RES 161 Draft 01 2020-2022 - Laserfiche WebLink

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WHEREAS, Section 2-218(a) of the Code provides, in pertinent part, that: "The council shall, by resolution, select the land or lands to be preserved ..." and "[w]here there are multiple lands under consideration at any one time, priority shall be given to ... lands where matching funding is available to leverage the County contribution."; and WHEREAS, the Ala Kahakai Trail Association is a nonprofit community-based management and stewardship organization committed to the perpetuation and protection of cultural and natural resources for the Ka`u community and has secured positive recommendation from the State of Hawaii Legacy Land Conservation Commission and Board of Land and Natural Resources approval for a Legacy Land Conservation Grant Award in the amount of $1,475,000 to purchase the Kiolaka`a Property and manage, protect and sustain its historical significance, unique cultural resources and natural environment for the residents of Ka`u and Hawaii island; and WHEREAS, the Kiolaka` a Property is an exceptional cultural, environmental, and natural landscape that contains portions of the ancient Kamakalepo settlement, the Lua Nunn cave system, an intact native dryland forest, an extensive ancient trail network, native coastal plants, the Kapenako fresh water spring, a complex of anchialine pools, and the eastern shoreline of Ka`alu`alu Bay, a popular spot for fishing, diving, gathering, surfing, and camping; and WHEREAS, the acquisition of title or conservation easement(s) for the Kiolaka`a Property would be significantly beneficial to the County of Hawaii and our island community as a method of preserving history specific to the ahupua`a of Kiolaka`a as follows: (1) protecting cultural and natural resources; (2) preserving native dryland forests, native coastal plants, fresh water springs, and anchialine ponds; (3) preserving portions of the ala loa or Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail; (4) protecting important agricultural lands; (5) facilitating responsible managed public access; (6) enabling community-based management and stewardship; and (7) maintaining the rural lifestyle and historical character of Ka`fi; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that, pursuant to Chapter 2, Article 42 of the Hawaii County Code, the Director of Finance is hereby authorized to enter into negotiations for the acquisition of lands and/or conservation easement(s) for all or a portion of the properties identified as tax map key numbers (3) 9-4-001:008, 009, 016, 017, and 023 situated in the ahupua'a of Kiolaka`a and Wai`oma`a, District of Kau, utilizing the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Director of Finance is authorized to initiate any funding mechanisms required for the acquisition of lands or conservation easement(s) for all or a portion of the Kiolaka` a Property, in accordance with the terms of this resolution. 2