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Earlier this year, property owner MSR Grand Wailea Resort LP announced plans for a $250 million expansion that would yield an additional 300 rooms, guest bungalows, a Native Hawaiian cultural center, gardens and pools. The plans also include a full makeover of existing rooms, dining outlets and activity centers.

Munekiyo and Hiraga Planning Consultants Vice President Mich Hirano said, “This is going to be incredible transformation… it’s sure to be a world-class destination.” Given the artist’s renderings of the project, it appears that the proposed construction, which is slated to last five years, will give the property a noticeably significant facelift, including an overhaul of the popular Humuhumunukunukuapua‘a restaurant and the iconic seaside chapel.

While some may be overjoyed at the thought of a “new and improved” resort that could boost the local economy by drawing visitors from the Mainland and abroad, as well as create much-needed jobs within the construction and visitor industries, there are others who vehemently oppose the expansion.

During a series of hours-long hearings, concerned residents, hotel employees, cultural practitioners and union representatives crowded into the Maui Planning Commission conference room in Wailuku to express their support of—and opposition to—the project.

A group of plaintiffs represented by Wailuku Attorney Isaac Hall filed a petition to intervene in the resort’s expansion application. Petitioners included condominium owners at the neighboring Wailea Beach Villas and Ho‘olei and former Maui/Lana‘i Island Burial Council Chairwoman Dana Hall.

Concerns, ranging from beach parking, traffic congestion, shoreline encroachment and construction noise, were raised during the commission meetings.

But perhaps the most compelling argument against the project was provided by those who sought to protect existing and undiscovered Native Hawaiian burial sites on the property. In his testimony earlier this month, Isaac Hall argued that burial sites were damaged during construction on the property more than 20 years ago, and he warned that it could occur once again. He noted several “close parallels” to a Hawai‘i Supreme Court decision in 2000, in which the court ruled in favor of a Native Hawaiian advocacy group against the Land Use Commission on Hawaii Island. The ruling, said Hall, acknowledged that the failure to require “cultural impact assessments has resulted in the loss and destruction of many important cultural resources.”

But proponents of the expansion testified that construction would commence in a culturally-sensitive manner. Not to mention, they said, the project would be vital to Maui’s economic future. As the employer of more than 1,300 full- and part-time employees, the Grand Wailea is so much more than a vacation destination.

International Longshore and Warehouse Union (IWLU) Division Director William Kennison said, “I fully support any project that would increase the number of hotel rooms. The conversion of timeshares and condominiums has taken a lot from the hotel industry.” In these difficult economic times, he said, “We need a viable hotel industry.”

ILWU Political Action Chairperson Jason Medeiros agreed. “We are talking about hotel rooms in a hotel district,” he said. “With this kind of infrastructure in place, what is there to think about?” The expansion, he said, represents the future of Maui. “This means jobs now, jobs for our children and jobs 30 to 40 years from now.” said Medeiros. “This is how we can protect an endangered species… Maui’s working families.”

Most importantly, said Kennison, “Instead of building a new hotel, this is a revision of existing infrastructure without destroying the ‘aina… it just makes sense.”

Throughout the month, debate over the proposed expansion increased in intensity, but on Tuesday, Oct. 27, commission members approved the special management area permit in a 6-1 vote. However, the panel approved an appeal in the case of an archaeological inventory survey. While they agreed that such an inventory may be necessary to mitigate any damage to Native Hawaiian burial sites, several commissioners cited the need to create—and sustain—jobs for hotel employees. “We need to take care of the living,” said Commissioner Lori Sablas.

Reaction to the commission’s decision was mixed. One Grand Wailea employee, who requested to remain anonymous, admitted he expected the county to “shut down” the expansion. “I’m surprised they approved it. I was here in the ’80s when they found the bones on the property, and it was a huge problem,” he said. “And, well, I guess if they find more around here, I won’t be surprised if they put the brakes on the construction. We’ll see what happens.”

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