Michael A. Dahilig, MURP 2011, The Planner Who Makes A Difference

Mike A. Dahilig, MURP 2011, is the Director of the Department of Planning, County of Kaua`i.  He is a former member of the Board of Regents of the University of Hawai`i.  He received both his JD and MURP degrees from UH Manoa.

Mike is the planner who made a difference during the historic rainfall that hit Kaua`i in April 2018.  Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr. assigned Mike to be the lead person imbedded by the Mayor to represent the County of Kaua`i in the relief and recovery of the North Shore communities of - Hanalei, Wainiha and Haena - and other areas heavily damaged by landslides, flooding, and impacts related to roadway and infrastructure disruptions.  Mike’s commitment to our profession as well as the people of Kaua`i has made a huge difference to the community.   

He did this work in addition to his other responsibilities as the county’s Planning Director.  The Planning Department on Kaua`i advises the mayor, planning commission, and county council on planning and land use matters.  It is also responsible for administration and enforcement of zoning and subdivision ordinances, and for the long-range and policy documents such as the comprehensive plan.  

For the past three years, he has taught the law module in the environmental planning (PLAN 620) and land use planning (PLAN 640) courses that we offer.  The law module enables DURP to maintain accreditation of its MURP degree program.  Since Mike did this without any compensation, we wish to acknowledge his commitment to our students pursuing degrees in planning. 

Article contributed by:
Karl Kim, Ph.D, Professor,
Dept of Urban + Regional Planning
Director, Disaster Management & Humanitarian Assistance Program
Exec. Director, National Disaster Preparedness Training Center
University of Hawaii

To read more about the involvement of Karl Kim, researchers and students in developing long term disaster recovery plans on Kaua`i visit Hawaii News Now.