More than 20 homes burned two years ago in Kula. According to Maui County, four have been rebuilt so far.
One of those homeowners is 85-year-old resident Tom Liu. Last November, the ʻohana house on his property was the first home to be rebuilt in Kula, where his daughter now lives. Just two weeks ago, he moved into his newly finished main house.
He walked around his side yard, into his back door.
“That’s gonna be grassy area with pavers,” he said. “This is a breakfast nook.”
After losing everything in the fire, he said reaching the end of the building process has somehow felt anticlimactic.
“So much build-up in anticipating the end of that, the end of the road, the house is built. You can move in. You can sleep in there,” he said. “Sometimes at the end, it's not what you think it is.”
Liu lost his wife over a decade ago. Together, they had built the house that burned in 2023. She was the one who made it a home, he explained. In this new house, it’s daunting doing that himself.
“I need furniture. I need silverware. You know, I need plates and chopsticks and, you know, forks and all these things,” he laughed. “Just overwhelms you.”
According to Maui County, 10 permits have been issued in Kula, while one application is currently being processed.
Many Kula residents trying to rebuild faced permitting challenges surrounding the state’s septic system conversion requirement. Cesspools throughout the state have to be upgraded by 2050, and new builds must have a septic system.
After the fire, Kula homeowners were told their permit to rebuild also required conversion to a septic system.
“That's the first thing I did was, ‘Oh, we got to do it before they give me a permit. Let's go ahead and put the septic system in there,’” Liu told HPR. “That's another $40,000, you know, and that's not covered by insurance.”
Some Kula residents didn’t have the finances for the upgrade, or the space in their yard for the system. Liu said they fought the requirement, waiting to apply for their rebuild permits.
More than a year later, the state Department of Health waived the septic requirement for burned Kula homes, within certain guidelines.
But Liu said for residents who had already gone through the process, there was no reimbursement offered.
His rebuild cost more than he anticipated. Between inflation, tariffs on materials, and higher demand for building supplies, Liu said his final total was about 40% higher than planned at the beginning of the process.
Now, Liu sits on his back deck, overlooking a sweeping view — unobstructed by the trees that burned in the fire.
Building a house is one thing, but feeling settled is another.
“Why do I not feel elated that I'm finally home, you know? Because I can’t rest. I got to do something with my yard. You know, I still got boxes unpacked.”
Liu said his community has shown him an outpouring of support, and he’s grateful for getting to know his neighbors better after the fire.
These days, Liu takes it one thing at a time.
“Little at a time, and it's a different journey,” he said. “Different journey is, you know, getting settled.”
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