Maui seeks $50 million to buy Front Street parcels

Maui County is trying to secure $50 million to buy out a narrow set of oceanfront parcels on Lahaina’s Front Street, adding a new option for owners who are still weighing whether they can rebuild after the 2023 wildfire. County recovery officials have framed the plan as a voluntary mitigation program for high-risk shoreline properties, not a broad acquisition effort across Lahaina. The proposal surfaced as the county also expanded eligibility for its Hoʻokumu Hou rebuilding program and extended that application deadline through Dec. 31, 2026. Much of the Front Street corridor remains empty nearly three years after the fire, according to local reporting. ### Which Front Street parcels is Maui County talking about? The county’s proposed buyout area is limited to direct shoreline properties on the makai, or ocean, side of Front Street that are fully within Lahaina Historic Districts 1 or 2, according to the Maui County Office of Recovery’s program materials. The county says those parcels must also be in high-risk areas and have been directly affected by the declared disaster. (msn.com) A February update to the county’s disaster-recovery action plan described the same buyout concept as a “strategic voluntary mitigation buyout program” funded by reallocating $50 million from other hazard-mitigation projects within Maui’s broader federal recovery plan. That plan said Lahaina’s Front Street is also a key corridor for sewer, water, gas and electric infrastructure. (hookumuhou.mauicounty.gov) ### How would the buyouts work for owners? The county has said the buyouts would be voluntary, and compensation would be based on post-disaster fair market value for eligible parcels. County materials say the government could then convert acquired land to uses such as open space, shoreline access, stormwater features or other buffers. (civilbeat.org) January reporting from Maui Now showed some owners were already weighing whether to sell or wait for rebuilding conditions to become clearer. That coverage said county officials had approached owners as part of a plan to create a connected stretch of open space along the makai side of Front Street. ### Why is this coming up now? (usnews.com) Aug. 6 reporting by Hawaii News Now, carried in part by MSN, said Maui County officials were seeking the $50 million as many owners continued to struggle with rebuilding and much of the historic district remained vacant. The report tied the buyout push to the slow pace of recovery on one of Lahaina’s best-known commercial corridors. (mauinow.com) A separate Maui Now report published Aug. 2 said rebuilding activity on Front Street had picked up, but the article also underscored how many legacy properties were still in limbo three years after the fire. ### What changed in the Hoʻokumu Hou rebuilding program? Maui County said Aug. 5 that more homeowners may now qualify for Hoʻokumu Hou reconstruction and reimbursement assistance after updated federal income limits expanded eligibility. (msn.com) The county also extended the application deadline through Dec. 31, 2026, to give eligible owners more time to apply. (mauinow.com) The program’s official site says the extension applies to homeowners rebuilding after the 2023 Maui wildfires. Earlier county notices said the single-family reconstruction program can provide up to $1.2 million in assistance to rebuild a primary residence destroyed in the fires. ### What happens next for Lahaina property owners? Dec. 31, 2026, is now the deadline Maui County has posted for Hoʻokumu Hou applications, and the county said it will hold an open house on Aug. 20 for homeowners seeking more information. (mauinow.com) The buyout plan, meanwhile, remains tied to the county’s effort to secure and allocate the proposed $50 million for eligible Front Street parcels. (hookumuhou.mauicounty.gov)