WAILUKU, Maui — Maui County is moving forward with a plan to develop an 8-mile-long shoreline park from Puamana Park in Lahaina to Papalaua Park at the base of the West Maui pali.

The Maui Planning Commission last week approved an Ukumehame agricultural subdivision in exchange for an agreement to sell 100 coastline acres to the county that will form the initial 1.5-mile stretch of what's being called the "Pali to Puamana Parkway."

The County Council's Planning Committee will consider the proposal's master plan at a meeting Monday at 9 a.m.

"This is a tremendous project for the county," said Tom Blackburn-Rodriguez, president of the Maui Coastal Land Trust, which was involved in early discussions of the proposal. "In fact, based on our goal of coastal preservation, this is one of the most important things for Maui County."

The plan calls for moving Honoapi'ilani Highway inland, from Papalaua Park to Puamana Park, and creating 357 acres of shoreline park and open space. This includes 238 acres of acquisition, 74 acres of existing highway right-of-way and 45 acres of existing parks.

There is only limited development along this corridor, primarily near Olowalu and at Launiupoko near Lahaina. However, much of the land both mauka and makai of the highway is privately owned, and plans are in the works for extensive residential and some commercial development.

Public acquisition of the coastal corridor would ensure open space for view corridors of the ocean, parks for recreation and camping, and beach access for surfing, swimming, diving and other ocean activities, officials said.

The proposal has been lauded not only for the opportunity to preserve a large chunk of coastal land for public use, but as a way of reducing shoreline erosion, for moving the highway out of the tsunami inundation zone, and for allowing expansion of the two-lane roadway.

According to the master plan, highway development costs are estimated at $108.8 million, including land acquisition. But the cost doesn't include park development costs.

A Pali to Puamana Parkway Task Force, made up of community members, created the master plan over the past two years, but it was recently replaced by an acquisition committee.

Last week, the Planning Commission gave Pacific Rim Land Inc. permission to develop 45 large agricultural lots mauka at Ukumehame. In exchange, the company agreed to sell 100 coastal acres to the county for $4 million.