection to the ADEPT Committee. I appreciate your commitment to restoring the health of our nearshore ecosystems and recreation areas located close to municipal injection well discharges in Kihei and Kahului that remain untreated with respect to disinfection.
I am also writing to ask Budget Committee Chair Sugimura and other committee members to consider introducing and passing an amendment to pay for installation of UV disinfection of injection well discharges at the Kahului WWRF.
Through a FOIA response, DEM stated it would be around $6,000,000 to install UV disinfection in Kahului, based on the cost of a similar past upgrade in Lahaina. I encourage you to inquire with DEM for an updated estimate to install UV in Kahului.
Lahaina has employed UV disinfection for all effluent since 2015. Kihei has never had consistent disinfection, but DEM disclosed through a FOIA response that they are a few months away from activating a new UV channel for the injection well discharges in Kihei to achieve 100% municipal wastewater disinfection in South Maui in the near future.
This leaves only Kahului with no solid plans to install reef-safe UV disinfection. Passing Bill 52 would mandate this, but our community also needs funding to implement the hardware upgrades required to comply with a new law
It would be really neat if Member Kama or Chair Lee with Kahului or Wailuku constituencies who flush into the Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility would include such a budget amendment on their funding priority list. There can be no better legacy for a Council Member than protecting the keiki from infections.
If the funding for upgrades necessary to comply with a new wastewater disinfection Bill 52 is already included in the budget when the legislation is up for discussion later this spring in the ADEPT Committee, the Council will be well positioned to make universal municipal wastewater disinfection in Maui a reality. This will be real progress toward mediating the human and ecological harm from injection wells.
Hawaii is the US state with the highest incidence of staph infections, and studies show that "children, native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are disproportionately affected by CA-MRSA infection." Maui Memorial saw "record breaking" demand for medical care in early 2023, and a lot of those patients are in to treat skin & tissue infections. Eliminating wastewater discharges that are untreated with respect to disinfection as a source of contamination in the community can reduce hospital patient numbers.
I attached supporting information such as reports of fecal indicator bacteria exceedances at places like Cove Park in Kihei, Kahului Harbor and Baby Beach in Sprecklesville.
Thank you for your public service work especially during the budget season. We are so lucky to have leaders like you who are willing to sit through all those hearings to make sure our community stays on the right track.
Mahalo nui loa!
Travis Liggett
President, Reef Power LLC
reefpowermaui.com
FlushAware.com
April 13, 2023
RE: FY2024 County of Maui Budget Recommendations
Aloha e Budget, Finance, and Economic Development Committee,
I am writing on behalf of Hawaiian Community Assets, Inc (HCA) and Hawaii Community Lending, Inc (HCL) to provide recommendations for the County of Maui Fiscal Year 2024 budget. The following recommendations are related to the priorities in the Maui County Comprehensive Affordable Housing Plan that was funded by the Office of Council Services and released July 2021.
1. Increase Capacity at Department of Housing and Human Concerns. As shared during our presentation on the final housing plan and more recently on February 28, 2023 to the Affordable Housing and Land Use Committee, the County of Maui Department of Housing and Human Concerns (DHHC) lacks the capacity to deliver affordable housing to our local people.
When released in July 2021, the County housing plan identified a lack of capacity within the current affordable housing system as a major barrier in achieving the goal of 5,000 homes targeting households under 120% AMI in the next 5 years. This included a lack of capacity among builders, community development nonprofits, County Councilmembers, and within the DHHC. The plan called for more staffing at the DHHC so they could move County lands into production and coordinate the build of 1,302 new rental and for-sale units for local families, the establishment and funding of public-private partnerships, and education of key stakeholders - all to increase our collective capacity to reach the 5,000-home goal.
Despite these recommendations and the ever-increasing need for housing among our people, only 675 homes have gone into construction since July 2021. It appears DHHC has taken no apparent action on moving County lands, including properties on Lanai, in Central Maui, and in South Maui, into production for housing since the plan was completed. Requests for proposals and new grants remain unreleased, leaving millions of dollars on the table that could provide the critical education and capital families need to move into homes and to prevent foreclosure.
Delays in housing production, as well as funding out of the Affordable Housing Fund and other housing programs such as the Homeowner Assistance Fund, are due, in part, to the fact that the DHHC maintains a staff of approximately 14 full-time positions as compared to Hawaii County’s 51 full-time positions, despite their similar population sizes.
Our organizations recommend to fund the DHHC to create a staffing plan that will ensure they are able to hire and retain the expertise needed to meet the demand for housing among our County residents.
Furthermore, additional funding should be committed to hire and maintain experts to establish the new Department of Housing so it can be proactive on housing development when they open their doors on July 1, 2024.
2. Ensure Access to HUD Housing Counseling to Comply with Bill 111. During the last legislative session, the County Council passed a series of bills to ensure our local people have access to affordable rentals and for-sale homes. One such bill included Bill 111 which requires the County to establish and maintain an affordable housing list consisting of local residents who are required to complete HUD housing counseling. HUD housing counseling is offered by nonprofits located on Maui. Certificates of completion from HUD housing counseling qualify individuals and households for public assistance such as Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers and Federal mortgage programs requiring as little as 0% down. Furthermore, HUD housing counseling agencies promote fair lending laws by being required to refer homebuyers to a minimum of 3 lenders once they have reached the financial capacity to qualify for a mortgage.
To ensure compliance with Bill 111 for the establishment and maintenance of an affordable housing waitlist, our organizations recommend the DHHC receives a minimum of $750,000 in funding to enter into fee-for-service contracts directly with on-island, nonprofit HUD housing counseling agencies in order to serve local residents on the affordable housing list with these services, now required by County code.
3. Fund Deferred Payment Loans and Individual Development Accounts. In the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, the County Council ensured $2 million and $250,000 in funding for Deferred Payment Loans and Individual Development Accounts, respectively. The funds were passed through to Hawaii Community Foundation (HCF) for administration. At the end of December 2022, HCL had applied through a Request for Qualifications to be the program manager for the Deferred Payment Loan program, while HCA and Hale Mahaolu applied through a Request for Qualifications to be program managers of the Individual Development Accounts. The two programs are standard tools used by community development nonprofits and affordable housing systems across the nation to target affordability for low-income homebuyers by providing the capital necessary to mortgage qualify and purchase a home.
HCL, HCA, and Hale Mahaolu chosen as program managers for the programs in 2022 and funding is pending DHHC review and approval before funds will be released to HCF. In anticipation of County funds to be released at some point in 2023, our organizations reached out to developers with 2.96 and 2.97 obligations and homebuyers enrolled at the Maui Financial Opportunity Center. We determined there is a demand for $13.2 million in Deferred Payment Loans and $750,000 in Individual Development Account match funds.
Our organizations recommend the County fund $13.2 million in Deferred Payment Loans and $750,000 in Individual Development Accounts to be administered by the DHHC or contracted nonprofits.
Mahalo for the opportunity to share our recommendations for the Fiscal Year 2024 County of Maui budget. Should you have any questions or need additional information, please contact HCL Executive Director, Jeff Gilbreath, at 808.587.7653 or jeff@hawaiiancommunity.net.
Sincerely
Jeff Gilbreath
Executive Director
Hawaii Community Lending