Project Lead

State Department of Education
State Libraries System

Project Website

Project Type

Infrastructure

Plan Alignment

Lahaina LTRP

Funding Sources

FEMA

Brief Description:

This project includes the replacement of the King Kamehameha III Elementary School and the Lahaina Public Library. Both facilities will be relocated, and this project includes the planning for long-term use of the 'aina in the original facility locations for community benefit.

Milestones:

King Kamehameha III Elementary School:‍
October 2025: State announces school will be rebuilt on the 14-acre Ku'ia site 0.6 miles inland from its original location.
May 2026: State appropriates $146 million for planning, design, and construction.
‍
Lahaina Public Library: Planning is in progress.

“Working with the State for more/improved public school and public library facilities. More county parks. Places for teens to hangout. Restore/return natural flow of water mauka to makai.”

Community Quote from Long-Term Planning Recovery Survey



BACK TO ALL PROJECTS

NATURAL & CULTURAL RESOURCES

HOUSING

INFRASTRUCTURE

COMMUNITY PLANNING

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES

Community Facilities

participation

Involve

Complexity

High

Cost

TBD

Phase

Design

Kuleana

County

State

County & State

Private

timing

1-2 years

6+ years

3-5 years

Estimated
completion

Lahaina Royal Complex Master Plan

The County of Maui Department of ʻŌiwi Resources is currently working with Group 70 International, Inc. (G70) to develop the Lahaina Royal Complex Master Plan. The project scope includes hydrology and water policy; wildfire resiliency and risk planning; biological and ecological assessment; cultural landscape architecture; community engagement protocol; transportation circulation planning; topographical survey; cultural and archaeological studies; soils and geotechnical studies; and boundary mapping.

View Presentation

King Kamehameha III School

“Working with the State for more/improved public school and public library facilities. More county parks. Places for teens to hangout. Restore/return natural flow of water mauka to makai.”

Community Quote from Long-Term Planning Recovery Survey

Purpose

Two important, high-priority community facilities were lost during the August 2023 wildfires and need to be rebuilt:

‍King Kamehameha III Elementary School
Lahaina Public Library

The site of King Kamehameha III Elementary School is located immediately adjacent to the shoreline and exposed to coastal hazards. The school was also built on top of important Native Hawaiian cultural sites. Due to sea level rise, safety for students and staff and consideration for historical and cultural significance of the space, the school needs a new location to rebuild.

The Lahaina Public Library was heavily used by the public on a daily basis and needs to be replaced to serve the community. However, the library is located on a culturally significant site, King Kamehameha III’s royal loʻi kalo, which the community desires to restore; therefore a new location for the library is needed.

Project Description

These projects are separate and independent, and neither have definitive locations or designs as of the publishing of this plan. The first is the permanent school replacement for King Kamehameha III which involves the identification of a permanent site to build a replacement for King Kamehameha III Elementary School. The second is the Lahaina Public Library replacement, which will identify a new site for the library. This project also involves discussions and planning for the long-term use of the ‘āina in the original facility locations for community benefit. King Kamehameha III Elementary School and the Lahaina Public Library are both currently located along the Lahaina coast on Native Hawaiian culturally significant sites. The community has expressed interest in establishing a cultural corridor encompassing the ʻāina of these sites to serve cultural practitioners, provide opportunities for community education, rewrite the narrative of these spaces, and elevate the visitor experience in correct cultural management practices.

Lahaina Public Library

Interdependencies and Roadblocks

For the replacement of King Kamehameha III Elementary School, locating a new school will require direct community outreach to families of former student along with staff and the general public. Schools have a profound impact on the community, and thus should be carefully located to serve students safely and with easy pedestrian and vehicular access. The Lahaina Public Library replacement will require community input and planning. It should be centrally located and easily accessible to all residents of Lahaina and West Maui. Planning for the long-term use of the ‘āina of the original facility sites will require County-State coordination and community outreach to cultural practitioners, generational families and residents of Lahaina. This project will coordinate with the Rebuild Lahaina Plan.

Contact

Project Details

Cost Estimate:

TBD

Existing Funding Sources:

FEMA Public Assistance

Project Lead:

State Department of Education
State Libraries System

Potential Funding Sources:

TBD

Project Partners:

County Department of ʻŌiwi Resources
Local community groups

Alignment with West Maui Community Plan (WMCP)

Goal 2.5 Safe, healthy, livable communities for all

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