Hawaii

Several Lahaina small businesses say it’s been impossible finding affordable rentals

Published

1 year ago

September 3, 2024

Several Lahaina small businesses say it’s been impossible finding affordable rentals

LAHAINA (HawaiiNewsNow) – Several Maui small business owners affected by last year’s fires say more needs to be done to help them.

Many are still struggling to make ends meet, while some fear they will never be able to return.

“It’s a year now. There’s availability. There’s spaces, but they’re just not feasible for small business owners. It’s crazy. It’s a problem,” said Chyan LaPlant, General Manager of Pakaloha Bikinis on Maui.

Pakaloha Bikinis on Front Street was destroyed, along with the store’s warehouse at Emerald Plaza.

“I don’t know if it was a way to deal with the trauma, but after the fire, I was like, OK, what are we gonna do? How are we gonna keep going? And I was looking for spots before even processing. There’s nothing,” LaPlant said.

LaPlant is not alone.

“We’ve got some melons and tomatoes. That’s asparagus that kind of looks like pine trees in there,” said Moku Roots owner Alexa Caskey as she walks around her farm in Kula.

The farm off Waipoli Road once supplied her restaurant in Lahaina Gateway.

Before last year’s fires, she planned to move her farm-to-table, zero-waste eatery into the old Chart House off Front Street.

But that building was destroyed in the inferno.

“We tried to negotiate an extension,” Caskey said. “Obviously, our sales were way down from what they had been. They wanted more in rent, which obviously just wasn’t going to work.”

So Caskey was forced to close her restaurant and now only operates her farm which is 40 miles away from Lahaina.

Both Chyan and Alexa wish to return to Lahaina one day but fear they won’t be able to without the community’s help.

“To the extent that you can buy local produce, buy local, and support local businesses, that’s what’s going to help Maui recover,” Caskey said.

They hope everyone will come together to help find a solution.

“I’m down to rally. I just don’t have the means and brain power to organize, but I want to put the information out there that it’s a problem,” said LaPlant.

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Related Topics:businesses destroyed Featured fire Fires firestorm front street help Inferno Lahaina Local Maui owner owners small West Maui wildfire wildfires

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Hawaii

From aviation to shipping, how Hawaii’s transportation sector is going green

Published

8 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

From aviation to shipping, how Hawaii’s transportation sector is going green

From cars, to busses, to the new rail and even up in the sky, transportation is what keeps us moving.

So how will Hawaii keep moving on cleaner pathways to meet our state’s clean energy goals?

KHON2’s Empowered franchise is committed to providing information to keep people informed on sustainability issues in Hawaii.

Joining KHON’s Gina Mangieri to talk about how we keep moving on cleaner pathways:

Kathleen Rooney, Ulupono Initiative Director of Transportation Policy and Programs
Roger Morton, Director of the Honolulu Department of Transportation Services
Nahelani Parsons, Hawaii Renewable Fuels Coalition

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Hawaii

Matsuzawa now a consensus All-American, Hawaii’s first | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Published

20 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Matsuzawa now a consensus All-American, Hawaii’s first | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

MARCO GARCIA / IMAGN IMAGES

UH kicker Kansei Matsuzawa reacted after making a game-winning field goal to beat the Stanford Cardinal at Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in the Warriors’ opener on Aug. 23.

Kicker Kansei Matsuzawa today became the University of Hawaii football program’s first consensus All-American.

Matsuzawa, 26, earned the distinction after being selected today to the American Football Coaches Association’s All-America first team.

The NCAA recognizes five All-America teams. A “consensus” All-American is selected to three of those organizations’ first teams. Matsuzawa previously was named to the All-America first teams by the Walter Camp Foundation and the Associated Press. The Sporting News and the Football Writers Association of America will announce their All-America teams this week.

“This is a result of my teammates and coaches,” Matsuzawa said, noting without them “I couldn’t have done this. I appreciate my family, and the state of Hawaii and Japan.”

Matsuzawa is a self-taught kicker from Chiba, Japan. The school-promoted “Tokyo Toe” converted his first 25 field-goal attempts this season to tie an FBS record for best start. The streak ended when he was wide right on a 30-yard attempt in the fourth quarter of the regular-season finale against Wyoming.

Last week, UH special teams coordinator Thomas Sheffield declared Matsuzawa as “the best kicker in the country. And I’ll stand on the tallest mountain and scream it from the tallest mountain until the cows come home.”

The Rainbow Warriors will play Cal in the Dec. 24 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl at the Ching Complex.

—
More UH football coverage

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Hawaii

Hawaii-based company in national spotlight for cookie deliveries

Published

1 day ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Hawaii-based company in national spotlight for cookie deliveries

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A Hawaii-based company was in the national spotlight this weekend for its sweet service.

The Maui Cookie Lady was featured on Good Morning America as part of a segment highlighting the best holiday cookies to order online.

The Makawao-based bakery made the list, curated by Bon Appétit and Epicurious editor-in-chief Jamila Robinson, alongside other standout cookie companies from across the country that can deliver delicious treats straight to your doorstep.

The Maui Cookie Lady was founded by Mitzi Toro in 2012 as a thank you to Maui nurses who cared for Toro’s ill father.

Known for colossal-sized cookies in imaginative flavors, the company quickly became a favorite, with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Ludacris among its many fans.

“I’m still taking it in,” said Toro. “I’m proud of our team and grateful for the support that has carried us from our island kitchen to a national audience. I hope this moment reminds people how special our Maui community truly is.”

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