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Honorable James Y. Arakaki, Chairman <br />and Members of the County Council <br />Page 4 <br />category. The Land Use Study Bureau's Overall Master Productivity Rating for the soils <br />in the area is "E" or Very Poor. Presently, there are several structures on the property. <br />The reclassification of this 1.8628 -acre area from the Agricultural to the Urban <br />designation will not be detrimental to the reduction of this area from the agricultural land <br />inventory in the County of Hawaii. From a land use perspective, it is a more feasible <br />alternative to infill urban development within this particular area of North Kona. In doing <br />so, it would tend to alleviate the conversion of more productive agricultural lands in more <br />appropriate locations within the North Kona area for Urban Low Density type uses. <br />Furthermore, an Urban classification would complement the existing and future <br />residential land use patterns of the surrounding properties in view of the adjacent Kona <br />Highlands Subdivision. <br />The proposed request from an Agricultural to an Urban district will not have a <br />significant adverse impact to traditional and customary Hawaiian Rights. <br />Investigation of valued resources: The applicant has presented the following <br />information for the Planning Commission and the County Council to determine the <br />valued cultural, historical, and natural resources within the area sought for rezoning: <br />An Archaeological Assessment of the property was performed on March 18, 2004 <br />by Robert B. Rechtman, Ph.D. of Rechtman Consulting, LLC. On behalf of the <br />applicant, Dr. Rechtman filed a letter with the Department of Land and Natural <br />Resources — State Historic Preservation Division (DLNR-SHPD) requesting a <br />"no -effect" letter. <br />A botanical reconnaissance conducted by Ron Terry, Ph. D. and Layne Yoshida, <br />B.A. of Geometrician Associates, LLC in March 2004. <br />The valuable cultural, historical, and natural resources found in the rezoning area: <br />An archaeological assessment of the property was conducted by Dr. Rechtman. He noted <br />that there were no archaeological resources observed on the subject property. <br />The botanical reconnaissance had identified a total of 83 plant species, of which <br />only four of them were indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands. <br />