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Honorable Bobby Jean Leithead-Todd <br /> Chair <br /> Page 2 <br /> January 22, 2003 <br /> The previous concept-access from Puainako using aright-in, right-out turn--was <br /> completely unworkable. It would have made it even more difficult to turn left out of <br /> Pilipaa St. In addition, most customers would eventually want to get back to Kanoelehua, <br /> by going west on Puainako, and the most convenient and shortest route to do that would <br /> be to turn right on Pilipaa St., then tum around on someone's private driveway, or turn <br /> left into Prince Kuhio Plaza, then turn around in the parking lot. <br /> Although the proposed Kanoelehua St. access is more workable than Puainako, the <br /> Council needs to consider whether it is wise, in the long run, to rezone property to <br /> commercial use along Kanoelehua that requires direct driveway access. Kanoelehua is <br /> the main artery bringing traffic in and out of Hilo from Puna. The proposed access would <br /> take a portion of the Kanoelehua right-of--way that could eventually accommodate more <br /> through lanes and permanently commit it for right-in and right-out lanes for this project. <br /> The only such driveway access presently on Kanoelehua in this general area is at the <br /> Puainako Town Center. It is my understanding that DOT agreed to this to mitigate <br /> problems that arose with traffic flow around the existing facility long after it was built. <br /> <br /> There are driveways on Kanoelehua closer to Kamehameha Ave., but this a situation that <br /> existed long before Kanoelehua reached its present volume of traffic, and these primarily <br /> serve industrial properties, which, in theory at least, should not generate as much traffic <br /> as a commercial development. In general, it is not desirable to allow direct driveway <br /> access to a major arterial like Kanoelehua. <br /> Motorists leaving this project will merge left into Kanoelehua in the same general area <br /> that drivers on Kanoelehua who want to turn into Puainako will be trying to merge into <br /> the Puainako deceleration lane. <br /> The only TIAR prepared for the project is based on the Puainako access, not the <br /> Kanoelehua access. <br /> If the Council is inclined to rezone the property to accommodate the landowner's wishes, <br /> I would suggest a number of conditions and revisions: <br /> 1. The entire property should not be rezoned to commercial. Less than half is <br /> outside the flood zone. Otherwise, in years to come, the fact of the <br /> commercial zoning will become an argument for the further development of <br /> the site. <br /> r <br /> <br />