The public is invited to attend a series of in-person meetings for Assessment and Recommendation of the New Special Management Area (SMA) boundary for the island of Maui, hosted by the County of Maui Planning Department.

The County of Maui Department of Planning is conducting an assessment of the existing SMA boundary for the Island of Maui. The purpose of the project is to develop recommendations for a scientific and culturally based inland SMA boundary that is responsive to projected changes in environmental and climate conditions, and that balances the need for environmental protection with the burden of excessive review or permitting requirements on both local residents and the COM planning department.

The SMA boundaries across the State were drawn in the 1970s and have not been re-assessed since that time for the island of Maui. The project will not provide amendments to the SMA rules and will not assess the islands of Moloka‘i nor Lāna‘i.

There will be a series of five meetings held across the Island of Maui to encourage participation from all community members. The first two meetings will be held in September:

West Maui SMA Boundary Meeting

Wednesday Sept. 23, 2026, from 5 – 7 p.m. at Lahaina Intermediate School Cafeteria, 871 Lahainaluna Rd., Lahaina.

Central Maui SMA Boundary Meeting

When: Thursday Sept. 24, 2026, from 5 – 7 p.m. at Kahului Community Center, 275 Uhu St., Kahului.

Light refreshments will be provided at both meetings.

Three additional meetings are planned for October in East Maui (Hāna) on Oct. 7, North Shore (Pā‘ia) on Oct. 14 and South Maui (Kīhei) on Oct. 21. A follow-up announcement will be provided with the times and locations for those meetings.

More information can be found on the project website: www.ssfm.konveio.com/islandofmauiSMA.

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