Maui crews to help probe cause of fire
Maui fire investigators traveled to Molokai on Friday to help determine the cause of a fire that inflicted $100,000 in damage to a two-bedroom, unoccupied rental home late Thursday night in the Kawela Plantation subdivision, Fire Services Chief Lee Mainaga said.
Firefighters from Kaunakakai, Hoolehua and Pukoo responded to the blaze reported at 10:23 p.m. at 689 Onioni Drive, Mainaga said. The fire was under control at 11:23 p.m. and extinguished at 12:21 a.m. Friday.
The single-story, wooden structure was a 1,000-square-foot, two-bedroom residence.
Damage to the home's contents was estimated at $25,000.
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Final review of Maui Island Plan slated
The Maui County Council's General Plan Committee will begin its final review of the Maui Island Plan starting at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in the Council Chambers at the Kalana O Maui building.
The committee chaired by Council Member Gladys Baisa has been conducting an initial review of the 10-chapter plan since the start of the council term in 2011. Baisa said the committee hopes to deliver its recommendations to the full council by the end of October to enable the council to meet is Dec. 31 deadline.
On Thursday, the meeting will focus on the following portions of the Maui Island Plan: cover pages, table of contents, acknowledgments, introduction, Chapters 1 through 7, Chapter 10, works cited and the definitions contained in Appendix A.
Baisa said testifiers should focus their comments on only those portions of the plan.
The committee will begin its review of Chapter 8 later in October.
The chapter contains the Maui Island Directed Growth Plan, which generated hours of public testimony in the past months as councilors decided where growth should occur.
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Residents asked to fill out 2012 survey
Maui County residents are being asked to fill out a 2012 County of Maui Community Survey.
It can be found online at www.co.maui.hi.us/2012communitysurvey.
Survey results will help the county Budget Office prioritize county projects and funding. The survey covers all of the county's public services and asks whether residents are satisfied or dissatisfied with them.
"This is a way for county residents to get the most for their money," said Mayor Alan Arakawa. "Our tax dollars go toward funding police and fire, sewer and water, garbage pickup and other services, so this is your chance to help us run a more effective, efficient and responsive government."
For residents without Internet access, hard copies of the 25-question survey will be at the Maui Fair and are available at the Mayor's Office on the ninth floor of the Kalana O Maui building in Wailuku.
To request a copy of the survey, call 270-7855.
