Strongly oppose the str ban. Maui needs to stop thinking that the only way to give something to someone is to take from someone else. We can all thrive. We can build our way out. We can support entrepreneurship and local businesses that keep the revenue here on island. Not just mainland companies that own rental cars and hotels.
The str ban would be rocket fuel on an economy already burning down. We need to become business forward, tourism forward and own that fact. There is nothing wrong with it.
This would give that revenue straight back to the mainland companies who own the hotels and most of it will leave the island.
This shouldn’t have got anywhere near as far as it has. Terrible idea.
I oppose the STR ban. The ban would prevent my family and I from returning to the island and spending our dollars as the limited hotel rooms would be out of our price range.
June 9, 2025
Heather Loughridge-Buono
P O Box 12857
Lahaina, HI 96761
Mphbuono1@yahoo.com
(808)463-4744
To Maui County Council,
Re:HLU-4 Bill 9
First I would like to be clear that the schism created in the community over the rights of use for privately owned property is shameful. The focus should be on solutions that benefit all the community. That community includes all homeowners who pay taxes Few members of the community have focused on real solutions. This intense energy being spent should focus on economic diversification and getting affordable housing for all residents. The STRs will never be affordable housing.
I want the council to understand the very human element here. The people I work with, they pay their taxes. Some are homeowners here, some not, but they have deep ties to the community, as do I. They will be without income.
After the pandemic, after the fire.
After the misinformation going out around the world that has cut their income substantially.
Marietta B. houses her son and daughter-in-law and their baby after they lost their home in the fire. She also houses her mother who has health issues and employs other family members as cleaners.
Monica J is another house cleaner who lost her home in the fire and commutes from up country to the west side to work. She has a family to feed as well.
Peter B. is a very hard worker who I depend on for so many things, but he may need to leave Hawaii to find other work.
Patricia P. lost her home in the fire and is also taking care of grandchildren.
Arcelia has lost most of her clients when the fire destroyed their homes and is hanging on, hoping that business comes back soon, I wish I had more work to give her.
These are a few of the people I work the closest with. Before the pandemic, before the fire they earned a living wage. There are other people this will affect, vendors and maintenance and landscape specialists.
My clients have neighbors who died in the fire, neighbors who feel they are too old to rebuild their beloved homes. Too old to start over.
I struggle to stay resilient myself, and I love my home and I have faith that the right thing will happen here, for the greater good.
This testimony represents one of dozens I have written over the last 15 years. Over that time, I have consistently reminded the current council of facts and cited examples and sources;
- The clients I work for have made an investment in Maui and pay taxes that help sustain Maui resources. Not a single one is without deep ties to Maui.
- These properties were not built for, nor are they suitable for long term residential housing.
- These properties are extremely expensive to maintain because of age and their proximity to the ocean. They will never be affordable.
- The Minatoya ruling was supposed to be the compromise. These properties were built as “condotels” before certain zoning laws were placed and they have met all the criteria they needed to when built, and the same is true now. My clients are legally renting their beloved vacation homes. Most barely break even.
- The taxes garnered from the STR industry on Maui represent 30% of the budget of Maui County. How are you going to replace those taxes? By raising taxes to residents?
I feel confident that others will fill in the blanks that I have missed on those facts, the numbers and figures that are so very pertinent to this issue.
Until Maui and Hawaii acts to find ways to diversify the economy from its dependence on tourism, this is how we feed our kids, the economy that gives us the comfort to keep our kupuna safe.
I ask that the council reject this newly proposed bill. It is not right. For so many reasons.
Thank you for allowing our comments. We oppose the STR ban and believe it is not what is the most beneficial for the businesses and people of Maui. Mahalo.
June 7, 2025
Aloha Chair, Vice Chair, and Committee Members,
My name is Barbara Proctor and I own a short-term rental property in the Golf Villas in Maui County. I am writing today document my concern over the restrictions being looked at that would remove 7,000 plus STR from the Maui Market.
I’ve been a responsible and community-oriented owner, Prior to owning I rented and returned to the island over 22 times. I recommend local restaurants, hikes, outings and business that provide wonderful experiences such as snorkeling, mopeding, horseback riding, wine tasting, and shopping destinations in our welcome guide. I employ several local service providers — cleaners, maintenance techs, property management companies and landscapers — many of whom I have grown close with. On all my visits and those of my guests we have had wonderful experiences and conversations with the locals. They are always so appreciative of our business and willingness to continue to choose Maui as our vacation spot.
Some of my guests have even said they wouldn’t have come at all if they didn’t have a vacation rental option. They prefer this option for the full kitchen and home-like environment. That matters — not just to me, but to all the small businesses they support during their stay.
Owning in this complex has not been easy, and it was a lifelong dream of ours coming to reality 42 years after staying at the golf Villas on our honeymoon. We finally were able to purchase in 2022. We’ve faced huge maintenance costs, special assessments, and massive increases in insurance after the fires. These aren’t luxuries — they’re costs that ensure the property remains safe, functional, and appealing. STR income helps cover those costs while supporting local workers.
This legislation feels rushed and one-sided. I urge the Council to work with owners like me and equally important local employees that are impacted by this legislation. to find a fair and balanced path forward — one that protects local jobs, supports the economy, and holds STR owners to high standards, instead of phasing us out completely.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Barabara Proctor
Barb.proctor@comcast.net
503-705-2197
Kapalua Golf Villas
I’m a full time Maui resident with 6 children. I support my family with a small business managing 22 vacation rentals which I’ve built over the previous 10 years. If this bill were to pass, 18 of the units I manage would no longer be vacation rentable and I would not be able to continue to provide for my family.
I submit the transient accommodation, general excise, and maui transient accommodation taxes each month for my owners. This along with the much higher property taxes on vacation rentals is a significant amount of tax dollars. I believe it makes more sense to utilize some of the tax dollars generated from vacation rentals to subsidize affordable housing on the island.
If this bill passes I believe there will be negative unintended consequences that will reverberate throughout the Maui economy.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I urge you to vote no on this bill.
This legislation will heavily damage the overall economy of Maui County and it should not be applied to Moloka’i as there is not a demand for 1-bedroom condos to be rented by Hawaiian Families on Moloka’i.
My name is Diana Bray, we own a condo at Hale Mahina Beach Resort and I am opposed to this bill. While we are empathetic to the issues related to the housing shortage on Maui, but, we do not believe that converting STR's is LTR's is the solution. Our monthly AOAO and lease hold payment total to nearly $2500 per month not to mention our $14K property tax bill!
We worry about our property management company, housekeeper, landscaper, maintenance and construction team. So many people we care about will likely loose their jobs when tourism is crippled with the loss of STR's. I have talked to many boutique and restaurant owners who are terrified about the possibility!
I urge you to find a compromise and again, must say that I am opposed to this bill.
Thank you for your time, Diana
So the county spends 6 million with the help of the hotels to encourage visitors to come yet try to phase out these legal STR places?? Hopena ahuwale i keia mea pilau! So obvious who is pushing this bill, and with the help of that corrupt and shameful Lahaina Strong group whose leaders are being paid well. Mahalo to the mayor for drafting this bill, you got your raise and ended up being the lap dog of the hotel industry. Ka leo maika'i in that Maui Week video..you look so happy knowing you are now getting paid much more than a doctor!
Aloha ia oukou! O Keola ko'u inoa a e noho nei au i Wailuku me ku'u ohana. O ko'u one hanau ma Puna o moku o Keawe.
I am expressing full opposition to this bill which is NOT very well thought out, and obviously just a ploy by this hupo mayor to please his hotel overlords. I also want to mention those po'e poho who support this Lahaina Strong group. Nui ka hewa i keia hui, ran by lazy people like that Paele drug leader or that wahine Jordan who seems to get hapai every year and use her babies to express her cause. Not to mention that lolo KR Fernandez or that Paltin who all just got a raise at the expense of us paying taxes!
My name is Kenneth Duda. We own a home on Kamaka Cirlce. We are so sad for our friends and neighbors who have suffered so much from the fire.
Our Lahaina home is not our primary home, but we have never rented it out and never plan to.
I oppose this measure. The solution to housing affordability is more housing. It is not kicking guests off the island.
Make no mistake --- by denying our guests any place to stay, we are essentially kicking them out. This is bad for our guests, and it's bad for all Maui residents, and it's ethically wrong. Obviously it's bad for our guests --- they would have liked to come to visit, but no longer will be able to, due to this measure. It's bad for all Maui residents because our guests make the island more vibrant, more alive, and provide economic livelihood to so many residents. It's ethically wrong because it violates the golden rule. How would you like it if you wanted to visit a beautiful place, but the residents there told you to beat it, you could not come because there was no place for you to stay? I think that'd feel pretty bad, and yet that's what we're doing to non-residents with this measure.
The real solution is _more housing_. Yes, that means more construction, higher density, and more development. By all means, set aside parks and beaches, but please allow people to build on their land what makes sense to build. The number of regulations and restrictions around building is overwhelming already. That's why there's not enough housing --- it simply isn't legal to create it in desirable areas. Note that in order to rebuild Lahaina, the government has to set aside rules against construction. Think about that. It was illegal to rebuild Lahaina back to its pre-fire beauty! All we need to do is allow people to build what they want on their land. Remove the blockade against housing, and you'll have more housing, and with more housing comes reasonable prices.
The premise of this measure is that the housing shortage is so bad that we need to keep people off our island to free up the precious units for more deserving occupants. This idea correctly diagnoses that there is a shortage, but the cure is completely wrong. If there's a shortage, build more. It's that simple.
DEAR MAUI COUNTY COUNCIL,
MY HUSBAND AND I LIVE IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA AND HAVE BEEN VISITING THE KAPALUA RESORT COMMUNITY SINCE 1986, FOR OUR 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY. WE BOTH FELL IN LOVE WITH KAPALUA AND HAVE BEEN RETURNING EVER SINCE AND EVENTUALLY WITH OUR 2 CHILDREN.
WE TRY TO STAY INFORMED ON THE CURRENT PROPOSED BAN ON TRANSIENT VACATION RENTALS FOR MAUI COUNTY AND ARE VERY MUCH OPPOSED TO SUCH BAN.
FOR A MANY YEARS WE STAYED AT THE KAPALUA BAY HOTEL WHICH WE VERY MUCH MISS. OTHER YEARS, THROUGH THE BAY HOTEL, WE RESERVED OUR STAYS IN THE BAY VILLAS. WE HAVE PROBABLY STAYED IN 80% OF THE BUILDINGS AT THE BAY VILLAS.
WE ADDITIONALLY HAVE STAYED IN THE RIDGE VILLAS MANY TIMES FOR OUR FREQUENT VACATIONS TO MAUI. AS ALREADY EXPRESS MANY TIMES, THE KAPALUA RESORT AREA WAS ALWAYS A SHORT TERM, VACATION RENTAL COMMUNITY SINCE IT'S INCEPTION.
IN 2018 WE WERE FORTUNATE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE A BAY VILLA, A LIFE LONG DREAM OF OURS. WE DO RENT OUR CONDO ABOUT 75% OF THE TIME. THIS JUST MAKES ECONOMIC SENSE TO DO SO. WE INFORM ALL GUEST OF THE SHOPS, STORES, RESTAURANTS, GOLF COURSES AND ACTIVITIES AVAILABLE TO MAKE THEIR VISIT MEMORABLE.
WE HAVE HAD MANY RETURNING GUEST.
WE ARE AWARE OF THE LOCAL HOUSING CRISIS IN MAUI ONLY MADE WORSE BY THE DEVASTATING FIRE IN LAHAINA. SUCH A TERRIBLE AND SAD EVENT.
MAUI WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!
WE WERE INFORMED OF THE WORKFORCE HOUSING THAT WAS BUILT FOR SOME OF THE EMPLOYEES OF THE KAPALUA RESORT AREA. IT SEEMS KAPALUA HAS HELPED ALREADY. WE ALSO OBSERVE THE HOUSING BUILT ALONG THE HIGHWAY, JUST NORTH OF THE LAHAINA SAFEWAY. THESE DEVELOPMENTS MAKE SENSE TO SOLVE QUICKLY THE IMMEDIATE SHORTAGE.
WITH TOURISM ALREADY DOWN ON MAUI IT SEEMS THE VACANT HOTEL ROOMS COULD BE AN ANSWER ALSO.
TO BAN SHORT TERM RENTALS IN RESORT COMMUNITIES AS KAPALUA DOES NOT SEEMS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM AND IS EXTREMELY UNFAIR TO PROPERTY OWNERS AS OURSELVES.
NOT TO MENTION THE LOST OF JOBS FOR THE ISLAND THIS BAN WOULD CAUSE. LOCALS NEED HOUSING, BUT FIRST THEY NEED JOBS. VACATION RENTALS CONTRIBUTES TO MAUI'S MAIN ECONOMY, TOURISM! NEED THIS BE SAID!
TO SHUT THIS DOWN WILL BE ANOTHER DEVASTATING BLOW TO THE ISLAND OF MAUI.
FIRST COVID, THEN THE LAHAINA FIRE, NOW THIS.
MAUI WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!
As a long-time Maui resident, we oppose this bill. We have owned a condo in West Maui for the last 5 years. This bill appears to be highly divisive, and its passage would unjustly penalize individuals who have worked diligently to establish a small business in Maui.
Our condo operating costs are close to 4,000 a month, and to be forced to rent it long term, we would likely have to operate at a permanent loss.
If the bill passes, I anticipate years of expensive legal battles. There must be a better way.
I strongly urge the planning commission to look into ways to solve Maui's housing crisis, something that is good for everyone
This is a terrible proposal scapegoating condominium owners for decades of failure to create affordable housing for residents and to rebuild Lahaina Town after the devastating fire. I own in Maui Vista and our association documents show it was built as a resort for short term housing and not for workforce housing. This proposal is a taking without compensation and will be fought in court if passed.
Dear Chair Kama, Vice Chair Uʻu-Hodgins and Members of the Housing and Land Use Committee:
We respectfully oppose Bill 9 as drafted and propose that the Council amend Bill 9 to exclude Papakea Oceanfront Resort, which the County has historically identified as having A2-H2 zoning.
We own a one-bedroom unit at Papakea. We believe that our owning and renting this short-term rental property is a lawful activity that has benefited the Maui local economy for almost 50 years by providing jobs and support for local small businesses. We recommend local restaurants and tour guides in our welcome guide. Papakea owners support a wide variety of local trade professionals. We are doing our part to support this community and be good stewards.
A quick glance at the reviews for Papakea shows that it is a favorite property and loved by many. A high-rise hotel can’t offer the same atmosphere. Being an owner hasn’t been easy or lucrative. We have worked hard and have endured some very difficult financial situations, including ongoing and expensive plumbing renovation, drastic increases in costs of insurance and property taxes, the economic downturn, and currently this proposal to take away our rights.
• An estimate of our monthly carrying costs for our unit is $3,800 monthly. This includes AOAO monthly dues of $1,749, special assessments, a mortgage payment, property taxes, insurance, utilities and maintenance costs. We have been running a deficit since February of 2024.
• Papakea’s $32 million dollar plumbing project will result in a special assessment for our unit plus costs of improvements due to the plumbing repiping. Our one-bedroom unit is located on the ground floor.
• These figures are offered to demonstrate that the high costs of owning and maintaining a unit at Papakea would likely be cost prohibitive and not result in long-term housing for residents. These are costs that ensure the property remains safe, functional, and appealing. They are not luxuries. STR income helps cover these costs while supporting local workers.
We support creating affordable long-term housing for residents, but phasing out short term rentals is not a viable solution, nor in the best economic interests of the residents of Maui. Instead, it promises to terminate well-paying jobs, and create an even higher cost of living and will not result in increased housing for residents.
Phasing out the properties on the Minatoya list does not guarantee housing for locals. It guarantees nothing. In addition, Bill 9 is a direct attack on legal ownership and would remove about 1,000 legal vacation rentals owned by Hawaii residents and put that business into the hands of the hotel corporations. By taking away local short-term rentals, you take the opportunity for locals to directly own and participate in Maui’s largest economic engine: tourism.
In addition, we provide the following information:
Background on Papakea
• Papakea was initially marketed and sold as a legal vacation rental property before any zoning restrictions limited transient vacation rentals in apartment zoned properties.
• Papakea owners have been operating legal vacation rentals for almost fifty years.
• Papakea has never been workforce housing so Papakea is not an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
• The majority of units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking.
• Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located alongside a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and directly adjacent to multiple commercially zoned properties.
Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
• Owners purchased condos at Papakea with the reasonable expectation that short-term rentals were legally based on ordinances as far back as 1989, and as recent as 2022.
• In reliance on the Maui County ordinances and published documents, Hawaii state law, and constitutional protections, owners invested in costly renovations, furnishings, and long-term financial commitments such as mortgages that make any phase out of short-term rental rights offensive to each buyer’s investment-backed expectations.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
• Papakea’s resort operations provide full-time, benefited, employment for 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 17 years; some started in entry-level positions and worked into supervisory roles.
• Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, fitness instructors, entertainers, and tree trimming.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
• Many small businesses owned and operated by residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handymen, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money, have less flexibility, and be subject to oppressive corporate policies.
• Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Tax, and Maui County Transient Accommodations Tax.
• Papakea guests support many small businesses on the island including restaurants, food trucks, tour operators, activities, state parks, the national park, and shops.
• Papakea owners and guests regularly participate in community activities including volunteering at beach cleanups, Maui Humane Society, the hospital, and many other local organizations, and contribute to local philanthropic and cultural efforts.
We thank the committee for the opportunity to comment. We trust there will be a fair and balanced path going forward, one that protects local jobs, supports the economy, and holds STR owners to high standards, instead of phasing out STRs completely.
Sincerely,
The Oar Family Trust, owner, by Donald Oar and Shirley Oar, Trustees
3543 Lower Honoapiilani Road, Apartment H-101
The only way we can afford to maintain ownership of our place at the Ridge is to rent it out part of the year. My grandmother was born in Hawaii and my father was stationed in the Islands during World War Two. That led to the family purchasing a place on Maui. After the fire we opened our place to others free of charge and contributed to the Maui Food Bank. We consider ourselves part of the community. Please do not approve the proposal. Thank you, Kevin Murphy
Proposal 9,cd1 (2025) states this language is to alleviate the urgent need for housing. The time for urgency was twenty-four months ago with the Lahaina Fire. This proposal needs to be voted down in its entirety. We urge your focus to turn instead on the completion of the 6,371 affordable homes in process such as itemized on the https://standupmaui.org/scorecard website. It is astounding why the Maui Planning Commission has not fully funded these units as documented by Richard E. Mitchell, Esq., Director of Housing in his letter to you entitled Lapsed Affordable Housing Fund Projects 04-9-2025.pdf - Google Drive
In the interim, this measure gives us and many other mainland owners the push to rent out our mainland property and move permanently into our little Maui condos. We look forward to enjoying reduced property tax as a permanent resident with a small footprint. We will do our best to support the current residents which this measure severely penalizes by eliminating Maui's small business population. Proponents of this measure wish the few remaining tourists to stay at the more expensive hotels which continue to pay slave wages to their employees.
If you switched the positions, took away properties from mortgage paying, long-term residents for the pleasure of tourists, the residents would be up in arms! Oh, wait, that’s the message this measure is selling to the uninformed public. In the 1970s Maui County asked for and received Federal funds to build these tourist accommodation locations to strengthen the economic viability of this beautiful island. I’m referencing the Kihei 701 Plan. For over the last 50 years, we have legally been strong stewards of the land and promoted your message increasing island revenue and trade by the millions.
We are against the message this measure sends that it’s okay to rob Peter to pay Paul. Think again Members of this esteemed Commission. We all have wasted too much time and money on this measure. Focus instead on finishing those identified 6,371 affordable homes and give the people what they want, a home, between now and the next five years.
Most respectively,
Karan and Steve Marsh
I oppose the measure and appreciate the opportunity to be heard.
Papakea Resort is zoned H2/A2 but identified by Maui County as a Minatoya List property.
The monthly dues are very high in large part because they support an operational team of approximately 35 LOCAL RESIDENTS. Last year, Papakea’s board approved a budget to maintain personnel levels and avoiding layoffs. This decision resulted in an increase in monthly dues for every Papakea owner, but maintaining personnel was important for the community. However, high maintenance dues without the rental income from short-term rentals is unsustainable.
Papakea owners are still paying for a special assessment due to a 530% increase in insurance premiums over a single year.
Papakea owners also face a significant special assessment for the $32 million dollar plumbing project that just started this month.
Elimination of STR rights would NOT result in creation of any affordable long-term housing at Papakea. Please consider this:
Background on Papakea
· Papakea is zoned A2/H2, raising questions as to why Papakea is even on the Minatoya List or subject to losing short-term rental rights.
· Papakea has never been workforce housing, so Papakea is NOT an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
· Most units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking and storage. Pets are also not allowed. This is not large enough or practical for most families.
· Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located directly adjacent to a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and multiple commercial properties.
· Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
· Papakea’s resort operations provide employment for approximately 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 15 years.
· Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, and tree trimming.
· Papakea is the largest contributor of property taxes of all West Maui Minatoya List properties, generating $5 million per year in real property taxes alone without consideration of the TAT, GET, MCTAT, and daily spending by Papakea guests.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
· Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handypersons, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money.
· Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Task, and Maui Transient Accommodations Tax.
· If Maui County eliminates short-term rental rights for our property, Papakea guests are highly likely to avoid traveling to Maui so it is NOT TRUE to say that the economic benefit of these guests will be preserved because they will just find other accommodation in more expensive properties or hotels. Hotels do not offer the same kind of accommodations as STRs like Papakea. Besides being much more expensive, Hotels are not as family friendly. For example, visitors sometimes want to have a kitchen to prepare meals for their kids and not be forced to eat at a restaurant for every meal.
This measure is not well thought out! You would be shooting yourself in the foot:
- destroying existing jobs
- reducing tax income for Maui County
- creating inappropriate, small overpriced residential units
- reducing income for any business dependent on visitors
Please resist the knee-jerk reaction and think beyond that about the REAL IMPACT of this measure. Lahaina Strong will really make Lahaina WEAK, killing jobs, reducing tax income and not doing enough to create affordable residential housing.
I oppose the measure and appreciate the opportunity to be heard.
Papakea Resort is zoned H2/A2 but identified by Maui County as a Minatoya List property.
The monthly dues are very high in large part because they support an operational team of approximately 35 LOCAL RESIDENTS. Last year, Papakea’s board approved a budget to maintain personnel levels and avoiding layoffs. This decision resulted in an increase in monthly dues for every Papakea owner, but maintaining personnel was important for the community. However, high maintenance dues without the rental income from short-term rentals is unsustainable.
Papakea owners are still paying for a special assessment due to a 530% increase in insurance premiums over a single year.
Papakea owners also face a significant special assessment for the $32 million dollar plumbing project that just started this month.
Elimination of STR rights would NOT result in creation of any affordable long-term housing at Papakea. Please consider this:
Background on Papakea
· Papakea is zoned A2/H2, raising questions as to why Papakea is even on the Minatoya List or subject to losing short-term rental rights.
· Papakea has never been workforce housing, so Papakea is NOT an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
· Most units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking and storage. Pets are also not allowed. This is not large enough or practical for most families.
· Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located directly adjacent to a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and multiple commercial properties.
· Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
· Papakea’s resort operations provide employment for approximately 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 15 years.
· Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, and tree trimming.
· Papakea is the largest contributor of property taxes of all West Maui Minatoya List properties, generating $5 million per year in real property taxes alone without consideration of the TAT, GET, MCTAT, and daily spending by Papakea guests.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
· Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handypersons, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money.
· Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Task, and Maui Transient Accommodations Tax.
· If Maui County eliminates short-term rental rights for our property, Papakea guests are highly likely to avoid traveling to Maui so it is NOT TRUE to say that the economic benefit of these guests will be preserved because they will just find other accommodation in more expensive properties or hotels. Hotels do not offer the same kind of accommodations as STRs like Papakea. Besides being much more expensive, Hotels are not as family friendly. For example, visitors sometimes want to have a kitchen to prepare meals for their kids and not be forced to eat at a restaurant for every meal.
This measure is not well thought out! You would be shooting yourself in the foot:
- destroying existing jobs
- reducing tax income for Maui County
- creating inappropriate, small overpriced residential units
- reducing income for any business dependent on visitors
Please resist the knee-jerk reaction and think beyond that about the REAL IMPACT of this measure. Lahaina Strong will really make Lahaina WEAK, killing jobs, reducing tax income and not doing enough to create affordable residential housing.
Dear Chair Kama, Vice Chair Uʻu-Hodgins and Members of the Housing and Land Use Committee:
I oppose Bill 9 as drafted and propose that the Council amend Bill 9 to exclude Papakea Oceanfront Resort which the
County has historically identified as having A2-H2 zoning.
Background on Papakea
• Papakea was initially marketed and sold as a legal vacation rental property before any zoning restrictions limited
transient vacation rentals in apartment zoned properties.
• Papakea owners have been operating legal vacation rentals for almost fifty years.
• Papakea has never been workforce housing so Papakea is not an example of a property that converted from
workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
• The majority of units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking.
• Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located alongside a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties
and directly adjacent to multiple commercially-zoned properties.
Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge,
shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
• Owners purchased condos at Papakea with the reasonable expectation that short-term rentals were legal based
on ordinances as far back as 1989, and as recent as 2022.
• In reliance on the Maui County ordinances and published documents, Hawaii state law, and constitutional protections,
owners invested in costly renovations, furnishings, and long-term financial commitments such as mortgages that make
any phase out of short-term rental right offensive of each buyer’s investment-backed expectations.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
• Papakea’s resort operations provide full-time, benefited, employment for 35 local resident employees; some have
worked at the property for over 17 years; some started in entry-level positions and worked into supervisory roles.
• Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing,
electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, fitness instructors, entertainers, and tree trimming.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
• Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term
rentals including housekeepers, handymen, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates,
work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals
at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job
somewhere else to make less money, have less flexibility, and be subject to oppressive corporate policies.
• Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term
rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Tax, and Maui County Transient Accommodations Tax.
• Papakea guests support many small businesses on the island including restaurants, food trucks, tour operators, activities,
state parks, the national park, and shops.
• Papakea owners and guests regularly participate in community activities including volunteering at beach cleanups, Maui
Humane Society, the hospital, and many other local organizations, and contribute to local philanthropic and cultural efforts.
I would like to thank the committee for the opportunity to comment.
Sincerely,
Frequent Guest at Papakea
3543 Lower Honoapiilani Road
Strongly oppose the str ban. Maui needs to stop thinking that the only way to give something to someone is to take from someone else. We can all thrive. We can build our way out. We can support entrepreneurship and local businesses that keep the revenue here on island. Not just mainland companies that own rental cars and hotels.
The str ban would be rocket fuel on an economy already burning down. We need to become business forward, tourism forward and own that fact. There is nothing wrong with it.
This would give that revenue straight back to the mainland companies who own the hotels and most of it will leave the island.
This shouldn’t have got anywhere near as far as it has. Terrible idea.
I oppose the STR ban. The ban would prevent my family and I from returning to the island and spending our dollars as the limited hotel rooms would be out of our price range.
June 9, 2025
Heather Loughridge-Buono
P O Box 12857
Lahaina, HI 96761
Mphbuono1@yahoo.com
(808)463-4744
To Maui County Council,
Re:HLU-4 Bill 9
First I would like to be clear that the schism created in the community over the rights of use for privately owned property is shameful. The focus should be on solutions that benefit all the community. That community includes all homeowners who pay taxes Few members of the community have focused on real solutions. This intense energy being spent should focus on economic diversification and getting affordable housing for all residents. The STRs will never be affordable housing.
I want the council to understand the very human element here. The people I work with, they pay their taxes. Some are homeowners here, some not, but they have deep ties to the community, as do I. They will be without income.
After the pandemic, after the fire.
After the misinformation going out around the world that has cut their income substantially.
Marietta B. houses her son and daughter-in-law and their baby after they lost their home in the fire. She also houses her mother who has health issues and employs other family members as cleaners.
Monica J is another house cleaner who lost her home in the fire and commutes from up country to the west side to work. She has a family to feed as well.
Peter B. is a very hard worker who I depend on for so many things, but he may need to leave Hawaii to find other work.
Patricia P. lost her home in the fire and is also taking care of grandchildren.
Arcelia has lost most of her clients when the fire destroyed their homes and is hanging on, hoping that business comes back soon, I wish I had more work to give her.
These are a few of the people I work the closest with. Before the pandemic, before the fire they earned a living wage. There are other people this will affect, vendors and maintenance and landscape specialists.
My clients have neighbors who died in the fire, neighbors who feel they are too old to rebuild their beloved homes. Too old to start over.
I struggle to stay resilient myself, and I love my home and I have faith that the right thing will happen here, for the greater good.
This testimony represents one of dozens I have written over the last 15 years. Over that time, I have consistently reminded the current council of facts and cited examples and sources;
- The clients I work for have made an investment in Maui and pay taxes that help sustain Maui resources. Not a single one is without deep ties to Maui.
- These properties were not built for, nor are they suitable for long term residential housing.
- These properties are extremely expensive to maintain because of age and their proximity to the ocean. They will never be affordable.
- The Minatoya ruling was supposed to be the compromise. These properties were built as “condotels” before certain zoning laws were placed and they have met all the criteria they needed to when built, and the same is true now. My clients are legally renting their beloved vacation homes. Most barely break even.
- The taxes garnered from the STR industry on Maui represent 30% of the budget of Maui County. How are you going to replace those taxes? By raising taxes to residents?
I feel confident that others will fill in the blanks that I have missed on those facts, the numbers and figures that are so very pertinent to this issue.
Until Maui and Hawaii acts to find ways to diversify the economy from its dependence on tourism, this is how we feed our kids, the economy that gives us the comfort to keep our kupuna safe.
I ask that the council reject this newly proposed bill. It is not right. For so many reasons.
Thank you for allowing our comments. We oppose the STR ban and believe it is not what is the most beneficial for the businesses and people of Maui. Mahalo.
June 7, 2025
Aloha Chair, Vice Chair, and Committee Members,
My name is Barbara Proctor and I own a short-term rental property in the Golf Villas in Maui County. I am writing today document my concern over the restrictions being looked at that would remove 7,000 plus STR from the Maui Market.
I’ve been a responsible and community-oriented owner, Prior to owning I rented and returned to the island over 22 times. I recommend local restaurants, hikes, outings and business that provide wonderful experiences such as snorkeling, mopeding, horseback riding, wine tasting, and shopping destinations in our welcome guide. I employ several local service providers — cleaners, maintenance techs, property management companies and landscapers — many of whom I have grown close with. On all my visits and those of my guests we have had wonderful experiences and conversations with the locals. They are always so appreciative of our business and willingness to continue to choose Maui as our vacation spot.
Some of my guests have even said they wouldn’t have come at all if they didn’t have a vacation rental option. They prefer this option for the full kitchen and home-like environment. That matters — not just to me, but to all the small businesses they support during their stay.
Owning in this complex has not been easy, and it was a lifelong dream of ours coming to reality 42 years after staying at the golf Villas on our honeymoon. We finally were able to purchase in 2022. We’ve faced huge maintenance costs, special assessments, and massive increases in insurance after the fires. These aren’t luxuries — they’re costs that ensure the property remains safe, functional, and appealing. STR income helps cover those costs while supporting local workers.
This legislation feels rushed and one-sided. I urge the Council to work with owners like me and equally important local employees that are impacted by this legislation. to find a fair and balanced path forward — one that protects local jobs, supports the economy, and holds STR owners to high standards, instead of phasing us out completely.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Barabara Proctor
Barb.proctor@comcast.net
503-705-2197
Kapalua Golf Villas
I’m a full time Maui resident with 6 children. I support my family with a small business managing 22 vacation rentals which I’ve built over the previous 10 years. If this bill were to pass, 18 of the units I manage would no longer be vacation rentable and I would not be able to continue to provide for my family.
I submit the transient accommodation, general excise, and maui transient accommodation taxes each month for my owners. This along with the much higher property taxes on vacation rentals is a significant amount of tax dollars. I believe it makes more sense to utilize some of the tax dollars generated from vacation rentals to subsidize affordable housing on the island.
If this bill passes I believe there will be negative unintended consequences that will reverberate throughout the Maui economy.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I urge you to vote no on this bill.
This legislation will heavily damage the overall economy of Maui County and it should not be applied to Moloka’i as there is not a demand for 1-bedroom condos to be rented by Hawaiian Families on Moloka’i.
My name is Diana Bray, we own a condo at Hale Mahina Beach Resort and I am opposed to this bill. While we are empathetic to the issues related to the housing shortage on Maui, but, we do not believe that converting STR's is LTR's is the solution. Our monthly AOAO and lease hold payment total to nearly $2500 per month not to mention our $14K property tax bill!
We worry about our property management company, housekeeper, landscaper, maintenance and construction team. So many people we care about will likely loose their jobs when tourism is crippled with the loss of STR's. I have talked to many boutique and restaurant owners who are terrified about the possibility!
I urge you to find a compromise and again, must say that I am opposed to this bill.
Thank you for your time, Diana
So the county spends 6 million with the help of the hotels to encourage visitors to come yet try to phase out these legal STR places?? Hopena ahuwale i keia mea pilau! So obvious who is pushing this bill, and with the help of that corrupt and shameful Lahaina Strong group whose leaders are being paid well. Mahalo to the mayor for drafting this bill, you got your raise and ended up being the lap dog of the hotel industry. Ka leo maika'i in that Maui Week video..you look so happy knowing you are now getting paid much more than a doctor!
Aloha ia oukou! O Keola ko'u inoa a e noho nei au i Wailuku me ku'u ohana. O ko'u one hanau ma Puna o moku o Keawe.
I am expressing full opposition to this bill which is NOT very well thought out, and obviously just a ploy by this hupo mayor to please his hotel overlords. I also want to mention those po'e poho who support this Lahaina Strong group. Nui ka hewa i keia hui, ran by lazy people like that Paele drug leader or that wahine Jordan who seems to get hapai every year and use her babies to express her cause. Not to mention that lolo KR Fernandez or that Paltin who all just got a raise at the expense of us paying taxes!
My name is Kenneth Duda. We own a home on Kamaka Cirlce. We are so sad for our friends and neighbors who have suffered so much from the fire.
Our Lahaina home is not our primary home, but we have never rented it out and never plan to.
I oppose this measure. The solution to housing affordability is more housing. It is not kicking guests off the island.
Make no mistake --- by denying our guests any place to stay, we are essentially kicking them out. This is bad for our guests, and it's bad for all Maui residents, and it's ethically wrong. Obviously it's bad for our guests --- they would have liked to come to visit, but no longer will be able to, due to this measure. It's bad for all Maui residents because our guests make the island more vibrant, more alive, and provide economic livelihood to so many residents. It's ethically wrong because it violates the golden rule. How would you like it if you wanted to visit a beautiful place, but the residents there told you to beat it, you could not come because there was no place for you to stay? I think that'd feel pretty bad, and yet that's what we're doing to non-residents with this measure.
The real solution is _more housing_. Yes, that means more construction, higher density, and more development. By all means, set aside parks and beaches, but please allow people to build on their land what makes sense to build. The number of regulations and restrictions around building is overwhelming already. That's why there's not enough housing --- it simply isn't legal to create it in desirable areas. Note that in order to rebuild Lahaina, the government has to set aside rules against construction. Think about that. It was illegal to rebuild Lahaina back to its pre-fire beauty! All we need to do is allow people to build what they want on their land. Remove the blockade against housing, and you'll have more housing, and with more housing comes reasonable prices.
The premise of this measure is that the housing shortage is so bad that we need to keep people off our island to free up the precious units for more deserving occupants. This idea correctly diagnoses that there is a shortage, but the cure is completely wrong. If there's a shortage, build more. It's that simple.
Kenneth Duda
kjd@duda.org
DEAR MAUI COUNTY COUNCIL,
MY HUSBAND AND I LIVE IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA AND HAVE BEEN VISITING THE KAPALUA RESORT COMMUNITY SINCE 1986, FOR OUR 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY. WE BOTH FELL IN LOVE WITH KAPALUA AND HAVE BEEN RETURNING EVER SINCE AND EVENTUALLY WITH OUR 2 CHILDREN.
WE TRY TO STAY INFORMED ON THE CURRENT PROPOSED BAN ON TRANSIENT VACATION RENTALS FOR MAUI COUNTY AND ARE VERY MUCH OPPOSED TO SUCH BAN.
FOR A MANY YEARS WE STAYED AT THE KAPALUA BAY HOTEL WHICH WE VERY MUCH MISS. OTHER YEARS, THROUGH THE BAY HOTEL, WE RESERVED OUR STAYS IN THE BAY VILLAS. WE HAVE PROBABLY STAYED IN 80% OF THE BUILDINGS AT THE BAY VILLAS.
WE ADDITIONALLY HAVE STAYED IN THE RIDGE VILLAS MANY TIMES FOR OUR FREQUENT VACATIONS TO MAUI. AS ALREADY EXPRESS MANY TIMES, THE KAPALUA RESORT AREA WAS ALWAYS A SHORT TERM, VACATION RENTAL COMMUNITY SINCE IT'S INCEPTION.
IN 2018 WE WERE FORTUNATE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE A BAY VILLA, A LIFE LONG DREAM OF OURS. WE DO RENT OUR CONDO ABOUT 75% OF THE TIME. THIS JUST MAKES ECONOMIC SENSE TO DO SO. WE INFORM ALL GUEST OF THE SHOPS, STORES, RESTAURANTS, GOLF COURSES AND ACTIVITIES AVAILABLE TO MAKE THEIR VISIT MEMORABLE.
WE HAVE HAD MANY RETURNING GUEST.
WE ARE AWARE OF THE LOCAL HOUSING CRISIS IN MAUI ONLY MADE WORSE BY THE DEVASTATING FIRE IN LAHAINA. SUCH A TERRIBLE AND SAD EVENT.
MAUI WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!
WE WERE INFORMED OF THE WORKFORCE HOUSING THAT WAS BUILT FOR SOME OF THE EMPLOYEES OF THE KAPALUA RESORT AREA. IT SEEMS KAPALUA HAS HELPED ALREADY. WE ALSO OBSERVE THE HOUSING BUILT ALONG THE HIGHWAY, JUST NORTH OF THE LAHAINA SAFEWAY. THESE DEVELOPMENTS MAKE SENSE TO SOLVE QUICKLY THE IMMEDIATE SHORTAGE.
WITH TOURISM ALREADY DOWN ON MAUI IT SEEMS THE VACANT HOTEL ROOMS COULD BE AN ANSWER ALSO.
TO BAN SHORT TERM RENTALS IN RESORT COMMUNITIES AS KAPALUA DOES NOT SEEMS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM AND IS EXTREMELY UNFAIR TO PROPERTY OWNERS AS OURSELVES.
NOT TO MENTION THE LOST OF JOBS FOR THE ISLAND THIS BAN WOULD CAUSE. LOCALS NEED HOUSING, BUT FIRST THEY NEED JOBS. VACATION RENTALS CONTRIBUTES TO MAUI'S MAIN ECONOMY, TOURISM! NEED THIS BE SAID!
TO SHUT THIS DOWN WILL BE ANOTHER DEVASTATING BLOW TO THE ISLAND OF MAUI.
FIRST COVID, THEN THE LAHAINA FIRE, NOW THIS.
MAUI WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!
As a long-time Maui resident, we oppose this bill. We have owned a condo in West Maui for the last 5 years. This bill appears to be highly divisive, and its passage would unjustly penalize individuals who have worked diligently to establish a small business in Maui.
Our condo operating costs are close to 4,000 a month, and to be forced to rent it long term, we would likely have to operate at a permanent loss.
If the bill passes, I anticipate years of expensive legal battles. There must be a better way.
I strongly urge the planning commission to look into ways to solve Maui's housing crisis, something that is good for everyone
This is a terrible proposal scapegoating condominium owners for decades of failure to create affordable housing for residents and to rebuild Lahaina Town after the devastating fire. I own in Maui Vista and our association documents show it was built as a resort for short term housing and not for workforce housing. This proposal is a taking without compensation and will be fought in court if passed.
Dear Chair Kama, Vice Chair Uʻu-Hodgins and Members of the Housing and Land Use Committee:
We respectfully oppose Bill 9 as drafted and propose that the Council amend Bill 9 to exclude Papakea Oceanfront Resort, which the County has historically identified as having A2-H2 zoning.
We own a one-bedroom unit at Papakea. We believe that our owning and renting this short-term rental property is a lawful activity that has benefited the Maui local economy for almost 50 years by providing jobs and support for local small businesses. We recommend local restaurants and tour guides in our welcome guide. Papakea owners support a wide variety of local trade professionals. We are doing our part to support this community and be good stewards.
A quick glance at the reviews for Papakea shows that it is a favorite property and loved by many. A high-rise hotel can’t offer the same atmosphere. Being an owner hasn’t been easy or lucrative. We have worked hard and have endured some very difficult financial situations, including ongoing and expensive plumbing renovation, drastic increases in costs of insurance and property taxes, the economic downturn, and currently this proposal to take away our rights.
• An estimate of our monthly carrying costs for our unit is $3,800 monthly. This includes AOAO monthly dues of $1,749, special assessments, a mortgage payment, property taxes, insurance, utilities and maintenance costs. We have been running a deficit since February of 2024.
• Papakea’s $32 million dollar plumbing project will result in a special assessment for our unit plus costs of improvements due to the plumbing repiping. Our one-bedroom unit is located on the ground floor.
• These figures are offered to demonstrate that the high costs of owning and maintaining a unit at Papakea would likely be cost prohibitive and not result in long-term housing for residents. These are costs that ensure the property remains safe, functional, and appealing. They are not luxuries. STR income helps cover these costs while supporting local workers.
We support creating affordable long-term housing for residents, but phasing out short term rentals is not a viable solution, nor in the best economic interests of the residents of Maui. Instead, it promises to terminate well-paying jobs, and create an even higher cost of living and will not result in increased housing for residents.
Phasing out the properties on the Minatoya list does not guarantee housing for locals. It guarantees nothing. In addition, Bill 9 is a direct attack on legal ownership and would remove about 1,000 legal vacation rentals owned by Hawaii residents and put that business into the hands of the hotel corporations. By taking away local short-term rentals, you take the opportunity for locals to directly own and participate in Maui’s largest economic engine: tourism.
In addition, we provide the following information:
Background on Papakea
• Papakea was initially marketed and sold as a legal vacation rental property before any zoning restrictions limited transient vacation rentals in apartment zoned properties.
• Papakea owners have been operating legal vacation rentals for almost fifty years.
• Papakea has never been workforce housing so Papakea is not an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
• The majority of units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking.
• Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located alongside a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and directly adjacent to multiple commercially zoned properties.
Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
• Owners purchased condos at Papakea with the reasonable expectation that short-term rentals were legally based on ordinances as far back as 1989, and as recent as 2022.
• In reliance on the Maui County ordinances and published documents, Hawaii state law, and constitutional protections, owners invested in costly renovations, furnishings, and long-term financial commitments such as mortgages that make any phase out of short-term rental rights offensive to each buyer’s investment-backed expectations.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
• Papakea’s resort operations provide full-time, benefited, employment for 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 17 years; some started in entry-level positions and worked into supervisory roles.
• Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, fitness instructors, entertainers, and tree trimming.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
• Many small businesses owned and operated by residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handymen, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money, have less flexibility, and be subject to oppressive corporate policies.
• Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Tax, and Maui County Transient Accommodations Tax.
• Papakea guests support many small businesses on the island including restaurants, food trucks, tour operators, activities, state parks, the national park, and shops.
• Papakea owners and guests regularly participate in community activities including volunteering at beach cleanups, Maui Humane Society, the hospital, and many other local organizations, and contribute to local philanthropic and cultural efforts.
We thank the committee for the opportunity to comment. We trust there will be a fair and balanced path going forward, one that protects local jobs, supports the economy, and holds STR owners to high standards, instead of phasing out STRs completely.
Sincerely,
The Oar Family Trust, owner, by Donald Oar and Shirley Oar, Trustees
3543 Lower Honoapiilani Road, Apartment H-101
The only way we can afford to maintain ownership of our place at the Ridge is to rent it out part of the year. My grandmother was born in Hawaii and my father was stationed in the Islands during World War Two. That led to the family purchasing a place on Maui. After the fire we opened our place to others free of charge and contributed to the Maui Food Bank. We consider ourselves part of the community. Please do not approve the proposal. Thank you, Kevin Murphy
Proposal 9,cd1 (2025) states this language is to alleviate the urgent need for housing. The time for urgency was twenty-four months ago with the Lahaina Fire. This proposal needs to be voted down in its entirety. We urge your focus to turn instead on the completion of the 6,371 affordable homes in process such as itemized on the https://standupmaui.org/scorecard website. It is astounding why the Maui Planning Commission has not fully funded these units as documented by Richard E. Mitchell, Esq., Director of Housing in his letter to you entitled Lapsed Affordable Housing Fund Projects 04-9-2025.pdf - Google Drive
In the interim, this measure gives us and many other mainland owners the push to rent out our mainland property and move permanently into our little Maui condos. We look forward to enjoying reduced property tax as a permanent resident with a small footprint. We will do our best to support the current residents which this measure severely penalizes by eliminating Maui's small business population. Proponents of this measure wish the few remaining tourists to stay at the more expensive hotels which continue to pay slave wages to their employees.
If you switched the positions, took away properties from mortgage paying, long-term residents for the pleasure of tourists, the residents would be up in arms! Oh, wait, that’s the message this measure is selling to the uninformed public. In the 1970s Maui County asked for and received Federal funds to build these tourist accommodation locations to strengthen the economic viability of this beautiful island. I’m referencing the Kihei 701 Plan. For over the last 50 years, we have legally been strong stewards of the land and promoted your message increasing island revenue and trade by the millions.
We are against the message this measure sends that it’s okay to rob Peter to pay Paul. Think again Members of this esteemed Commission. We all have wasted too much time and money on this measure. Focus instead on finishing those identified 6,371 affordable homes and give the people what they want, a home, between now and the next five years.
Most respectively,
Karan and Steve Marsh
Dear Maui County Planning Commission:
I oppose the measure and appreciate the opportunity to be heard.
Papakea Resort is zoned H2/A2 but identified by Maui County as a Minatoya List property.
The monthly dues are very high in large part because they support an operational team of approximately 35 LOCAL RESIDENTS. Last year, Papakea’s board approved a budget to maintain personnel levels and avoiding layoffs. This decision resulted in an increase in monthly dues for every Papakea owner, but maintaining personnel was important for the community. However, high maintenance dues without the rental income from short-term rentals is unsustainable.
Papakea owners are still paying for a special assessment due to a 530% increase in insurance premiums over a single year.
Papakea owners also face a significant special assessment for the $32 million dollar plumbing project that just started this month.
Elimination of STR rights would NOT result in creation of any affordable long-term housing at Papakea. Please consider this:
Background on Papakea
· Papakea is zoned A2/H2, raising questions as to why Papakea is even on the Minatoya List or subject to losing short-term rental rights.
· Papakea has never been workforce housing, so Papakea is NOT an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
· Most units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking and storage. Pets are also not allowed. This is not large enough or practical for most families.
· Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located directly adjacent to a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and multiple commercial properties.
· Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
· Papakea’s resort operations provide employment for approximately 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 15 years.
· Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, and tree trimming.
· Papakea is the largest contributor of property taxes of all West Maui Minatoya List properties, generating $5 million per year in real property taxes alone without consideration of the TAT, GET, MCTAT, and daily spending by Papakea guests.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
· Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handypersons, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money.
· Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Task, and Maui Transient Accommodations Tax.
· If Maui County eliminates short-term rental rights for our property, Papakea guests are highly likely to avoid traveling to Maui so it is NOT TRUE to say that the economic benefit of these guests will be preserved because they will just find other accommodation in more expensive properties or hotels. Hotels do not offer the same kind of accommodations as STRs like Papakea. Besides being much more expensive, Hotels are not as family friendly. For example, visitors sometimes want to have a kitchen to prepare meals for their kids and not be forced to eat at a restaurant for every meal.
This measure is not well thought out! You would be shooting yourself in the foot:
- destroying existing jobs
- reducing tax income for Maui County
- creating inappropriate, small overpriced residential units
- reducing income for any business dependent on visitors
Please resist the knee-jerk reaction and think beyond that about the REAL IMPACT of this measure. Lahaina Strong will really make Lahaina WEAK, killing jobs, reducing tax income and not doing enough to create affordable residential housing.
Thank you for your thoughtful consideration!
Dear Maui County Planning Commission:
I oppose the measure and appreciate the opportunity to be heard.
Papakea Resort is zoned H2/A2 but identified by Maui County as a Minatoya List property.
The monthly dues are very high in large part because they support an operational team of approximately 35 LOCAL RESIDENTS. Last year, Papakea’s board approved a budget to maintain personnel levels and avoiding layoffs. This decision resulted in an increase in monthly dues for every Papakea owner, but maintaining personnel was important for the community. However, high maintenance dues without the rental income from short-term rentals is unsustainable.
Papakea owners are still paying for a special assessment due to a 530% increase in insurance premiums over a single year.
Papakea owners also face a significant special assessment for the $32 million dollar plumbing project that just started this month.
Elimination of STR rights would NOT result in creation of any affordable long-term housing at Papakea. Please consider this:
Background on Papakea
· Papakea is zoned A2/H2, raising questions as to why Papakea is even on the Minatoya List or subject to losing short-term rental rights.
· Papakea has never been workforce housing, so Papakea is NOT an example of a property that converted from workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
· Most units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking and storage. Pets are also not allowed. This is not large enough or practical for most families.
· Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located directly adjacent to a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties and multiple commercial properties.
· Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge, shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
· Papakea’s resort operations provide employment for approximately 35 local resident employees; some have worked at the property for over 15 years.
· Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing, electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, and tree trimming.
· Papakea is the largest contributor of property taxes of all West Maui Minatoya List properties, generating $5 million per year in real property taxes alone without consideration of the TAT, GET, MCTAT, and daily spending by Papakea guests.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
· Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term rentals including housekeepers, handypersons, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates, work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job somewhere else to make less money.
· Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Task, and Maui Transient Accommodations Tax.
· If Maui County eliminates short-term rental rights for our property, Papakea guests are highly likely to avoid traveling to Maui so it is NOT TRUE to say that the economic benefit of these guests will be preserved because they will just find other accommodation in more expensive properties or hotels. Hotels do not offer the same kind of accommodations as STRs like Papakea. Besides being much more expensive, Hotels are not as family friendly. For example, visitors sometimes want to have a kitchen to prepare meals for their kids and not be forced to eat at a restaurant for every meal.
This measure is not well thought out! You would be shooting yourself in the foot:
- destroying existing jobs
- reducing tax income for Maui County
- creating inappropriate, small overpriced residential units
- reducing income for any business dependent on visitors
Please resist the knee-jerk reaction and think beyond that about the REAL IMPACT of this measure. Lahaina Strong will really make Lahaina WEAK, killing jobs, reducing tax income and not doing enough to create affordable residential housing.
Thank you for your thoughtful consideration!
Dear Chair Kama, Vice Chair Uʻu-Hodgins and Members of the Housing and Land Use Committee:
I oppose Bill 9 as drafted and propose that the Council amend Bill 9 to exclude Papakea Oceanfront Resort which the
County has historically identified as having A2-H2 zoning.
Background on Papakea
• Papakea was initially marketed and sold as a legal vacation rental property before any zoning restrictions limited
transient vacation rentals in apartment zoned properties.
• Papakea owners have been operating legal vacation rentals for almost fifty years.
• Papakea has never been workforce housing so Papakea is not an example of a property that converted from
workforce housing to transient vacation rental use.
• The majority of units at Papakea are under 600 square feet and the property has limited parking.
• Papakea is not in a residential neighborhood and is located alongside a long stretch of hotel-zoned properties
and directly adjacent to multiple commercially-zoned properties.
Unlike apartment buildings designed for long-term residential use, Papakea has a front desk, an activity concierge,
shared activity space, and numerous other common resort amenities.
• Owners purchased condos at Papakea with the reasonable expectation that short-term rentals were legal based
on ordinances as far back as 1989, and as recent as 2022.
• In reliance on the Maui County ordinances and published documents, Hawaii state law, and constitutional protections,
owners invested in costly renovations, furnishings, and long-term financial commitments such as mortgages that make
any phase out of short-term rental right offensive of each buyer’s investment-backed expectations.
Papakea’s Contributions to the Community
• Papakea’s resort operations provide full-time, benefited, employment for 35 local resident employees; some have
worked at the property for over 17 years; some started in entry-level positions and worked into supervisory roles.
• Papakea supports a wide variety of local trade professionals including pest control, HVAC, painting, plumbing,
electrical, general contracting, masonry, tile and flooring, fitness instructors, entertainers, and tree trimming.
Individual Owner Contributions to the Community
• Many small businesses owned and operated by local residents from the Maui community rely on Papakea short-term
rentals including housekeepers, handymen, on-island agents, and contractors. These service providers set their own rates,
work hours, select their own clients, work conditions and standard operating procedures. Shutting down short-term rentals
at Papakea means telling local entrepreneurs that worked hard to build a small business that they need to just go get a job
somewhere else to make less money, have less flexibility, and be subject to oppressive corporate policies.
• Papakea STRs support the State of Hawaii and County of Maui through payment of property taxes (many at the short-term
rental rate), Transient Accommodations Tax, General Excise Tax, and Maui County Transient Accommodations Tax.
• Papakea guests support many small businesses on the island including restaurants, food trucks, tour operators, activities,
state parks, the national park, and shops.
• Papakea owners and guests regularly participate in community activities including volunteering at beach cleanups, Maui
Humane Society, the hospital, and many other local organizations, and contribute to local philanthropic and cultural efforts.
I would like to thank the committee for the opportunity to comment.
Sincerely,
Frequent Guest at Papakea
3543 Lower Honoapiilani Road