Key Takeaways

  • Twenty-six Maui condo properties could be moved into hotel-zoned districts that would allow vacation rentals to continue
  • The proposal comes as Maui phases out exemptions covering roughly 7,000 apartment-zoned vacation rental units
  • County Council members will decide whether to send the rezoning proposals to the Maui Planning Commission for review

Dozens of Maui condo properties could get a path to keep operating as short-term rentals even as the county moves ahead with one of Hawaii’s biggest short-term rental crackdowns.

Maui County Council is considering resolutions that would move 26 condo properties into newly created hotel-zoning districts, protecting them from a broader plan to phase out thousands of vacation rental exemptions.

The carve-outs come as Maui works through Mayor Richard Bissen’s Bill 9, which targets roughly 7,000 apartment-zoned units that have historically been allowed to operate as short-term rentals.

Under the phase-out, many of those units could lose the ability to operate as vacation rentals by 2031 unless they qualify for another zoning path.

The proposed hotel districts could provide exactly that for some properties.

Owners argue some condos were built for visitors, not long-term housing

Supporters say some of the buildings were designed and used for visitor accommodations long before Maui’s current housing fight took shape.

Kevin Smith, an owner at Waiohuli Beach Hale, told council members that oceanfront units like his do not always make practical long-term housing because of their size, cost and exposure to salt air, flooding and erosion.

“We’re not asking for special treatment. We’re asking that the same criteria already applied to other Kīhei shoreline properties be applied consistently to ours,” Smith said, according to Honolulu Civil Beat. “Excluding us while including similarly exposed properties on the same stretch of coastline appears to be an oversight and not a deliberate choice.”

The resolutions also point to climate risk. The properties are located within Maui County’s sea level rise exposure area and are projected to face flooding or erosion risks by 2100.

Opponents see the proposed rezoning very differently.

Housing advocates argue that removing more properties from the phase-out weakens the original goal of converting vacation rentals back into homes for local residents.

Nara Boone of Maui Housing Hui told council members the island already has a large supply of hotels and short-term rentals and said residents continue to feel left out as more exemptions are considered.

Autumn Ness also pushed back on the idea that all of the affected properties function primarily as visitor lodging, saying she knows people who live full time in some of the complexes being considered.

Related: Folly Beach halts new short-term rental permits as it appeals court loss

The council approved the broader hotel-zoning framework last month in a 7-2 vote despite opposition from all three county planning commissions.

Now the question is which properties will be allowed into those districts.

Thursday’s meeting follows two earlier sessions that drew hours of public testimony from owners, residents and housing advocates.

If council members approve the resolutions, the proposals will move to the Maui Planning Commission for another round of review before any rezoning becomes final.

The properties include Kīhei Bay Surf, Kīhei Bay Vista, Kīhei Resort, Waiohuli Beach Hale, Shores of Maui, Lahaina Roads and Polynesian Shores, among others.

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