Lessons from Lahaina could help Hilo recover

by Keli'i Akina, Ph.D., President / CEO, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Last weekend, separate fires in Hilo claimed the lives of two people, displaced nearly three dozen other residents and razed at least five buildings.

Even amid ongoing investigations and debris cleanup, Hawaiʻi County lawmakers should be taking steps to help business and property owners get back on their feet — and they can use the many lessons learned following the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires in Lahaina as a guide.

It is most important that policymakers quickly look for ways to free people from the burdensome regulations that will hinder their recovery efforts.

Numerous state and county regulations have bogged down Lahaina’s reconstruction. State and county officials have tried to waive or amend some of them, but it feels like watching a game of whack-a-mole: Whenever they update one regulation, they find another that’s slowing down the process.

It’s possible that the same fate could befall rebuilding in Hilo if county officials don’t act.

Consider the old Puʻuʻeo Poi Factory, which caught flame on the morning of Saturday, Nov. 29. The factory stopped making poi back in 2017 and was converted into 23 rental units.

Rebuilding that property could be challenging, given that it’s in a state special management area — a zone designed to regulate development near the coastline. The owners of many Lahaina properties located in the SMA zone there are still battling for their right to rebuild what existed before the fires.

And then there are the buildings at the intersection of Kino‘ole and Haili streets that were destroyed in a second fire that broke out early Sunday morning. They were not within the SMA boundary, but their mixed-use construction, with shops on the first floor and residences on the second, could prove tricky to rebuild under the county’s current zoning code.

Furthermore, the simple process of getting a permit for any rebuilding work could take months, and the associated fees will likely cost tens of thousands of dollars.

State and county lawmakers have addressed some of these barriers as they relate to Lahaina’s rebuilding, but recovery has still been slow. Earlier this week, Maui celebrated the completion of the 100th rebuilt structure — more than two years after the fires. The

blazes are estimated to have destroyed approximately 2,200 buildings, an overwhelming majority of which were homes.

Although the scope of the Lahaina and Hilo fires differs, the lesson is the same: Inflexible regulations can severely delay or even prevent rebuilding.

Hilo remains one of the last affordable places in the state, and a vibrant culture of entrepreneurship has animated the town in the past several years.

It would be a shame to see these fires stunt its spirit, which is all the more reason for lawmakers to act sooner than later.

I hope Hawaiʻi County officials will learn lessons from Lahaina and simply let folks rebuild.

E hana kākou! (Let's work together!)