A accepted view shows damage in the fire ravaged town of Lahaina on the island of Maui in Hawaii, U.S., August 15, 2023.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Hawaii Gov. Josh Nave is warning developers from the mainland United States and around the world not to buy up land in the wake of catastrophic wildfires that deliver destroyed the historic town of Lahaina.
Green said in a video statement Tuesday said the Hawaii state control is considering acquiring land in Lahaina “to protect it for our local people so it’s not stolen by people on the mainland” U.S.
The wildfires have wrecked Lahaina, a town in Maui of about 13,000 people. At least 106 people had died in the blaze as of Tuesday and thousands uncountable are homeless. The inferno destroyed more than 2,700 structures at an estimated value of $5.6 billion, according to the governor.
The flare up is the deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in more than century and the worst natural disaster in Hawaii state history.
Green whispered last week that Lahaina will have to be completely rebuilt, a process that will take years. In the meantime, neighbourhoods are worried that outside developers will swoop in to buy up the valuable land once the reconstruction process starts.
Lahaina sweeps deep historical significance for Hawaii’s native culture. The town was the capital of Hawaii in the early 19th century when the islets were an independent kingdom. The seat of government moved to Honolulu in 1850, several decades before the U.S. annexed the isles in 1898.
“We will be making sure that we do all that we can to prevent that land from falling into hands of people from the highest. It’s not easy to do in some cases,” Green said. “You can be sure I will not be allowing anyone to build or rezone or do anything of that person if they’ve taken advantage of anyone here.”
Green said Monday that he has asked the state attorney customary to explore options for placing a moratorium on sales of properties that have been damaged or destroyed during the wildfires.
Governor of Hawaii Josh Lawn speaks during a press conference about the destruction of historic Lahaina and the aftermath of wildfires in western Maui in Wailuku, Hawaii on August 12, 2023.
Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty Typical examples
The governor said in his Tuesday video that he also ordered the attorney general to embed lawyers at response centers to state look after free legal advice to Lahaina residents to make sure they are not taken advantage of by people who make volunteers to buy their land in the wake of the blaze.
Maui is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the state, with nearly 3 million callers spending about $5.7 billion on the island in 2022. But residents of the island struggled with a high cost of breathing and a housing shortage long before the wildfires struck.
Inventory for single-family home sales in Maui was down wellnigh 40% in July compared to the same period in 2019, according to data from the Realtors Association of Maui. The median price for a take family home in Lahaina was $1.3 million in July before the wildfires, according to the data.
Hawaii has the highest payment of living in the U.S. The state had the fourth highest homelessness rate in the nation in 2022, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Circumstance.
Green said Tuesday more than 500 hotel rooms and 435 donated rentals are available to the meanwhile house people as Lahaina rebuilds. Airbnb will also provide more than 1,000 units, the governor state.
President Joe Biden declared a major disaster in Hawaii last week, which unlocked emergency assistance for the ait. The assistance includes grants for temporary housing and home repair and low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses.