HONOLULU (KHON2) – The County of Maui has been awarded $25 million for the Waiale Road extension.
Maui Mayor Michael Victorino said this is thanks to the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant program.
Mayor Victorino said this project has been one of his top priorities for Maui and thanked Senator Brian Schatz for advocating for the RAISE grant.
“Upgrading infrastructure to expedite affordable housing construction for our residents is one of my top priorities,” said Mayor Victorino. “This multimillion-dollar investment in Maui County will improve road safety and alleviate traffic, but more importantly, it will green light construction of 1,666 Central Maui units that residents can afford to rent or purchase.”
RAISE grant projects are evaluated by statutory criteria like quality of life, economic competitiveness and opportunity, state of good repair, safety, environmental sustainability, partnerships and innovation. They are also merit-based according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
“I want to acknowledge the partners who helped make our RAISE grant application a success,” said Jordan Molina, Department of Public Works director. “Mahalo to the State DOT and Hawaii Community Foundation for helping us to submit a very competitive application.”
Molina also thanked Waikapu Country Town for their eagerness to change their affordable housing plans to strengthen their case.
This new extension will connect Waiale Road with Honoapiʻilani Highway to help improve traffic flow in the Waikapu area. It will also provide a different route between Kahului and Wailuku.
Once construction starts, the project will take around 18 months to complete. The total project costs around $34 million and will be funded by County, State and Federal sources.
