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Editor’s note: For Hawaii’s Nov. 5 General Election, Civil Beat asked candidates to answer some questions about where they stand on various issues and what their priorities will be if elected.

The following came from Nara Boone, candidate for Maui County Council Makawao-Haiku-Paia District. Her opponent is Nohe Uu-Hodgins.

Go to Civil Beat’s Election Guide for general information, and check out other candidates on the General Election Ballot.

1. Clearly, Maui County faces big issues related to the fires. What’s the primary thing Maui needs to do now to recover from the fires?

Maui needs to house its people, first and foremost. The pre-existing housing crisis, made exponentially worse after the fires, means many people in our community are suffering. This isnʻt something limited to fire survivors; the resulting trauma is widespread.

Necessary healing canÊ»t happen until our community feels stable in their living situations. While some housing developments are underway, the solution — like the problem itself — must be multi-faceted.

Changing certain zoning to multi-use, phasing out short-term-rentals and charging much higher taxes for vacant homes are some solutions. While some may say we need more tourism to assist in recovery, I believe our community is our economy and must be our top priority.

2.  What should Maui do to encourage people to stay? What can the county do to ensure that families aren’t priced out?

Rental prices must be brought under control. What some call a “going rate” is actually inflated pricing due to outside investors gobbling up MauiÊ»s rental inventory during Covid, then expecting our people to fund their mortgages.

FEMAʻs Direct Lease program, while helpful for some, has contributed to rents doubling, even tripling, since the fires.

Overall, our cost of living must be reduced. Free lunch for school-aged children year-long, larger property tax breaks for long-term/owner-occupied dwellings, offer better job opportunities not related to tourism.

3. Do you support the new state law that allows counties to regulate and even shut down short-term rentals? Why or why not?

I am in full support of the new law. Much of the apartment zoned Minatoya List inventory was initially work-force housing, meant for those who live and work here.

The majority of owners of these properties now live outside of Hawaii, contributing minimally to the functioning of our society. This new law gives the county another option to help house our people. 

4. What’s your vision for Lahaina? How should it be rebuilt and who should decide?

I believe the people of Lahaina should have a large say in how the town should be rebuilt. Of course, there will need to be adjustments made for sea level rise — a complicated issue, especially for genealogical lands. All the hard-learned lessons that created this catastrophe mustnÊ»t be repeated. There needs to be ample water, wider roads and an underground electrical system.

My personal vision for Lahaina is one where the original landscape is honored; water stops being withheld, allowing for the return of Mokuula, native Hawaiian plants and food trees. A place where multi-cultural richness is celebrated with tributes to the many ethnicities making up the town — Hawaiians, Filipinos, Pacific Islanders, Latinos, etc.

Perhaps the shoreline area of Front Street becomes a memorial park instead of shops.

5. What should elected officials do to restore trust in county government?

In order to restore trust, elected officials must be more transparent. They have to prove their allegiance is to the true fabric of our society; our hardworking people and not to big money interests, developers, real estate companies and tourism. They need to admit when theyʻve made mistakes instead of going on the offensive.

There must be clean elections, where corporations canÊ»t make donations under the guise of employees, family members, etc. Additionally, ending cronyism and bribery would go a long way in restoring trust.

6. Do you think Maui County should do more to manage water resources? Why or why not?

Absolutely. We are in a situation where our most precious resource is privatized, misused and wasted. We have hotels using an abundance of water, yet green-lighted affordable housing is on pause due to lack thereof.

We must reprioritize. Water reclamation should be required for all hotels and put to use in other areas across Maui County, allowing for our water table to be replenished.

7. What is the first thing Maui County should do to get in front of climate change rather than just reacting to it?

Thereʻs more than one thing. Start managed retreat of roads, buildings and infrastructure, add water reclamation and atmospheric water harvesting, plant more trees/native foliage, build more alternative energy systems (solar, hydro and bio), become more self-sufficient in food production.

8. Homelessness is becoming more of an issue on Maui. What do you think needs to be changed to help people get into housing, and stay housed?

We need to bring down and regulate rental prices. Many houseless people are employed, yet donÊ»t make enough for the ridiculous rents being charged. Many others struggle to afford application fees, credit report fees, the demand to make three times the rent in income, then come up with the first monthÊ»s rent and deposit.

There should be programs that help with and/or limit these fees, subsidize rent and offer supportive services. Also, better incentives for landlords to convert dwellings to HUD guidelines.

The county should create more puuhonua (places of refuge) — countywide — that provide wraparound services for those in need. Lastly, there are many organizations in Maui County, already doing amazing work, who are deserving of funds but not receiving them.

9. Traffic is getting worse on Maui, and different regions face different challenges. What would be your approach to improve Maui’s transportation problems?

The staggering evidence of rental cars filling fields and parking lots during covid and post-fires speaks volumes.

Our island is overrun. Shifting to airport/hotel shuttles and guided tours, away from individual vehicles, would help a lot in areas like Kihei, Hana and Haleakala, as would limiting the amount of rental cars allowed on island, period.

Our public bus service could be improved by adding routes that circle Upcountry without going to Kahului first, cutting down on valuable time wasted. Paia would benefit from a bypass extension using Holomua Roadʻs connections to Baldwin Avenue and Hana Highway.

The west side issues would be improved right now by opening Honoapiilani Highway to through traffic. Napili would benefit from speed tables in neighborhoods, while Haiku has been inundated with an excessive amount of traffic that needs to be reduced, while maintaining road safety.