A bicyclist rides in front of the Old Lahaina Courthouse in 2008. Work is underway to rebuild the historic structure that was destroyed in the August 2023 fire. The Maui News archive / Matthew Thayer

The Lahaina Restoration Foundation is close to finishing its master plan for rebuilding a number of historic buildings damaged by the August 2023 wildfire.

The foundation has been preparing a master plan for several historic buildings including the Old Lahaina Courthouse, the Lahaina Prison, the Baldwin Home and the Master’s Reading Room, Seamen’s Hospital, Plantation House and Hale Aloha.

Theo Morrison, executive director of the Lahaina Restoration Foundation, said the buildings will look the same from the exterior but may have changes to the interior.

For instance, rather than having a single cell space inside the Lahaina Prison, the plan is to have two separate spaces — one serving as an exhibit area and another for storing landscaping equipment.

The plan is to restore the first and second floor of the Old Lahaina Courthouse for now, though the foundation is still looking at what to do with the cellar.

The Lahaina Restoration Foundation also recently provided public access to its parking lot near the Baldwin Home site to give people better access to the shoreline areas north of Lahaina Harbor. The county has limited the parking access to non-commercial activities, and Morrison said many of those parking spaces are being used by surfers.

“We’re glad to be able to do it,” Morrison said. “It’s nice to see residents getting back there again.”

Morrison added that she looks forward to the harbor eventually being accessible to boaters and visitors because 70% of Lahaina’s visitors participate in ocean activities.

The nonprofit Front Street Recovery Group composed of commercial property owners is also moving forward on recovery work.

Group spokesperson Kaleo Schneider said 95% of the group’s members are from the Hawaiian Islands, and they are in the process of hiring planners, architects and speaking with the Maui County Planning Department.

Schneider said the group is divided into two parts — those whose properties are seaside of Front Street and require a special management area coastal permit, and those that are not seaside of Front Street.

She said the ones who require a coastal permit are trying to see how much of the property they can recover and don’t want to spend a lot of money on designs only to be rejected. Schneider said rebuilding Lahaina is going to require everyone’s cooperation from the residents to county officials.

Schneider added that the commercial property owners are reporting that rebuilding is going to cost 75% to 80% more than what they are receiving from their insurance claims, and she believes it’s critical for the work on the Lahaina Harbor to be completed.

“The harbor coming back will revitalize that area a lot,” she said.