HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A deadline that caused some panic among Lahaina fire survivors has been extended again. Meanwhile, there’s growing frustration about how FEMA’s disaster response has destabilized Maui’s rental market.

No one disputes that FEMA had the best of intentions when it moved to house thousands of fire survivors in hotels. But many say FEMA’s strategies were more suited to the continent.

Makani Christensen formed an organization he called Hawaii “Brown Cross” — named to contrast with the Red Cross shelter program.

He collects new furniture to help displaced residents when they find longer term housing.

Maui Wildfires Disaster

He said many who have found housing are paying more than they can afford and don’t have enough for furniture. “But when you show up with a box truck full of furniture and you see the joy and hope established back into these individuals hearts, I mean it’s very moving.”

He says he’s not only helping people moving out of hotels. He’s also helping those who’ve been forced to move when landlords found higher-paying tenants — like with FEMA leases.

The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement has been involved with trying to house fire survivors since before the state and FEMA developed their own leasing programs.

After so much trauma, program aims to give wildfire survivors a fun reprieve

Housing data expert Matthew Jachowski said a flood of money to attract landlords dramatically affected the rental market. “It’s really done damage to, you know, units that are typically long-term rentals in like other parts of it that don’t have short-term rentals,” Jachowski said.

Jachowski said when FEMA and the state started offering high rents for rental units CNHA pivoted to organize one of the first modular developments for fire survivors.

“I think there was a misstep in waiting so long to start building those temporary builds,” he said.

The slow pace of finding rentals is why FEMA gave a last-minute extension — to June 30 — for payments to keep more than 200 households in hotels, according to Hawaii Emergency Management Agency Administrator James Barros.

“We would prefer that it’s much faster. But I think it takes time to identify the needs that the survivor has, and then matching them with those needs,” he said.

Barros said as of Monday there were 229 families remaining in hotels, representing 581 individuals were still in hotels. He said more than 600 FEMA and state modular units should be opening on West Maui by October — when he hopes the last 50 families can leave the hotels.

“So the housing solution, it’s on track,” Barros said. “I think it’s coming together.”

But Christensen says that’s not fast enough for many families across the island.

“It’s a real hopeless situation. And it’s happening all over Maui,” he said.

There is some good news for taxpayers, though.

FEMA has started cancelling leases for short-term rental units it was never able to fill while paying above market rent. FEMA has also agreed to waive the state’s 10% co-pay for disaster services during months four to six after the fire, which will save the state millions.

Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

Source