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Heather Kimball, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawai i October 09, 2024 Page 4 The subject property is designated Medium Density Urban (mdu) by the LUPAG Map which includes uses such as village and neighborhood commercial and single family and multiple family residential and related functions (multiple family residential - up to 35 units per acre). As a neighborhood commercial use, the medical facility will continue to provide services to single-family and multiple -family residential users in the surrounding area. The Kona Community Development Plan (CDP) identifies the property as situated within the Kona Urban Area (KUA), though not situated within any Regional Center Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Areas. The proposed change of zone would allow for the continuation of a relevant commercial use that would be in alignment with the commercial, retail and service -related developments in the surrounding area. Based on the preceding, the request conforms to the goals and policies of the General Plan and Kona CDP. All essential utilities and services are available to the site. The subject property is accessed from Sunset Drive, a County -owned and maintained road with approximately 24- foot-wide pavement within a 44-foot-wide right-of-way that takes access from Kuakini. Highway, a State-owned and maintained roadway. The State Department of Transportation (DOT) notes that there would not be a significant increase in the number of trips generated at the site, and no adverse impacts to State highways. The Department of Public Works (DPW), Engineering Division, recommends that the applicant provide improvements to the subject property's Sunset Drive frontage consisting of, but not limited to, pavement widening with a sidewalk, concrete curb and gutter, drainage improvements and any required utility relocation, meeting with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The improvements shall be located within a 3-foot road widening setback and dedication of the widening and improvements should be at no cost to the County. The applicant has requested relief from DPW's recommendations, noting that improvements to the property's Sunset Drive frontage would be excessive and not be proportional to the scope of the applicant's request, given there is no proposal to expand the footprint of the medical facility. The Planning Director is agreeable to providing such relief based both on the applicant's reasoning and the impractical nature of installing a short segment of curb, gutter, and sidewalk in a location not likely to be used by pedestrians nor connects to any other pedestrian facilities in the area. However, the Director recommends that the applicant subdivide and dedicate a 346ot-wide future road widening strip along the property's Sunset Drive frontage when requested by DPW and to pay their pro-rata share for future construction of roadway improvements by the County. A condition of approval will be