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Public Works presents FY26 priorities including Waiale Road extension, base-yard planning and expanded permitting support; committee pressed on vacancies and DS
Summary
Public Works Director Jordan Molina outlined personnel, flood, permit-review and CIP priorities including the Waiale Road extension and improvements to radio and base-yard infrastructure; members pressed for vacancy lists and discussed 4Leaf expedited permitting work and interagency permitting constraints.
Public Works Director Jordan Molina presented the department's FY26 priorities and capital-improvement requests to the Budget, Finance & Economic Development Committee on April 14, highlighting road and drainage repairs, base-yard needs and staffing for expanded permitting and flood responsibilities.
Lede: Molina told the committee the department is seeking funding to complete planning and design work for several priority projects — including the Waiale Road extension and the North-South Collector Road — to respond to flood risk, post-wildfire recovery and traffic demands. He also described ongoing investments in radio replacements, base-yard leases and maintenance programs.
Nut Graf: Committee members focused questions on hiring and vacancy challenges, the department's plan for relocating or expanding base yards (including a potential central yard), the status and funding for Waiale Road extension (an environmental assessment is being finalized), and lessons learned from the 4Leaf expedited-permitting contract used in Lahaina recovery.
Key points from the presentation and discussion
- Waiale Road extension and funding stack: Molina said environmental assessment work is near completion and that Hawaiian Electric relocation of high-voltage lines and some land acquisitions remain. He said the department expects to advertise construction bids the following summer and noted a grant-related execution deadline tied to federal funding (FHWA/RAISE) of 9/30/2026. Committee members asked for confirmation of the grant stack and whether federal grant conditions could affect the project.
- Base-yard planning and south-Maui coverage: Molina said the department is conducting a facility master plan and considering a consolidated central yard plus a satellite South Maui yard to improve operations and move heavy operations away from residential neighborhoods.
- Permitting, DSA and 4Leaf: Director Molina told members that use of 4Leaf for expedited permitting during Lahaina recovery had sped reviews for rebuild permits where infrastructure remained, and public-works leadership is exploring extending similar plan-review support into regular permitting intake. Committee members pushed for improvements across other reviewing agencies (water, sewer, SHPD) because concurrent reviews and agency-specific requirements often lengthened overall permitting time.
- Staffing, vacancies and recruitment: Members pressed the department on about 60 vacancies across Public Works. Molina said the department uses TA/TR (temporary assignment/transfer) and promotion strategies to fill gaps and that recruitment remains difficult for some job classes. The committee asked the Department of Personnel Services to provide a written list of long-unrequisitioned positions that appear as open in HR systems; Director Molina said the department is tracking vacancies and would provide details.
- Local and district projects: Members thanked Public Works for recent resurfacing in East Maui and asked about resurfacing plans for Hana town and other district-specific needs. Molina said resurfacing and bridge projects are prioritized by traffic and condition; some older government-road bridges (e.g., Nahiku) present complex land-ownership and prioritization challenges.
- Lessons from Lahaina recovery permitting: Public Works said DSA permits were simpler for rebuilds because prior infrastructure existed; however, other agencies' reviews (water, sewer, SHPD, federal highway) added complexity and have to be part of any effort to speed county project approvals.
Next steps: The department will provide the committee with vacancy lists, timelines for Waiale Road environmental/permitting milestones, and follow-up on how 4Leaf plan-review support could be scaled to routine permitting. Members asked staff to request from DPS a reconciliation of positions that appear vacant but have not been requisitioned since the county's Workday conversion.
