COM 0331.007 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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To: County Council Planning Committee From: Margaret Wile 65-1316 Lihipali Road Kamuela Hawaii 96743 Tel: 887-1414; email: mazgazetwille@mac.com Re: Comm. 331 Res. 158-07: Requires discretionary review for subdivisions and provides for public hearing in the development approval process. Date: Apri13Q 2007 Preface to Testimony: As a member of the Mayor's Advisory Committee for the South Kohala Community Development Plan, I was asked to inform the Council that I am a member of this committee but my testimony today represents my own views and not those of the Advisory Committee. Likewise, I am an attorney but testify as a concerned citizen and not on behalf of another party. Position of Sunuort: I support this effort to enact an ordinance that will provide for discretionary review of subdivision and other development applications along with an opportunity for public participation in the approval process. Background: Residential development has exploded in Hawaii County, but the public facilities and services needed to accommodate this massive residential development lags far behind-including for essential services and infrastructure such as roads, parks, and schools. The resulting crisis is not in the future. It is here now, The residents of this county, and in particular our island youth, face a critical lack of public facilities in large part as a result of this County's continued failure to impose reasonable exactions on subdivisions and other special development approvals. The public wants a system in which there is discretionary review of subdivisions and other development approvals, so that those developments can henceforth be subjected to appropriate conditions and exactions that are commensurate with the impact of the development not just in the immediate area but also in the entire affected region of the County. tLikewise the public wants accountability in the approval process, specifically by way of a public hearing before the County Council or an appropriate agency board. Currently there t James Rushner in his treatise on Subdivision and Growth Mans eg ment explains this dilemma as follows: "Communities often falter in the financing of infrastructure due to escalating costs, limited tax revenues, and legislative concerns with burdening taxpayers for these costs. The subdivision process can become very subjective and political in approving or denying proposals, and in some communities' pet projects sponsored by powerful developers or projects anticipated to cornribute needed tax revenues may be approved despite inadequate facilities. This process, in rum leads to premature subdivision, and eventually results in congested roads, overcrowded schools, inadequate sewa~e treatment, insufficient parks (page 1-10 § 1:T' Need for ! ' Growth Management" 2n edition 200?), I~ Ref. Ta he,