Resort must obey its beach access mandate

Having read the letter to the editor as well as the article recently published in Lahaina News, I am compelled to add my voice to the controversy.

I am a Haole and have recently become a resident of Maui. I have a full understanding of the meaningfulness for native-born Mauians of the ocean and the surf and the sand. The beach is spiritual and not only to obtain a tan.

If the article is correct, the Hale Mahina contract calls for the free access of people to the beach. I am not an attorney, but to borrow a lawyer’s phrase, “they know or should have known” that free access is part of the contract, and therefore, there is no easy out of that obligation.

Now that their obligation has become public and to the forefront, it is unlikely that I will allow it to be ignored anymore. Not only is it a legal obligation, but it is also a moral responsibility to their neighbors.

Last week, I walked the “beach access.” I am physically disabled, and there would be no way that I would be able to access the beach. If there was an ADA stairway, I would be able to sit on the sand and watch the surf and the sunset. They are aware of the topography of the property, and that the access should logically be on the southern end of their property and not the present beach access on the northern end.

It should be an ADA access since July 26, 1990 (I am not absolutely sure of the date when it became law).

Several years ago, when I was a resident at Mahinahina Beach Condominiums, we were required to remove a lanai that was on the sand infringing on public beach. The lanai had been there for several years, and we developed a defense fund of a substantial amount to support an attorney to fight the law. We were unsuccessful.

Hale Mahina has the disadvantage of having the terms of agreement in their condominium permit dating back to 1977. It is my conclusion that any defense on their part will end unsuccessfully, enrich their attorney and cause loss of their money. Moreover, morally, it is their duty.

Please hear my plea. I am not militant nor political. I am merely a neighbor who wants access to the beach in front of them, which I consider a right.

I am awaiting a reply from them… and immediate action.

ROBB PETTY, Honokowai

Excellent reporting on Hale Mahina access issue

Mahalo to Lahaina News for great reporting on our problem of beach access in Honokowai. Unbelievable really for how long this property (Hale Mahina) has been in violation of law (40 years)! Too long the public has felt powerless and forced to climb walls or go way around. Now, with your reporting, this Band-Aid has been ripped off! History and pathways exposed.

Tamara Paltin’s interview was very helpful — yet sad, too — that compliance of law falls on the public to go through hoops and shake dirty rugs for legal action.

No wonder we are losing our shoreline! Human karma: allowing money to rule, pollute and overrun to ruin gathering rights and enjoyment of life. Whatever happened to our State Motto? The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness. Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ke pono.

I really like Paltin’s idea of setting correct procedure for access at the planning level. There are quite a lot of laws protecting beach access. We can also call the DLNR hotline (643-3567) for help to report blocks and illegal fishing, trash, etc. As the Lahaina News reports its best, we can file online a RFS (request for service) to the county; go to mauicounty.gov/1776/Request-for-service (finally to arrive at SeeQuickFix). OR, you can call the mayor at (808) 270-7855 or e-mail mayors.office@mauicounty.gov.

If we start squawking — calling the mayor and overwhelm — maybe an easier, better way to approach this enforcement problem will happen.

How about paper forms of RFS at the P.O. and can mail it… for us old dogs!

LINDA LYERLY, West Side

Priced out of paradise

You shouldn’t have to win on “American Idol” to afford to move back home to Hawaii.

But that’s the way it’s looking for more and more former Hawaii residents who felt they had to leave the state because of its high taxes and high cost of basic necessities such as housing, utilities and groceries.

This week, our hearts were touched by the story of 18-year-old Iam Tongi, a former Kahuku resident whose singing and guitar-playing on the national talent-search program brought tears to the eyes of the judges.

Now living in Seattle, Tongi was asked by judge Lionel Richie, “Why on Earth would you leave Hawaii?” Without missing a beat, Tongi responded: “Priced out of paradise.”

It’s the same answer given by nearly everyone who participates in the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii’s “Why we left Hawaii” series. It’s also the leading answer pollsters hear when they research why Hawaii’s population has been declining for the past six years.

But now that we know why so many people leave this wonderful place, the next question is, “Why is Hawaii so expensive?” My answer is that it’s mostly because of Hawaii’s excessive regulations, big budgets and high taxes.

Sure, many things we need have to be shipped here from afar, so that adds to our costs — and all the more so because of the federal Jones Act, which restricts shipping competition to Hawaii. But fundamentally, Hawaii’s cost of living is the highest in the nation because our state and county governments keep growing in size.

They have continually added regulations that stifle economic growth and limit job opportunities, and continually expanded their budgets that must be paid for by taxes.

At some point, this all becomes too much to afford for many of Hawaii’s struggling residents, so they leave. When they do, the number of people left behind who pay taxes shrinks, but our state and county government budgets don’t. The result is a downward spiral that leads to more spending, more taxes, more spending, more taxes — and an increasingly weaker and unsustainable economy. At what point will our policymakers step up to stop this? I can only hope that it’s soon.

Instead, even now, with a big budget surplus and residents struggling to make ends meet due to inflation, many of our leaders are embracing tax hikes and continued high levels of spending.

In the 2023 Legislature, many bills are being considered that would increase our tax load — all of which I hope will be rejected.

As for spending, Gov. Josh Green informed the Legislature last week that he wants funding for a wide variety of projects — nearly $1 billion for infrastructure and housing projects, more than $50 million for healthcare programs, more than $73 million for environment and agriculture projects, more than $62 million for education and $50 million for “government efficiency.” Those are all worthy causes. But is this really the right time to increase spending?

To his credit, the governor is also proposing to reduce taxes through some tax credits, higher personal exemptions and standard deductions for the state income tax, and indexing the state income tax brackets to inflation — actually pretty radical stuff in the current political climate.

This prompted some observers to urge that the Legislature not cut taxes too much because the state budget might suffer. But I say the household budgets of Hawaii residents are already suffering, and what our families, friends and neighbors need now more than anything else is a break.

If policymakers want to make the state more affordable, they cannot afford to not cut taxes. Tongi himself said that his family moved to Washington state because it was “cheaper.”

I’ll be rooting for Tongi to do well on “American Idol,” so one day he and the rest of his family can move back to Kahuku. In the meantime, we need to work together to make our state more affordable so families like Tongi’s don’t have to leave in the first place.

DR. KELI’I AKINA, President/CEO, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii