WHEREAS, central Maui is one of the fastest growing areas in the State, with many large residential projects such as Maui Lani being completed and young families with school-age children purchasing homes in the area; and

WHEREAS, the current elementary school facilities in central Maui are already overcrowded and inadequate to serve the existing student population, and the number of students in the area is increasing rapidly; and

WHEREAS, the increasing student population has created an urgent need to develop an easily accessible neighborhood school as quickly as possible; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Education has identified the construction of Maui Lani Elementary School as one of its top priorities and has identified a particular site for the school's construction, which is owned by Maui Lani Partners; and

WHEREAS, to address the community's urgent need for the school, Maui Lani Partners and its affiliate, Maui Lani School, LLC, are willing to enter into a real estate transaction agreement for the design and construction of the school in accordance with Department of Education standards and the acquisition of the land and school improvements upon completion; and

WHEREAS, section 302A-1506, Hawaii Revised Statutes, authorizes the Department of Education, with the approval of the Comptroller, to enter into a real estate transaction agreement with Maui Lani School, LLC for the following:

and

WHEREAS, entering into the real estate transaction agreement for the design, construction, and acquisition of Maui Lani Elementary School through a joint effort with the private sector will facilitate the construction of the school on an expedited basis and achieve cost savings and efficiency; and

WHEREAS, this type of agreement program has been used successfully by the State to construct other schools and projects in a cost-effective and efficient manner; and

WHEREAS, during a year when the State must exercise extreme economic prudence, these public-private ventures should be encouraged, especially where those efforts will directly benefit education, provide an economic stimulus to the local economy, and enable expedited construction; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that the Department of Education is requested to enter into a real estate transaction agreement with Maui Lani School, LLC, for the design, construction, financing, and acquisition of land for Maui Lani Elementary School; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to proceed in a joint effort with Maui Lani School, LLC, to complete the design and construction of the Maui Lani Elementary School as quickly as possible before the start of the 2005-2006 school year; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to submit a copy of the real estate transaction agreement with Maui Lani School, LLC, to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of the Regular Session of 2004; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Comptroller, the Director of Finance, the Attorney General, the Superintendent of Education, and the Chairperson of the Board of Education.

Report Title:

Maui Lani Elementary School; Kahului, Maui