What, exactly, is going on in Hawaiʻi County? Its own laws and rules specifically forbid the operation of vacation rentals on properties that lie within the state Agricultural District. It passed an ordinance in 2018 that limits these uses to … Continued
Here’s a puzzle. A large house on a five-acre lot in the state Agricultural District is rented out to tourists for more than $700 a night, according to a recent listing on the VRBO website. Inside, near the kitchen door, … Continued
Kauaʻi Water Decision: On September 30, the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court ruled that the state Board of Land and Natural Resources should not have denied contested case hearing requests by Kia‘i Wai O Wai‘ale‘ale and Friends of Māhāʻulepū over revocable permits … Continued
Do the interim instream flow standards for East Maui need to be revised again to meet off-stream uses in Upcountry and Central Maui? Even when the current flow standards haven’t been fully implemented? On October 27, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser ran … Continued
On October 29, Environmental Court Judge Lisa W. Cataldo issued an opinion in the Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi’s appeal of a June 30, 2022, contested case decision by the Board of Land and Natural Resources to approve revocable permits allowing … Continued
On October 21, U.S. District Judge Jill A. Otake granted the motion for summary judgment brought by the City & County of Honolulu and Department of Planning and Permitting Director Dawn Apuna in a case brought two years ago by … Continued
More than a year ago – September 2024 – the state Supreme Court issued a ruling on the question of whether short-term vacation rentals are allowed on land in the state Agricultural District. The answer was a resounding no. The … Continued
Trail Contract: After a jury found in April 2014 that the state — not Haleakala Ranch Company — owns the historic Haleakalā bridle trail, plaintiff David Brown, the executive director of Public Access Trails Hawaiʻi, stated,“We have a moral obligation … Continued
Land Board Calls For Two Appraisals To Determine Rent for Maui Wind Farm At its September 26 meeting, the state Board of Land and Natural Resources did something unusual. It directed its appraiser to prepare two appraisals for a proposed … Continued