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Honorable James Y. Arakaki, Chairman <br />and Members of the County Council <br />Page 4 <br />While the subject property is within the State Land Use Agricultural and County's <br />Agricultural (A -5a) zoned districts, it is not currently being used for active agricultural <br />purposes. The State of Hawaii ALISH Map classifies the property as "Other Important <br />Agricultural Land." Other Important Agricultural Land is defined as land other than <br />Prime or Unique Agricultural Land that is also of statewide or local importance for <br />agricultural use. According to the Land Use Study Bureau's Overall Master Productivity <br />Rating, soils within the property are classified as "D" or Poor. <br />Therefore, the reclassification of this .990 -acre portion of land from the <br />Agricultural to the Urban designation will not be detrimental to the reduction of this area <br />from the agricultural land inventory in the County of Hawaii. From a land use <br />perspective, it is a more feasible alternative to infill urban development within this <br />particular area of North Kona. In doing so, it would tend to alleviate the conversion of <br />more productive agricultural lands in more appropriate locations within the North Kona <br />area for Urban Low Density type uses Furthermore, an Urban classification would <br />complement the existing and future residential land use patterns of the surrounding <br />properties in view of the adjacent residential subdivisions. <br />Finally, it should also be noted that the reclassification action would conform to <br />the following goals, objectives and/or policies articulated in the Hawaii State Plan: <br />Achieve a strong, viable economy, characterized by stability, diversity and <br />growth that enables the fulfillment of the needs and expectations of <br />Hawaii's present and future generations <br />b Encourage urban developments in close proximity to existing services and <br />facilities. <br />Based on the above, the approval of the State Land Use Boundary Amendment to the <br />Urban District complements the State Land Use District Regulations and is supportive of the <br />State of Hawaii Plan. <br />In order to consider an area for any type of zoning designation, the applicable <br />goals, policies and standards of the General Plan must be adequately addressed. It is only <br />through such a comprehensive policy analysis approach that evaluations and decisions <br />can be made to better time and stage developments to achieve growth determined by the <br />General Plan and related planning documents. The implications of these evaluations and <br />decisions must be also considered as they may have an impact on similar areas in the <br />County. <br />