Maui abandons Wailuku Business Plaza deal

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

WAILUKU, Maui — Mayor Alan Arakawa yesterday announced that Maui County has terminated its agreement to buy the Wailuku Business Plaza for $3.3 million.

The agreement, which was approved last year by the county Board of Water Supply as one of the panel's last acts as a semi-autonomous agency, would have resulted in the county acquiring the single-story business building on Main Street in Wailuku, also known as the Kress Building.

Arakawa, who opposed the deal as soon as he took office in January, said the building's owners, Main Street Partners, have agreed to terminate the transaction, asking that the county pay only $2,088 in escrow and associated fees.

In a statement, the mayor acknowledged that the county has an office space problem, but that the Wailuku Business Plaza transaction was not the answer. Among other things, he said the building has tenants with long-term leases and it would be inappropriate for the county to become a major commercial landlord.

In November, voters approved a charter amendment that placed the water board under the authority of the mayor and County Council.