COM 0909.000 1996-1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Honorable James Y. Arakaki, Chairman and Members of the County Council Page 4 already established within this portion of Kaloko Mauka Subdivision. The subject property is located at the 3,080 foot elevation. The 'Alala Recovery Plan, prepared in an effort to preserve the habitat of the critically endangered 'Alala, recommends that portions of Kaloko Mauka Subdivision above the 3,200 foot elevation be designated as "essential habitat" for the 'Alala. As part of the Office of State Planning's Five-Year State Land Use District Boundary Review, the Water Resources Research Center recommends that the high rainfall and fog-drip area mauka of the 2,000 foot elevation be redesignated into the Conservation District for protection as a watershed recharge area. The Kona Watershed, which provides for the recharge of aquifers which supplies most of Kona's drinking water, includes those lands located within the Kaloko Mauka Subdivision and situated above the 1,900 foot elevation, which includes the subject property. The subject property, located above the 3,000 foot elevation, does not seriously compromise the recommendations of these studies beyond existing conditions. While the subject property is located below the elevation recommended for preservation as a habitat for the 'Alala, it is located above the approximately 2,000 foot minimum elevation recommended by the Office of State Planning and the Water Resources Research Center for protection as a watershed area. Approval of the requested change of zone will not alter the existing land use conditions within Kaloko Mauka Subdivision. Whether a parcel has an Agricultural zoning with a minimum lot size of 10 or 20 acres, uses permitted within the Agricultural District will allow for a variety of agricultural activities to be conducted on the property. Therefore, a favorable consideration of this request will also complement the goals, policies and standards of the Land Use and Agricultural Elements of the General Plan previously cited above. Primary access to the subject area from the Mamalahoa Highway is provided by Kaloko Drive, a County roadway having a pavement of approximately 20-feet with 8-foot wide grassed shoulders within an 80-foot wide right-of-way. Hao Street, also a County roadway, has a 60-foot right-of-way with a 20-foot wide pavement and 8-foot wide grassed shoulders. These roadways are able to accommodate the proposed 2-lot subdivision. The Mamalahoa Highway-Kaloko Drive intersection is of a "T" configuration without channelization improvements. The analysis of traffic along Kaloko Drive and at its intersection with the Mamalahoa Highway found that there are no appreciable delays at this intersection during the AM and PM peak traffic hours. The State Department of Transportation and County Department of Public Works have expressed the need for improvements to the Mamalahoa Highway-Kaloko Drive intersection. The need for such improvements is essential since similar changes of