Testimony Requesting County Budget Support for Infrastructure, Historic Sites, and Community Initiatives
Aloha, Esteemed County Budget Committee Members,
My name is Jessie Kekiwi-Aweau, and I am honored to speak on behalf of Nā Moku Aupuni o Koʻolau Hui, the kalo farmers of Wailuanui and Ke‘anae, and the broader community who depend on these spaces for agriculture, education, cultural preservation, and community well-being. Today, I respectfully ask for your support in funding critical infrastructure repairs, restoring historic sites, and investing in long-term sustainability for our shared spaces.
Infrastructure & Water Flow Restoration
For generations, kalo farming has sustained our families, yet the deteriorating infrastructure threatens water access, property safety, and agricultural sustainability. We request funding to repair clogged culverts, which cause dangerous flooding on Wailuanui Road and a resident’s property, creating hazardous conditions. Additionally, we ask for support in restoring a non-operational water pipe, which once fed the lower loʻi kalo in Wailuanui—a critical irrigation system necessary for food production and cultural continuity. Addressing these water access issues will protect homes, ensure safe road conditions, and secure reliable water flow for farmers, enabling the continuation of traditional agricultural practices.
Keʻanae Uka Property Upgrades
We seek capital funding to upgrade Keʻanae Uka, formerly the Keʻanae YMCA, which serves as a hub for education, cultural workshops, camp and event area and community engagement. Necessary improvements include electrical, plumbing, and structural repairs, ensuring this space remains functional, safe, and accessible for kūpuna, residents, and visitors. By investing in Keʻanae Uka, we strengthen training programs, restoration efforts, and cultural initiatives that foster long-term resilience.
Keʻanae School – A National Historic Site & Community Resource
We also request funding for Keʻanae School, a Nationally Registered Historical Site. This cherished institution has the potential to serve as a safe resource center and after-school program for the communities of Keʻanae and Wailuanui. However, repairs and maintenance are urgently needed to ensure the building is safe and fully functional for educational programs, mentorship, and cultural gatherings. Supporting this initiative will provide keiki with opportunities to learn, connect, and perpetuate traditional Hawaiian knowledge, ensuring the continuity of Hawaiian values and practices for generations to come.
Historic Site Preservation – Miracle Church (Shrine/Coral Church)
Additionally, we request funding to repair the roof of the Miracle Church (Shrine/Coral Church) in Wailuanui and renovate the interior deck, where the tabernacle sits. This historic site is deeply significant to our community, serving as a place of worship, reflection, and gathering. Structural damage threatens its integrity, and immediate repairs will ensure its preservation for future generations and cultural continuity.
Support for Annual Keʻanae Koʻolauleʻa
Lastly, we ask for funding for the Keʻanae Koʻolauleʻa, an annual gathering that brings together kupuna, practitioners, and keiki to celebrate Hawaiian traditions with locals and visitors. This event fosters community connection, cultural exchange, and stewardship, showcasing music, workshops, and agricultural demonstrations that educate and inspire. Funding will ensure the continued success of this event, strengthening cultural pride and engagement.
Conclusion
We humbly ask for your support in restoring essential infrastructure, preserving historical sites, and strengthening educational and cultural resources. These investments will safeguard our community’s heritage, ensure safe and functional spaces for learning, and uphold the agricultural traditions that define Wailuanui and Ke‘anae.
Aloha Kakou. I can’t testify live today about the proposed RPT tier thresholds and rates. Hence these brief comments.
The mayor has begun using the flexibility the tiers give you to make the taxes allocated more progressively in a property class. By shifting the tier thresholds in the OO class upward, he has moved many homes in tier 2 to tier 1, and some from 3 to 2. This lowers the tax burden on the lower valued parcels.
I suggest you use exactly the same flexibility in the NOO and STR classes, but in the opposite direction. Lower the tier thresholds so many more of these vacation and second homes pay the higher rates in tiers 2 and 3. I am not suggesting an increase in total revenue by class, only suggesting to rearrange the tax more progressively, as the mayor has done with the OO class.
One note for later consideration. The RPAD data do not truly segregate all genuine long term rentals from second homes. We know there are a few thousand parcels classed as NOO which are actually used as long term rentals whose owners won’t or can’t qualify as LTR. However, I believe based on past converstaions with Marcy Martin, that if tier 1 is set at <800,000, nearly all of those unregistered long term rentals will fall in tier 1. You can have a lower rate for them, and raise the rates on tiers 2 and 3 accordingly. For the STR class, ask Finance to run a hypothetical tier 1 threshold at the median, and tier 2 at the average. Then if your STR is in the bottom half of all parcels, it’s in tier 1. If it’s above average, it’s in tier 3. Tier would contain those parcels above the median but below average.
One other note: it is useful to think of the “effective” tax rate in tiers 2 and 3. Even were you to set the top rate on NOO and STR to 15.00, at 1.5%, the owner would pay an effective rate closer to 10.00, or 1%, because that owner pays the lower tier 1 and tier 2 rates on much of the parcel’s value.
Mahalo.
Testimonies received BFED East Maui meeting 04-02-2025 (3)
Testimony Requesting County Budget Support for Infrastructure, Historic Sites, and Community Initiatives
Aloha, Esteemed County Budget Committee Members,
My name is Jessie Kekiwi-Aweau, and I am honored to speak on behalf of Nā Moku Aupuni o Koʻolau Hui, the kalo farmers of Wailuanui and Ke‘anae, and the broader community who depend on these spaces for agriculture, education, cultural preservation, and community well-being. Today, I respectfully ask for your support in funding critical infrastructure repairs, restoring historic sites, and investing in long-term sustainability for our shared spaces.
Infrastructure & Water Flow Restoration
For generations, kalo farming has sustained our families, yet the deteriorating infrastructure threatens water access, property safety, and agricultural sustainability. We request funding to repair clogged culverts, which cause dangerous flooding on Wailuanui Road and a resident’s property, creating hazardous conditions. Additionally, we ask for support in restoring a non-operational water pipe, which once fed the lower loʻi kalo in Wailuanui—a critical irrigation system necessary for food production and cultural continuity. Addressing these water access issues will protect homes, ensure safe road conditions, and secure reliable water flow for farmers, enabling the continuation of traditional agricultural practices.
Keʻanae Uka Property Upgrades
We seek capital funding to upgrade Keʻanae Uka, formerly the Keʻanae YMCA, which serves as a hub for education, cultural workshops, camp and event area and community engagement. Necessary improvements include electrical, plumbing, and structural repairs, ensuring this space remains functional, safe, and accessible for kūpuna, residents, and visitors. By investing in Keʻanae Uka, we strengthen training programs, restoration efforts, and cultural initiatives that foster long-term resilience.
Keʻanae School – A National Historic Site & Community Resource
We also request funding for Keʻanae School, a Nationally Registered Historical Site. This cherished institution has the potential to serve as a safe resource center and after-school program for the communities of Keʻanae and Wailuanui. However, repairs and maintenance are urgently needed to ensure the building is safe and fully functional for educational programs, mentorship, and cultural gatherings. Supporting this initiative will provide keiki with opportunities to learn, connect, and perpetuate traditional Hawaiian knowledge, ensuring the continuity of Hawaiian values and practices for generations to come.
Historic Site Preservation – Miracle Church (Shrine/Coral Church)
Additionally, we request funding to repair the roof of the Miracle Church (Shrine/Coral Church) in Wailuanui and renovate the interior deck, where the tabernacle sits. This historic site is deeply significant to our community, serving as a place of worship, reflection, and gathering. Structural damage threatens its integrity, and immediate repairs will ensure its preservation for future generations and cultural continuity.
Support for Annual Keʻanae Koʻolauleʻa
Lastly, we ask for funding for the Keʻanae Koʻolauleʻa, an annual gathering that brings together kupuna, practitioners, and keiki to celebrate Hawaiian traditions with locals and visitors. This event fosters community connection, cultural exchange, and stewardship, showcasing music, workshops, and agricultural demonstrations that educate and inspire. Funding will ensure the continued success of this event, strengthening cultural pride and engagement.
Conclusion
We humbly ask for your support in restoring essential infrastructure, preserving historical sites, and strengthening educational and cultural resources. These investments will safeguard our community’s heritage, ensure safe and functional spaces for learning, and uphold the agricultural traditions that define Wailuanui and Ke‘anae.
Mahalo nui for your time and consideration.
Aloha Kakou. I can’t testify live today about the proposed RPT tier thresholds and rates. Hence these brief comments.
The mayor has begun using the flexibility the tiers give you to make the taxes allocated more progressively in a property class. By shifting the tier thresholds in the OO class upward, he has moved many homes in tier 2 to tier 1, and some from 3 to 2. This lowers the tax burden on the lower valued parcels.
I suggest you use exactly the same flexibility in the NOO and STR classes, but in the opposite direction. Lower the tier thresholds so many more of these vacation and second homes pay the higher rates in tiers 2 and 3. I am not suggesting an increase in total revenue by class, only suggesting to rearrange the tax more progressively, as the mayor has done with the OO class.
One note for later consideration. The RPAD data do not truly segregate all genuine long term rentals from second homes. We know there are a few thousand parcels classed as NOO which are actually used as long term rentals whose owners won’t or can’t qualify as LTR. However, I believe based on past converstaions with Marcy Martin, that if tier 1 is set at <800,000, nearly all of those unregistered long term rentals will fall in tier 1. You can have a lower rate for them, and raise the rates on tiers 2 and 3 accordingly. For the STR class, ask Finance to run a hypothetical tier 1 threshold at the median, and tier 2 at the average. Then if your STR is in the bottom half of all parcels, it’s in tier 1. If it’s above average, it’s in tier 3. Tier would contain those parcels above the median but below average.
One other note: it is useful to think of the “effective” tax rate in tiers 2 and 3. Even were you to set the top rate on NOO and STR to 15.00, at 1.5%, the owner would pay an effective rate closer to 10.00, or 1%, because that owner pays the lower tier 1 and tier 2 rates on much of the parcel’s value.
Mahalo.