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2 <br /> In January, The Kona Traffic Safety Committee provided testimony on the applications <br /> filed by Puaa Development and Suffolk Investment to the Planning Commission, and <br /> copies of that testimony are in the record In the interest of time, I'll merely summarize <br /> that testimony this afternoon. <br /> With respect to Puaa Development, we understand that the applicant now proposes to <br /> develop a commercial shopping center with approximately 50,000 sq. ft. of retail and <br /> office space in the northern portion of the property, with the remaining 40,000 sq. ft. in <br /> the southern portion devoted to multi-family rental housing, all to be completed in 2008. <br /> Principal access from Rte 1 1 would be at the north end of the property, with a signalized <br /> and channelized intersection directly opposite the access to Pualani Estates. The applicant <br /> also proposes aright-in, right-out only access to Hwy 11 at the south end, and there <br /> would he a road with a b0-foot right-of-way through the project, connecting with <br /> the14.87 acre, 250-unit rental housing project makai of the subject property, proposed by <br /> Suffolk Investment, affording access to Kuakini Hwy. <br /> We have several concerns and suggestions regarding both projects, because both will <br /> significantly affect traffic in the same area. <br /> 1. Traffic- Rte 11 <br /> As recognized by the Puaa TZAR, the project will add 3614 trips per day to traffic on <br /> Kuakini Hwy and Rte 1 1, which is already operating at capacity. But the T[AR, while <br /> <br /> predicting no change in the level of service at the Pualani Subdivision/Rte 11 <br /> intersection, which should be signalized, failed to take into account the traffic to be added <br /> <br /> to that intersection by the 21-uniC Uluwehi Properties Development that has been <br /> <br /> approved by the County Council, and the 250-unit rental housing project proposed by <br /> <br /> Suffolk Investment. And, because the traffic counts used for the TIAR were taken before <br /> <br /> commercial delivery trucks were needed in the area, it also failed to account for the many <br /> <br /> delivery vehicles that will enter the development, especially in the morning peak hours. <br /> <br /> Furthermore, the proposed right-inJright-out driveway on Rte 11 is projected to operate at <br /> <br /> an unacceptable level of service during the PM peak hours. And, even with aright-turn <br /> <br /> acceleration lane, entering Rte 11 will be dangerous because the speed limit at that point <br /> <br /> is 55 mph. <br /> 2. Traffic -Kuakini Hwy <br /> Because ofthe existing and projected congestion on Rte 11, we believe (and the Puaa <br /> <br /> TIAR predicts) that many drivers will use Kuakini Hwy to access and leave the <br /> <br /> commercial project, which will invariably increase congestion on that two-lane road and <br /> <br /> result in increased traffic through the residential development proposed by Suffolk <br /> Investment. We also note that the Suffolk TIAR anticipates that the housing project, upon <br /> <br /> completion, will add ] 405 daily trips (118 during the AM peak hours, and 145 during the <br /> PM peak hours) to the roadway network, i.e., Kuakini Hwy and Rte 7 1, and that Rte 11 is <br /> <br />