Mayor Victorino to reserve additional water source allocation for affordable housing

News Release from Office of the Mayor,  July 6, 2021

Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino today announced his decision to reserve the balance of available water recently allocated to the County’s Department of Water by the Hawai‘i Commission on Water Resource Management to develop affordable rental units and attainable workforce homes for residents in Central and South Maui.

“I am prioritizing our resident workforce as the first beneficiaries of this water to motivate construction of right-priced housing as soon as possible,” explained Mayor Victorino. “I want those who are most deserving, the very people who built this community, to benefit from the Commission’s recent order to increase the County’s Central Maui Water system’s maximum reliable capacity to 3.2 million gallons per day.”

The mayor’s decision is expected to incentivize developers to build more units sooner by offering greater certainty to those seeking to build affordable rentals and attainable workforce housing. 

On June 28, 2021, the Hawai‘i Commission on Water Resource Management issued its long-awaited decision and order in the Na Wai Eha contested case over the use of water from four major Central Maui streams. The commission’s decision recognizes the rights of traditional farmers, stream wildlife, diversified agriculture and municipal water supply. The commission endorsed the County of Maui’s existing use permit for 1.784 million gallons of water per day, plus ratified a new use permit for 1.416 million gallons per day.

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