Makena Resort fight flares anew
By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau
KIHEI, Maui — It's déjà vu for the Makena Resort and its proposal to rezone hundreds of acres for luxury housing and visitor accommodations.
Two years ago, foes waved signs of protest along the highway and the resort's plan was debated at length before stalling over Maui County Council quorum issues and a shortage of votes.
The proposal comes before the council again next month. Opponents are gathering petitions and planning a Feb. 21 rally at Kalama Park in Kihei, while the resort has been running full-page newspaper ads to combat "numerous innuendoes and outright misinformation."
The March 8 hearing will be held at the Kihei Community Center.
The center of the storm is Makena Resort's 20-year plan to add some 200 acres of condominiums and apartments surrounding the Makena North and South golf courses, and to designate 28 acres for a hotel or time-share project south of the Maui Prince Hotel.
Roy Figueiroa, Makena Resort manager, said the proposal aims to change the zoning of 600 acres to conform with the area's community plan, which shows hotel and residential use. The zone change would allow for proposed construction of 89 time-share units and 1,500 mostly condominium units.
Opponents say such plans are too large for an area lacking water resources and adequate roads. They say the proposal would compromise the region's bounty of Native Hawaiian cultural artifacts, undermine its coastal waters, threaten beach access and add even more traffic to Kihei's busy streets.
"This is a very major project, and this is a very sensitive area," said Ron Sturtz, president of Maui Tomorrow, a nonprofit group that advocates measured growth.
Makena, just south of the Wailea Resort, is a rugged and beautiful area on Maui's leeward shore. It is home to popular Makena State Park, La Pérouse Bay, the 'Ahihi-Kina'u Natural Area Reserve and Maui's last lava flow on Cape Kina'u.
The Makena Resort has two 18-hole golf courses, a tennis complex and the 310-room Maui Prince Hotel. It is part of Prince Resorts Hawai'i Corp., owned by the Seibu Group of Japan, which also owns the Mauna Kea Beach Resort in South Kohala and the Hawai'i Prince Hotel in Waikiki.
The resort has spent $20 million on a sewage treatment plant, roadways and other improvements in anticipation of more development.
Maui developer Everett Dowling, who acknowledges he's interested in developing a portion of the project, said the resort has been a good corporate citizen, not only by providing employment and being a good neighbor, but by building infrastructure before development. "They've done everything they've been asked to do," Dowling said.
Charles Jencks, president of the Maui Contractors Association, said most people don't understand what the resort is seeking. "Of the 600 acres to be rezoned, 400 acres are already golf course," he said. "The balance is what they're asking for."
Dowling said the resort has been treated unfairly, especially by Councilman Wayne Nishiki, an outspoken critic of development who, as chairman of the council's Planning and Land Use Committee, has delayed scheduling a hearing for the Makena plans.
The scheduling issue came to a head last month when other council members forced Nishiki to place the rezoning plan on the agenda.
Project foes say the water issue remains the development's biggest question mark, especially since the 'Iao Aquifer — South Maui's primary water source — is being pumped at capacity.
Resort officials say they've spent millions since 1975 developing water sources used by Central and South Maui.
Daniel Grantham, president of the Sierra Club's Maui Group, said many people object to the construction of more luxury homes when affordable housing is probably the county's most pressing problem.
The resort has agreed to provide affordable units equal to at least 10 percent of the number of market-priced units. The company also has said it will comply with affordable housing requirements for new visitor lodging.
Reach Timothy Hurley at thurley@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 244-4880.
