Lahaina moves forward with long-awaited disaster relief approved

Trey Reffett, senior official of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, traveled to Lahaina on Friday to speak about the nearly $2 billion in disaster recovery funding that was recently approved by Congress. Megan Mosely/Courtesy photo
Another sign of forward movement occurred Friday in Lahaina when a senior official from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development traveled to the island’s West Side to applaud the recently allocated $1.6 billion in disaster recovery funding for Maui.
Guests gathered in a white tent at Ka La’i Ola Temporary Housing Village, where behind them were the West Maui Mountains, or Mauna Kahālāwai, a rainbow and bulldozers. In front of them were temporary units that are housing wildfire victims.
In attendance were local, state and federal representatives including Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American and Pacific Islander Senior Liaison Erika L. Moritsugu, Director of the HUD Honolulu Field Office Jocelyn Doane, Representative of U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz’s Office Dale Hahn, Maui Field Representative for U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda’s Office Deidre Tegarden, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen, members of Maui County Council and more.
Trey Reffett, a senior official for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, started the press conference by saying a collaborative effort across the county, state and federal levels made the funding possible.
“All of those leaders working together, as well as too many others to name here, finally overcame the barrier standing in the way of recovery and convinced Congress to finally allocate money for Lahaina’s recovery,” Reffett said.
For months residents have been waiting to hear if the funding would become available. Then news came in December that more than $2 billion would be coming Maui’s way. Around $1.6 billion of the approved federal funding is going to the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery HUD program in Maui, which will help rebuild homes in Lahaina, as well as assist with permanent housing.
Officials said about $480 million more will go toward economic development, small business loans, water infrastructure and other community needs. The funding is part of a larger $12 billion allocation to help communities across the U.S. recover from disasters.
“Communities should not doubt whether that support should come,” Reffett said. “Maui waited too long. These funds are long overdue.”
He paid homage to the Bissen administration and its efforts toward rebuilding.
“They are setting a standard for the nation to follow,” he said.
Pointing toward the county’s extensive long-term recovery plan, which is available at MauiRecovers.org/lahaina, Reffett described Maui as an example for other communities nationwide.
“Communities all over the country are looking to this plan to see how they can better recover,” he said.
Moritsugu, who gave thanks on behalf of President Joe Biden’s Administration, said the moment was significant to all Americans, especially as another wildfire in Los Angeles is making headlines.
“President Biden speaking from the Oval Office this morning said: ‘This is not going to be over. Even when the fires go out, we’re going to be around.'”
As a kama’aina to Hawai’i, Moritsugu recalled what happened in West Maui and how she was inspired by the community’s effort to persevere.
“Nearly a year and a half ago an unprecedented, destructive deadly wildfire devastated Lahaina and Kula, taking lives, homes and cherished memories in a matter of hours, but as we’ve seen throughout this tragedy, Hawai’i’s resilient spirit endures,” she said.
She added that on top of the CDBG-DR funds, other collaborative efforts on the federal level are on track to provide more than $3 billion toward Maui’s wildfire recovery.
“You have told us that any recovery must keep local people local, ensure that culture is honored and strengthen the islands against future disaster,” she said.
She said disaster relief will continue to be a priority after Biden transitions out of office on Jan. 20.
“The White House stands by the principle that Maui knows best how to shape Maui’s own future, and today we put more resources in your hands,” she said.
Bissen thanked all of the attendees for their continued support to secure funding for the recovery effort, and he took a moment to recognize the people and first responders in Los Angeles.
“We extend our solidarity and support just as they did for us,” he said.
Bissen described the day as signaling a critical milestone in Lahaina’s disaster recovery, and the mayor said the CDBG-DR funds are important to support the community’s permanent recovery needs.
Giving many thanks to those who supported Lahaina on a federal level, including Sen. Schatz, Bissen said that while the moment shows forward movement in West Maui, he also recognizes the recovery has just begun.
“(The wildfires) took the lives of 102 of our residents — our friends and our family — and two of whom are still unaccounted for,” Bissen said. “It left thousands without homes and businesses.”
The mayor said that with the continued support of our state, federal and private partners, 98% of the 1,568 properties have been cleared of ash and debris. With two major commercial properties left to clear, Bissen said the county has issued 207 building permits.
“556 remain in the queue and four homes have already been rebuilt,” he said. “We’ve restored water and sewer to Lahaina. Over a thousand permanent housing units are in progress — you’ve seen some of them in your drive over here — and a thousand temporary housing units, such as the ones you see behind me and off to my right, they are now housing survivors as we all speak.”
Bissen explained how the Office of Recovery will help oversee the distribution of the funding alongside the county’s current CDBG office. Currently, Maui County officials are waiting for a HUD prepared Allocation Announcement Notice that will provide programmatic and spending rules, requirements and regulations.
Reffett said the transaction has not happened yet, but it will be happening in the future.
“HUD will engage with the county. The county will then develop an action plan and, once submitted to HUD under an official grant agreement, will be executed and the money will be available to the county to start building these projects,” he said.
Reffett said the Long-Term Recovery Plan is “an incredible step forward” and that it’s “so far ahead” in terms of community-based disaster recovery planning.
John Smith, the new administrator for the Office of Recovery, was at the press conference and said the county will have six years to spend the money.
For more information and updates, visit mauirecovers.org/cdbgdr.