11/03/21 PSLU Committee

On Wednesday's PSLU committee meeting. Chair Tamara Paltin began with explaining the theme of this meeting:

“This is really centered around General plan 1D: to maintain a sustainable balance between the resident, part-time resident and visitor populations. This is not about Hotel industry or Short term rental industry or visitor industry. It is more about our residents and the vision they had and their quality of life.”

Chair then went on to explain that for PSLU 34, on phasing out TVR use in apartment districts they have a new proposal. This proposal sponsored by Councilmember Rawlins Fernandez seeks a phase out bill that would allow for TVR use to continue for all buildings in the sea level rise exposure area. However, all the properties outside the SLRExA would lose the right to conduct TVRs on January 1, 2023. This potential affects 3000 units.

Thank you so much for those who took the time to oppose this measure on Wednesday! The meeting went on to have over 100 on the oral testimony list, and public testimony went on through 9am-3pm. To watch the meeting go here: http://mauicounty.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=1&clip_id=149

There was 200 pieces of written testimony was submitted, you can see that here: 

https://mauicounty.granicusideas.com/meetings/1438-planning-and-sustainable-land-use-committee-2021-on-2021-11-03-9-00-am/agenda_items

The committee voted unanimously to defer this item to a future committee meeting date. The next discussion will focus on the new proposal. The county planning department has since submitted a list of properties that are in or abut the sea level rise exposure area. These would be the properties allowed to remain doing TVR use. This new proposal also changes its intent to just create housing, not necessarily affordable housing. 

MVRA has created a list to show what properties are subject to this new phase out. See that here: 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vSruJ0CUYT7f1GsbNfP_WJVHaOgEY3FDpWjRUQd8OATX8z-7Ym5jK3ZTaD6dDsvVAg4zVPBqXqe9kyb/pubhtml

See a portion of this new bill's intent below:

Chair Paltin also explained that she feels that “we need housing for everybody, many of these units used to be housing for everybody prior to 2014.” and gave a brief history lesson of these units. Tom Croly testified and added to that history lesson, recalling that many of these buildings and units actually did do vacation rental use prior to 2014, as it was an allowed use for them all along.

Phasing out 3000 legal vacation rentals will certainly divest these property owners of rights, and further identification of these buildings units, and what kind of housing would be created, if it was used for vacation rental in the past, and researching any other unintended consequences should be the next steps. Stay tuned for more meetups and discussion on the issues and unintended consequences of this newest TVR Phase out.

In addition, at that meeting on Wednesday the visitor accommodation Moratorium proposal passed out of committee and onto the council. This proposal if passed will pause any vacation accommodation permits, including hotel, condo, or STRH, for two years.

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