Hawaiʻi Is Looking for Its Next Supreme Court Justice

The Judicial Selection Commission is seeking applicants to succeed Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald, who must retire next year. Gov. Josh Green is likely to appoint a new Hawaiʻi Supreme Court chief justice next year, his third pick for the five-member court.

Civil Beat.

Peaks and Valleys Will Mark Hawaiʻi Holiday Travel

Honolulu is among the top domestic leisure destinations for Thanksgiving, which travel membership organization AAA expects will set travel records this year.

Star-Advertiser. Kauai Now.

Father of Missing Maui Woman Found Dead in Los Angeles, LAPD Says

Amid the active search for a Maui woman who went missing in Los Angeles, her father was found dead Sunday in Los Angeles, authorities said.

Hawaii News Now.

O‘ahu Headlines

Kakaʻako Pedestrian Bridge Nears Completion After Much Delay

If no further setbacks occur, the elevated walkway across six-lane Ala Moana Boulevard midblock between Ward Avenue and Kamakee Street will have taken a little over 2-1/2 years to build, or 31 months instead of an originally anticipated 17 months.

Star-Advertiser.

Uncertainty Over Demand Lingers for Rental Tower for Native Hawaiians

About two years from now, a new Honolulu high-rise will become the first rental apartment tower serving state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands beneficiaries. Yet, some members of the Hawaiian Homes Commission are uncertain about whether enough beneficiaries will move in when it opens.

Star-Advertiser.

Oʻahu Home Prices Remained Stable in October

Only resales of single-family homes increased, with a 22.5% gain as 261 exchanged hands compared with 213 a year earlier. Single- family homes remained unchanged at $1.1 million from a year earlier, condominium prices inched up 1.9% to $525,000 from $515,000 and condo sales edged up 1.5% to 405 from 399.

Star-Advertiser.

Surf for the Soul Helps Traumatized Youth Find Healing Through Surfing

On Oʻahu’s North Shore, two dozen keiki and their families gathered Saturday for surf lessons. Pro surfer Billy Choi taught youth how to stand on a board and more importantly, how to get back up if they fall.

Hawaii News Now.

Hawai‘i Island Headlines

Mayor-Elect Alameda Names More Department Heads

Names familiar to County government have been chosen to lead the departments of Planning, Finance, and Parks and Recreation.

Big Island Video News. KITV4.

Climate Change Garners Attention at General Plan Meetings

Proposed updates to the Hawaiʻi County General Plan promise many months of public debate as a series of public meetings roll out into next year.

Tribune-Herald.

Potential Threats to Big Island Ranked During Meeting

Invasive species and earthquakes topped Big Island residents’ concerns during a community discussion last Monday about a planned update to Hawaiʻi County’s Hazard Mitigation Plan.

Tribune-Herald.

DHHL Makes Largest Agricultural Lot Offering Since the Late 1980s

Hawaiian beneficiaries of the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands have been awarded 68 agricultural lots on Hawaiʻi island — the department’s largest agricultural lot offering since the late 1980s.

Star-Advertiser. Big Island Video News. KHON2.

Effort Underway to Post More Ominous Warning Signs at Wailuku River

Councilwoman Jenn Kagiwada is hosting a town hall meeting on Zoom to discuss enhanced signage intended to keep would-be swimmers out of the waters of the state parks along the Wailuku River in Hilo.

Tribune-Herald. Big Island Video News.

Maui Headlines

Below-Market Rentals, Awards Program Support Lahaina Educators

Gov. Josh Green and DOE Superintendent Keith Hayashi on Friday announced two new teacher resiliency programs, including a $20 million workforce housing program and an initiative that rewards DOE employees in West Maui who played a critical role in keeping Lahaina schools open following the deadly disaster.

Star-Advertiser. Maui News.

First Families Move Into Temporary FEMA Housing for Maui Fire Survivors

The rent will be covered for the first few months by continued emergency assistance, but tenants must begin paying in February.

Civil Beat. Hawaii News Now.

Kula Residents Plant Native Species Where Invasives Fueled Last Year’s Maui Wildfire

The area that was covered in ash just over a year ago, is now blanketed with wood chips to prevent erosion.  It’s also home to native seedlings, thriving in the burn scar.

Hawaiʻi Public Radio.

Kaua‘i Headlines

Retiring Kauaʻi Police Chief Suspended for 3 Days

The Kauaʻi Police Commission on Friday suspended Kauaʻi Police Chief Todd Raybuck for three days for leaving his department-issued Glock handgun in an employee restroom in March, but declined to pursue further action on two related complaints accusing the chief of retaliating against the officers who found the weapon.

Star-Advertiser. Hawaii News Now. Garden Island.

Surfrider Raises Concerns About Issuing New Pollutant Discharge Permit to Kauaʻi Shrimp

Environmental activists testified during a public meeting last week in Kekaha that Kauaʻi Shrimp, the island’s only shrimp farm, should not be issued a new pollutant discharge permit due to concerns about its effluent polluting waters and killing fish.

Kauai Now.

State OKs Spectrum’s Kauaʻi Application

The state’s Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs on Monday approved the Spectrum Oceanic LLC Application for Renewal of Cable Franchise for the County of Kauaʻi.

Garden Island.