×

Ask The Mayor

Mayor Michael Victorino answers some of the most-asked questions submitted to his office staff.

Q: I live in a residential area in Kihei and there has been very loud construction going on in my area for the past couple of months. Trucks start beeping and gravel is being broken starting as early as 6 a.m., including on weekends. I don’t know if these are construction trucks or garbage trucks. Either way, how is this disturbance allowed to happen? Are there county ordinances that regulate noise?

A: I’m sorry for the inconvenience. The construction work you have described could fall under the criteria of best management practices, which take into account impacts to surrounding properties and may have guidelines about when construction activities have to begin and end.

Without more information, however, construction noise is typically handled by the state Department of Health’s Noise Section. My staff contacted Maui’s environmental health specialist, who provided the Hawaii Administrative Rules for community noise control. The rules state that construction noise shall not exceed the maximum permissible decibel level of the zoned property for more than 10 percent of the time within any 20-minute period, except by permit.

A Community Noise Permit allows the contractor/homeowner builder to exceed the maximum permissible decibel level from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays. If you have any questions, I encourage you to contact the state Department of Health, Noise Section, at (808) 586-4700.

Q: What is being done about homeless people in Maui County? I know there’s some spots in Kahului, but I’m also seeing pockets around Lowe’s and Home Depot? Any updates would be much appreciated.

A: Assisting our community members who do not have shelter is a major concern for my office, and I can say that our Homeless Program Division went out to some of the areas you identified to make assessments.

Division staff members are aware of some hot spots in Kahului as well as between Home Depot and Walmart and have notified the Maui Police Department for assistance. Homeless populations are very dynamic, though, so spots can be ever-changing.

As for an update, we are having growing success in housing individuals, thanks to the work of our staff and Family Life Center. Homeless outreach members are in the field every day, working hard to find homes for our homeless people and providing them with social services.

We also are looking forward to increased funding and support from the state after Gov. David Ige signed a new statewide emergency homelessness proclamation last month. The plan aims to accelerate housing, expand shelter capacity and make services more accessible for unsheltered homeless people.

Plans call for giving $200,000 to the County of Maui and establishing an Ohana Zone, which will provide housing-focused support services. Our Homeless Programs Division is reviewing how it will use the newfound assistance.

We must work together with the state, nonprofit agencies and local community groups to help this vulnerable group of people and show them support and compassion. Our goal is not to simply move people around; rather we seek to offer them solutions and services.

As a reminder, if anyone witnesses violations of the law or has concerns about public safety, please call Maui Police Department’s nonemergency number at 244-6400.

Q: A streetlight near our house in Kihei has been out for a long time and still hasn’t been fixed. Without this streetlight on, it is very dark, and I fear it’s a security issue and safety concern for our children. How do we get our light fixed?

A: That is a very good question and one our Department of Public Works gets many times every year.

Maui Electric Co. handles most streetlight issues in the county and can be contacted for general outages. Maui Electric can be reached on its 24-hour trouble line at 871-7777 on Maui and (877) 871-8461 on Molokai and Lanai.

MECO will ask you for the number located on the pole and the location of the streetlight. You can also report a streetlight outage online at www.mauielectric.com/safety-and-outages/power-outages/report-streetlight-outage.

* Want to Ask the Mayor? Submit your Maui County-related questions to Mayor Michael Victorino by email at askthemayor@mauicounty.gov, by phone at 270-7855 or by mail at 200 S. High St., ninth floor, Wailuku 96793. Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the “Ask the Mayor” column; to request a personal response to a concern, email mayors.office@mauicounty.gov.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper?
     
Support Local Journalism on Maui

Only $99/year

Subscribe Today