SCR 47: authorizing the issuance of a term, non-exclusive easement covering a portion of state submerged lands seaward of tax map key:  (2) 4-3-010:009 at kahana, lahaina, maui, for the removal of existing emergency sandbags and construction, use, repair, and maintenance of a rock revetment.

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	47
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

authorizing the issuance of a term, non-exclusive easement covering a portion of state submerged lands seaward of tax map key:  (2) 4-3-010:009 at kahana, lahaina, maui, for the removal of existing emergency sandbags and construction, use, repair, and maintenance of a rock revetment.

 

 

     WHEREAS, the Hololani Resort Condominiums is a sixty-four-unit condominium project with two eight-story buildings located on Kahana Beach; and

 

     WHEREAS, after a catastrophic erosion event in which the shoreline receded to within fifteen feet of the north building, Hololani Resort Condominiums received emergency authorization from the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the County of Maui in 2007 to install a sandbag revetment and erosion blankets; provided that Hololani Resort Condominiums would develop a long-term solution to address shoreline erosion of its property; and

 

     WHEREAS, Hololani Resort Condominiums completed a lengthy permit and approval process at the federal, state, and county levels and received the Department of Land and Natural Resources' approval to construct a long-term solution that consists of a steel sheet pile and sloped rock revetment to be placed partially on state submerged lands; and

 

     WHEREAS, the permitting process for the project included at least nine separate opportunities for the public and other government agencies to comment on the project at various federal, state, and county agencies; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Board of Land and Natural Resources accepted a final environmental assessment from Hololani Resort Condominiums and issued a finding of no significant impact on October 8, 2013, and approved a Conservation District Use Permit for the project on May 9, 2014, which stipulated that Hololani Resort Condominiums minimize the use of submerged lands; and

 

     WHEREAS, on July 12, 2016, the Maui Planning Commission approved a Special Management Area Permit and Shoreline Setback Variance for the project which was based on plans that were substantially modified to conform to the condition that Hololani Resort Condominiums minimize the use of submerged lands; and

 

     WHEREAS, on January 12, 2018, the Board of Land and Natural Resources approved the issuance of a term, non-exclusive easement to Hololani Resort Condominiums for the use of state submerged lands for the project; and

 

     WHEREAS, Hololani Resort Condominiums attempted to secure legislative approval for the easement during the Regular Session of 2018 and, while the Senate passed a concurrent resolution authorizing the issuance of a non-exclusive easement covering a portion of state submerged lands, the House of Representatives did not; and

 

     WHEREAS, after consultation with the Department of Land and Natural Resources and approval from the County of Maui, Hololani Resort Condominiums installed the fully-permitted steel sheet pile component of the project behind the existing emergency sandbags, entirely leeward of the certified shoreline; and

 

     WHEREAS, to settle lawsuits brought against Hololani Resort Condominiums, the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Department of Land and Natural Resources, and County of Maui, Hololani Resort Condominiums agreed to refrain from replacing the existing sandbags with a rock revetment for five years while a regional solution was being designed; and

 

     WHEREAS, on May 8, 2020, the Board of Land and Natural Resources approved a five-year extension of the Conservation District Use Permit granted to Hololani Resort Condominiums to accommodate the settlement forbearance period; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Legislature passed Act 16, Session Laws of Hawaii 2020, which provided guidance to the counties regarding shoreline hardening structures including seawalls and revetments, but provided a carve-out for already permitted projects; and

 

     WHEREAS, all that remains to complete the construction of the revetment is to replace the existing sandbags with the rock revetment already permitted by the Board of Land and Natural Resources and Maui Planning Commission; and

 

     WHEREAS, a rock revetment will provide safer vertical and lateral access, down to and across the Hololani Resort Condominiums beach frontage, eliminate the sandbag debris that can wash into the nearshore waters, and occupy a smaller footprint on the public beach than the existing sandbags; and

 

     WHEREAS, Hololani Resort Condominiums has also provided public infrastructure improvements for the County of Maui by designing and permitting, as part of the rock revetment, a permanent public access stairway and protection of the storm drain to prevent flooding of Lower Honoapiilani Road; and

 

     WHEREAS, the easement area required for the rock revetment is approximately 6,128 square feet and will be finalized and subject to review and approval by the Survey Division of the Department of Accounting and General Services; and

 

     WHEREAS, Hololani Resort Condominiums will pay the State the fair market value of the easement as consideration for the use of state submerged lands to be determined by independent appraisal; and

 

     WHEREAS, section 171-53, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires the prior approval of the Governor and prior authorization of the Legislature by concurrent resolution to lease state submerged lands; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Board of Land and Natural Resources is hereby authorized to issue a twenty-five year term, non-exclusive easement covering a portion of state submerged lands seaward of the property identified as Tax Map Key:  (2) 4-3-010:009, Kahana, Lahaina, Maui, for the removal of existing emergency sandbags and the construction, use, maintenance, and repair of a rock revetment; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

 

Report Title: 

BLNR; Hololani Resort Condominiums; State Submerged Lands