Tourism

... A number of restaurants are in a pinch recently.  Here’s what happened to them ....

... Spending was down 2.4% in November when compared to the previous year. However, the number of tourists increased by 0.3% to 731,233 ....

... National Park Service completes Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Air Tour Management Plan ....

... The ordinance that levies heavy fines on short-term rentals in Honolulu remains in effect only for new rentals beginning operations after the ordinance was put in place ....

... Typically, local commanders are permitted to approve routine five-year leases, however, with HDOT seeking a longer term (50 years), the Army had to seek approval in Washington, D.C. ....

... Should the incentives fail to motivate enough STRs to become available, Green may impose a short-term moratorium by mid-January, he said ....

... government actions created the demand for STRs in the first place, and government regulatory failures “created housing unaffordability long before STRs even came into existence." ....

... the mere fact that an airline that was not “Hawai‘i based” came in to buy a “Hawai‘i based airline” that didn’t elicit an immediate hearing in the State Capitol on the merits of it told me that, indeed, the relationship between the people of Hawai‘i, its government officials, and its aviation options, has very much changed....

... Program will house FEMA-ineligible survivors of Maui wildfires for up to 12 months ....

... a definitive agreement under which Alaska Airlines will acquire Hawaiian Airlines for $18.00 per share in cash, for a transaction value of approximately $1.9 billion ....

... looking for a “win-win” result ....

... Community Meeting to be Held at Maui Arts & Cultural Center, December 4 ....

... Maui: 35,526 visitors in October 2023, compared to 59,372 visitors (-40.2%) in October 2022 and 59,620 visitors (-40.4%) in October 2019 ....

... For the last few years, drug addicts had been living in the dilapidated structure ....

... you have to follow the money, especially when there’s a huge surge of funds given to the government to dole out ....

... even the slimmed down plan is worrisome ....

... Ed Underwood said, “The boating program is currently subsidizing free parking in the facility which is not fair to those who are paying the fees" ....

... spending on Maui down more than 50% in September ....

... government should not be there to take choices away ....

... Considering the record of the old Aloha Stadium, there are many questions ....

... leave it to each resident’s own timeline, not government officials ....

... Should the government have the last word in creating a tourism timeline? ....

... 2,200 of the families displaced by the Maui wildfires who are receiving shelter in hotels and similar lodging have completed the required eligibility process ... 600 haven't ....

... In August 2023, visitor arrivals to Oahu +11.0%, Hawaii Island +4.1% and Kauai +9.0% increased while visitor arrivals to Maui -57.8% dropped significantly ....

... Hawaii economists say Lahaina locals could be priced out of rebuilt town without zoning changes  ....

... “Our primary focus at this time is caring for about 78 percent of the pre-disaster population of Lāhainā — who are staying in dozens of non-congregate shelters (NCS)” ....

... There have been 10,448 new claims for unemployment in Maui County in the four weeks since the fires struck ....

...DBEDT reduces its economic growth projections for Hawaii from 1.8% for 2023 to 1.1% and from 2% to 1.5% for 2024....

... If you have comprehensive coverage (also known as “other than collision”) on your automobile insurance policy, submit a claim ....

... 932,713 visitors arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in July 2023, an increase of 1.5 percent from July 2022 ....

... more than a dozen hotels and timeshare properties are currently housing more than 4,400 shelter survivors and hotel employee survivors, while some 900 people are booked in Airbnb units ....

... HRS Chapter 26-35 spells out the requirements that apply to an agency administratively attached to a state department ....

... "It would be potentially catastrophic if no one traveled to the island," Green said ....

... Blangiardi directed DPP to suspend the short-term vacation rental 30–day minimum rental period requirement to increase the availability of temporary housing on Oʻahu ....

... Green described Lahaina as “total devastation,” estimating that about 80% of the town was destroyed, with hundreds of families displaced. He added that the damage to property will be in the “billions of dollars.” ....

... Much of historic Lahaina town destroyed as huge wildfire sends people fleeing into water ....

... The Haʻikū Stairs have been slated for removal due to safety concerns, but activists say that there are alternatives to ripping out the popular steps ....

... While the Emergency Proclamation issued by Governor Josh Green, M.D., on July 18, removes and/or expedites some of the  regulatory processes associated with a project of this magnitude it does not exempt a demolition contractor from securing material disposal certificates and other regulatory permits. A demolisher has not been chosen yet through the established procurement process. ...

... The public will have 30 days to comment on the new process, which would take effect in spring 2024. It would replace an outdated, 15-year-old manual ....

... approving for inclusion in the 2024 Hawaii State Association of Counties legislative package a state bill relating to the county transient accommodations tax ....

... 889,274 visitors arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in June 2023, an increase of 5.5 percent from June 2022 ....

... The Hawaii Police Department has responded to 6,479 calls for service/incidents in the area from September, 2018, to April, 2023, with an estimated cost for responding to these calls ranges from $319,000 to $459,000 ....

... in recent decades visitor spending stopped growing while the number of tourists continued to increase ....

... That means the HTA board will be under new leadership when it holds a special meeting Thursday to discuss how to proceed after current HTA President and CEO John De Fries leaves the agency ....

... Former President Barack Obama, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, Governor of Hawaii Josh Green, and Senator Hirono Promote Peace through Pearl Harbor National Memorial and Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park Sister Park Arrangement ....

... this represents a 94.6 percent recovery in total visitor arrivals from May 2019 ....

... HDOT is working to redevelop Pier 7 at Honolulu Harbor which has been vacant and inactive for the last 14 years, after Bishop Museum closed the Hawaiʻi Maritime Center ....

... the Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation expects the additional benefit of reduced demand for overnight and multiple-day parking ....

... 'Hawai‘i Tourism Authority President and CEO John De Fries Announces He Will Decline Extension of Employment Contract' LOL! ....

... DLNR removed a water hose being used to siphon water into an encampment of meth addicts on the lower slopes of Diamond Head ....