Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
A proposal to axe thousands of vacation rental units in Maui is fueling fierce debate in the tourism-dependent city.
As Erin Nolan explains in Honolulu Civil Beat, “The tug-of-war over short-term rentals, which has played out elsewhere in the islands, on the mainland and in other countries, reflects strong emotions as officials struggle to provide more affordable housing amid economic concerns about eliminating options popular with tourists.”
The conflict got new fuel after the 2023 Lahaina wildfire displaced over 12,000 residents. The proposal from Mayor Richard Bissen would eliminate exemptions for roughly 7,000 units zoned as residential apartments that have been operating as short-term rentals.
The county council has received thousands of pages of testimony and heated opinions on the issue, with some opponents citing concerns that eliminating half of the county’s STRs could decimate the local tourist economy. One resident pushed back on this idea, saying, “Locals didn’t ask to make tourism our main source of income, and while we are carrying this industry on our backs, we do not need (short-term rental) owners to speak for us and lie about what we are willing to live in or how it will completely decimate the tourist industry.”
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Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
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