A contentious and complicated proposed luxury home development project in South Maui may need to meet with the Maui County Department of ʻŌiwi Resources before going any further.

The project, now titled Honua’ula but known to many as Wailea 670, went before the Maui County Council Housing and Land Use Committee on Monday after bringing forth a number of testifiers last week voicing their concerns with the project.

Wailea 670 is a mixed-use development project that would span 670 acres in South Maui. The decadeslong project includes plans for more than 1,000 upscale units to be built around a private golf course, and it has been the center of controversy and legal battles over the years.

Earlier negotiations led to developers saying they would provide 700 units of affordable housing, with 250 units to be built within the first few years. However, that number has changed several times.

Two related bills were on the agenda for Monday’s meeting, Bill 171 and Bill 172, that would essentially amend a portion of the Maui County Code and an ordinance relating to the Kihei-Makena Project District 9 (Wailea 670).

During Monday’s meeting, attorney Cal Chipchase, who spoke on the project’s behalf, was asked by West Maui council member Tamara Paltin if the developers would be consulting the newly formed Maui County ʻŌiwi Resources Department, which opened this year.

“It looks like they have not been consulted on the cultural portion of this,” she said.

Chipchase said that they “have engaged with the Department of ʻŌiwi Resources” and that they “hope to meet with them as soon as possible.”

West Maui councilwoman Tamara Paltin asked Kapono’ai Molitau, director of the County Department of ʻŌiwi Resources, if they should be consulted prior to the council taking a vote.

Molitau responded: ”If that’s a yes or no question, the answer is yes.”

For a full video of Monday’s meeting, visit mauicounty.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx.