COM 0176.099 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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'(1] D I I i. 05/31/2007 THO 17:37 FAX 808 929 7009 Kuahiwi Contractors Inc. health and safety hazard. Retaining all rainwater onsite w i i l ha ~ I: a n adverse effect on stream and river eco-systems and the lancl~cape's i-.Iru.:~.l systems for discharging water. Also, infiltration basins on itre shlrl~~ b:il:l; suggested may be an unsound solution - a 100 year flood li ke the rite .lsri inundated the area between Pahala and Kapapala, in Ka'u, could ci ~ ll destroy whatever structures had been constructed to retain ~a-ater, ?'~~c~~ E I:I^ unleashing a wall of water downstream, such as happened za Kalai<:n nrl Kauai. Additionally, the proposed changes to the building code will finer; .a;: Il already high cost of housing on this island, and make affordable L'u: I::,~. + even more scarce. I am not entirely sure what the council is attempting to achieve wir.:+ t.Ii:; legislation which would negatively impact so many. I understand tlra certain properties in Kona are being damaged by ill-planned devel ri::rn:~, It above them. I sympathize with the council's desire to assist with tl l I' 1 i r: oftheseproperty-owners, however this bill does not addres,•. their rya I; i.: ~r , and imposes a cure that is worse than the disease. I would sugge~ t i t tl E best thing the county could do in this bill is to focus on being; in c^~nr,~. ;+:uac: with NFIP, so that if a flood should harm these properties their ov; r,~:~rr ~-~-ill have some recourse to this program. The broader question laf flocaa • Lc Ir.r planning and problem-solving should be addressed from the groans'. nl+ v~ith input from diverse sources rather than imposing a solution upon phi:; `.aa.nd community in a top-down fashion, as this bill as it presently stand.:, s: ,rn ; to do. Considerable design latitude needs to be incorporated into flo{:nI h~ir.f:r legislation so that site-specific problems and resources can be ad+.i° es c..a effectively as possible. Sincerely,