The Maui County Council voted 5-4 to refer proposed rezoning of 32 vacation rental condo complexes in Māʻalaea, Kīhei, and West Maui from apartment to hotel districts to the Maui Planning Commission for hearings. No rezoning has occurred yet; the commission must hold hearings and issue a recommendation before the Council can take final action.
- The 32 properties in question are located in shoreline-exposed areas and would be rezoned from apartment districts (A-1/A-2) to hotel districts (H-3/H-4), allowing transient vacation rentals to continue.
- This referral is a procedural step — the Planning Commission must hold public hearings and make a recommendation before the Council votes on the actual rezoning bills.
- If the Planning Commission recommends against the rezoning, the Council would need a supermajority of six votes (not five) to pass the bills.
- Properties were selected based on criteria requiring more than 50% of their footprint to fall within sea-level rise exposure, flood hazard, or shoreline setback areas — and they must not have been originally intended for affordable housing.
- The rezoning effort is tied to Ordinance 5909 (Bill 9), which is actively phasing vacation rentals out of apartment-zoned districts across Maui.
Source: Maui Now
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