Revisiting Kahikinui CBED & Makai Management Plan Dismantling Hopelessness on Maui Paddling in Stolen Waters GenY Hawaiians Fighting Real Estate Fraud Ask Why? A&B and East Maui Irrigation Commit Massive Environmental Crimes Addressing Solutions for Maui’s Unsheltered There’s No Water Under The Bridge Maui Sand Burials & the Grand Heist of 30Mil a Year Challenge the Maui BioPesticide Mosquito Experiment Natural Birthing Needs Urgent Support in Hawai‘i Oppose BioPesticide Mosquitoes by Wed. 3/8 to BLNR Where is Maui Safe Sleeping Parking Lot? Wolbachia Mosquito Control Technique Being Reviewed Wolbachia Mosquitoes: Call to Action! Wolbachia Mosquitoes in Hawaii: Update The Tortilla Machine Blew Up Hanaside News – Thirsty Kahikinui Recap of Resource Recovery Maui 2022 Wolbachia Mosquitoes in Hawaii: Unsettled Science (Part 2) Wolbachia Mosquitoes in Hawaii: Unsettled Science (Part 1) Department of Ag Introducing New Mosquito Kahikinui Farm Ranch Collab Grows Water Wolbachia bacteria-inoculated mosquitoes planned for Maui Waikapu Fence Rental DHHL: Rescind ROE for Cattle Removal in Kahikinui Hawai‘i’s Hunters Protest HogStop Resource Recovery Maui 2022 You Got My Vote 2022 Protected: Sustainable Housing TIG Protected: Stephen Loftin KOOKIES Maui ~ Playful Couture Resource Recovery Maui 2021 Protected: Ho‘olako Protected: Mo & Sons Ranch Farm Helekunihi Cultural Foundation Faith Chase Maui Hosts Unification Rally in Response to Unlawful Mandates Kahikinui Get ‘Er Done Committee Taking The Bull By The Horns Hawai‘i Remote Education Rewards Restoration Day for Hawai‘i UnTitled Damming Evidence County Communication 20-545 Water Guns Surviving the Jaws of Corporate Fraud Re-Elect the “New Kids on The Block” Photographs by Stephen Loftin After Affects of “After-the-Fact” Special Management Area Permit Intentional Chaos Navigating Homelessness Verbiage Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness Introduced Vote for Farming Supporters WSL Served Cease and Desist Orders Maui County Department of Ag Moving Forward Wea ‘Da Mayor? Let the Solutions Flow ~ RESCHEDULED > Dec 26th RRMaui 2021 Sponsorship Benefits Resource Recovery Maui 2019 Replay Mom in the Kingdom How To Testify In Support of FAM Beyond Repair Costing Basics for Multi Crop Vegetables Power To The People If there is Farming, The Water must Flow Mauna Kea Protectors Reaffirm Stance to Kapu Aloha Hawai‘i – Where the Water Buffalo Roam Community Reach & Growing it Forward Raw Milk Movement Opportunity for Hawai‘i Kalama Intermediate is New Home for Upcountry Farmers Union Meetings Commodification of Culture: Notice of War Crimes Maui A&B Sugar Lands Sell for $262 Million Food Sovereignty and Food Security in Hawai‘i: Food For Thought Na Wahine Koa / Strong Women Commemorative Edition Kīpahulu Farmers Honored by Aloha Festivals Farmers Voice Hawaii √ 2018 Election Choice SATURDAY Kanaka Maoli March to Vote The Struggle For Wai Has Taken Its Toll Reporting Pesticide Use Near Hawai‘i Schools Improved Communication needed amongst Kahikinui Leaseholders Sustainable Agriculture Committee December 2017 Newsletter Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā If You Canʻt Erase, Use White Out Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Pa‘ia Developer Fails in His Promise To Reach Community How to Host A Community Meeting Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Dirty Dozen Done Hawai‘i Good Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Island Air Aloha & Passwords Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Manaʻo o ka Lā Ka Mana‘o o ka Lā Ka Mana‘o o ka Lā Ka Mana‘o o ka Lā

Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness Introduced

About

Faith Chase, a 50-year resident of Maui, is a mother and grandmother who has testified at many Maui County and Hawaii State hearings. Her interest in island agriculture inspired her turn from graphic design to writing.

This Friday, July 24, 2020 the Maui County Council will have First Reading on a Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness. Over the last four months the agencies who receive Maui County funds have struggled to deal with the vulnerable population of houseless, homeless and those living in their cars. Early COVID alarm prompted erroneous citations being given out at all the parks that were suddenly closed by the county and state. The population who relied on these facilities have congregated in a few key locations to avoid ticketing and the fines that come with them. Encampment sweeps are constantly being argued as unlawful.

During a pandemic it is in the purview of the Department of Civil Defense and the Department of Health to provide shelter and provisions. Minimal has been done to date. The County has done mediocre to nothing in making up the difference of what the State has failed. A lawsuit has been filed on compliance failure to provide basic needs.

It has been by the protection of key community communicators that this population has been able to barely survive. The few police reports and incidents fair in comparison to the consistency of community voluntary, in-the-field monitoring that helped avert disturbances.

The County relies on the input of the Maui Homeless Alliance group to provide status indicators. In the past four months the meetings have been general in nature, poor in factual data presented and exhibited severe lack of follow through. The schematics in which island homeless data was collected in the Bridging The Gap program initiative ‘Point In Time’ count is not true representation of the real statistics of Maui County homelessness.

Some County monies are budgeted to serve the most vulnerable population. Family Life Center is in the center of the funding loop. Department of Social Services makes referrals to this organization for supplemental emergency funding.

Ka Hale A Ke Ola Homeless Resource Center is County run. Both have representatives that are in the Maui Homeless Alliance group and are information contributors. While not as vocal, others in the group represent other areas of respective work and provide intermittent reports when applicable including the Maui County Department of Human & Housing Concerns.

In a relating matter, the Department of Housing and Human Concerns department was faced with the introduction of bifurcating the department into Department of Housing and a separate Department of Human Concerns. This was not supported by the existing Department head.

The proposal to introduce a Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness is appearing to be threatening to the agencies and departments that would have an oversight commission panel of this nature. The last Homeless Alliance meeting was consumed by discussing reasons against it. It was an unfortunate waste of time considering Maui County has just received $67 Million in COVID Cares Act money. Rather, a discussion on how to best assess and disperse monies appropriately would have been a more conscious use of time.

The increasingly difficult times and multi agency and government failures polarizes the need for a Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness. It is not meant to stop what is being done by agencies to date, it’s about filling those gaps that these entities cannot or do not want to manage. Specific to an election year is a whole other myriad of struggling of ballot delivery within the population of unsheltered.

County of Maui is not alone in trying to solve like problems and implementing solutions. The continental United States is also addressing these issues with The National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty and Housing Not Handcuffs trying to assist on every corner. In Hawai‘i, we have an advantage to consider island style solutions including traditional hale and filling the great desire for farm housing.

The additional $67 million dollars in Maui COVOD Cares monies is an added layer of concern. The $44.5 million set aside for Public Safety and Community Services needs to be spent wisely and new and improved strategies must be considered. In the time given to consider different approaches and creative solutions, the organizations that receive County monies have restricted themselves to the status quo coordinated entry system that is corroded with obstacles and has failed to reach the larger population in need.

Without traveling down a fatal memory lane, it must be understood that the County has not always had blurry vision in allocating monies in this subject area. However, the compounding affects of one size fits all appropriations has resulted in a failure to deliver far too long. There is a great need to improve the vision of systemic change needed. We need more attention on this sector of our residents and having an eleven person panel, a Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness, will only help this crisis evolve to one of a productive space.

Subject Related Link Library:

Link to Testify on Commission on Healing Solutions for Homelessness

Navigating Homelessness Verbiage

https://www.change.org/OpenGatesKanaha

Addressing Solutions for Maui’s Unsheltered