Jan. 7—Kauai’s nonprofit electric utility recently announced that part of its West Kauai Energy Project with developer and operator AES Corp. has been canceled, and that it is uncertain whether the remainder of the overall $250 million project remains financially feasible. An ambitious plan to develop a renewable energy project on Kauai that would have […]
A solo crash left a 71-year-old woman and her dog trapped in a vehicle dangling over a 200-foot drop along a Maui highway, Hawaii rescuers reported. Rescuers responded just before noon Friday, Jan. 5, to the crash on Kahekili Highway, a Maui County Fire Department news release said. They found her vehicle hanging off a […]
Jan. 6—State homeless coordinator John Mizuno said he hopes a commission will be created to ensure ADUs lead to lower rent. State lawmakers this legislative session will push for an increase in the number of smaller independent homes known as accessory dwelling units, specifically on Maui to house wildfire survivors and statewide to reduce homelessness. […]
This article was originally published in Honolulu Civil Beat. Sen. Lorraine Inouye was confident Hilo High School would have a new parking garage for its gymnasium by the end of 2024. The school, which is over 100 years old, already lacked sufficient on-campus parking, Inouye said, and having a garage was essential in case the […]
Jan. 1—U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson‘s order keeps the city from enforcing or implementing Ordinance 22-7, which essentially prohibits home rentals for anything less than 90 days. A U.S. District Court judge has issued a summary judgement granting the Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance a permanent injunction that carves existing home rental owners out of […]
Dec. 31—Almost five months after the Maui wildfires, nearly 3, 000 families remain in hotels while county, state and federal officials work to free up 3, 000 short-term rental units to get them into long-term housing. The tragic Aug. 8 wildfires on Maui killed at least 100 people and dominated news coverage around the world. […]
Dec. 31—Almost five months after the Maui wildfires, nearly 3, 000 families remain in hotels while county, state and federal officials work to free up 3, 000 short-term rental units to get them into long-term housing. The tragic Aug. 8 wildfires on Maui killed at least 100 people and dominated news coverage around the world. […]
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly building an underground bunker on his expansive Hawaii ranch. Credit – David Paul Morris—Getty Images Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan, co-founder and co-CEO of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, plan to build a 5,000-square-foot underground shelter on their Hawaii ranch with its own energy and food […]
Dec. 28—The study aligns with trends seen by the Hawaii Foodbank, one of the state’s seven community-based Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP ) outreach providers. A new study from nonprofit Hunger Free America found that 137, 000 people across the state lived in food-insecure households between 2020 and 2022—including 14.7 % of children, 8.3 % […]
Hawaii announced the first recipients of a student-loan repayment program for healthcare workers. Nearly 500 workers will get up to $100,000 in debt relief if they work in the state for two years. It’s among a number of state-level efforts to get student-debt relief to borrowers. Some healthcare workers in Hawaii might be on track […]
Dec. 24—Since 2016, the Secret Santa Project Hawaii has helped thousands of keiki facing hardship, many of whom were too late to apply or were ineligible to receive gifts from other charities. Their motto is “kids helping kids.” When she was 7 years old, Rylee Brooke Kamahele learned a life-changing lesson at a homeless shelter […]
HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii Gov. Josh Green on Friday said he wants 3,000 condos and homes that are normally rented to Maui tourists converted to long-term housing for displaced wildfire survivors who are now living in hotels. Green said he’s prepared to use the “hammer” of post-fire emergency orders to make sure owners of short-term […]