Maui residents oppose plans for new development ADVERTISING Maui residents oppose plans for new development HONOLULU (AP) — Maui residents are voicing their opposition to a planned development along the island’s north shore that would bring new housing and businesses
Maui residents oppose plans for new development
HONOLULU (AP) — Maui residents are voicing their opposition to a planned development along the island’s north shore that would bring new housing and businesses to Paia.
Hundreds of people gathered at a community center Monday to protest the plan.
They shared concerns that the development will clog streets with traffic and overrun a local surf spot with tourists.
Technology, Education, Agriculture, Community and Health Development LCC is repurposing and renovating an abandoned school building on a 23-acre lot.
TEACH CEO Mark Chasan said he has plans to build a Hawaiian cultural immersion center and incorporate agriculture at the site. He wants it to be an educational opportunity for children.
But some residents don’t see it that way and see the development as an intrusion on their community.
The Office of Economic Development plans to meet with the developer to determine how to proceed.
Feds move ahead with plans to pay war reparations
HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — The federal government is moving forward with plans to pay claims to as many as 5,000 Guam residents and estates on behalf of those who experienced atrocities during the Japanese occupation of the island during World War II.
A Department of Justice commission is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget to begin collecting information from residents related to the war claims. A notice in the Federal Register says the information will be used by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission to decide claims for compensation.
The 2017 National Defense Authorization Act that passed in December included reparations for those killed, injured or subjected to forced labor and other harmful acts by Japanese occupiers.
The war claims would be paid from the island’s federal Section 30 funding, which is income tax money collected from federal workers on Guam and remitted to the local government each year. Any annual Section 30 funding in excess of $70 million would be earmarked to pay war claims.
The Section 30 funding mechanism would continue every year until all claims are paid, Guam Del. Madeleine Bordallo’s office has stated.
Under the law, the surviving spouse or children of a Guam resident who died during the Japanese occupation, or as Guam was being liberated by the U.S. military, can claim $25,000. Rape or severe personal injury could result in a $15,000 payment, while those subjected to forced labor could get $12,000 and those who endured internment could qualify for $10,000.
