Working for a better economy, better government and a better society
Relax Maui zoning to allow more urban dwellings
For many Maui families, purchasing a home is a pipe dream. However, there may be an opportunity for them to realize that dream, if county residents would be open to reforming local housing regulations. Maui’s complex zoning laws act as a barrier to homebuilding,...
Leasehold state housing won’t solve housing crisis
The Hawaii Legislature is considering forming a new state agency that would build high-rise condominium units on state land that it would sell for about $300,000 each under 99-year leases. But the proposal, called ALOHA Homes, would not be the answer to Hawaii’s...
More housing would boost Maui tax revenues
As Maui County lawmakers search under the couch cushions for loose change that would help them meet their budgetary goals, they should remember that finding extra cash could be easy, if they would only step out of the way of island homebuilders. That’s right:...
Building more suburbs could help millennials stay in Hawaii
Hawaii policymakers might not have noticed, but millennials across the country are moving to the suburbs, where housing is less expensive. Not surprisingly, those suburbs generally are not in Hawaii, so if we want to make it possible for our own younger generation to...
Akina talks rent control on ‘Lars Larson Show’
Oregon last month became the first state to adopt statewide mandatory rent control, which bars landlords from raising their rents more than 7 percent a year, plus inflation. On Monday, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii President Keli‘i Akina spoke on the popular national...