COM 1444.000 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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~~/ Pete Hoffmann, Chairman and Members of the County Council Page 2 The applicant originally intended to subdivide the property into three (3) lots. One of the lots was intended to be sold for a fast food operation and the other two.lots were intended to be for roadside shops and a 2 or 3-story office-professional complex. At this time, the applicant no longer wants to subdivide the parcel, as required in. Condition A. The applicant intends to construct a visitor education center and-parking lot that will enhance the existing Amy Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, which operates on the two (2) properties to the northwest. Additionally, the applicant is requesting time extensions to comply with Condition B of Change of Zone Ordinance No. 465 (REZ 335), which states: "Construction of commercial structures shall commence on two (2) of the proposed lots within one (1) year of receipt of final subdivision approval. Construction shall be completed within two (2) years thereafter." The previous owner of the property (Amy B. H. Greenwell Trust and American Trust Co. of Hawaii, Inc.) did not construct the commercial project as required by Condition B of Change of Zone Ordinance No. 465. The new owner (Bishop Museum) is requesting time extensions to construct the visitor education center and parking lot for the Amy Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden. The 15-acre Amy Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, which is part of the B.P. Bishop Museum, is devoted to the study of Hawaiian people and their plants. The Garden displays more than 200 species of plants that grew in the traditional farms and native forests of Kona before Captain James Cook arrived in the late 18'" century. These endemic, indigenous, and Polynesian-introduced plants include the most important plants in Hawaiian culture, such as taro and kukui, and scores of rare and endangered native species, including the native hibiscus, kokio. Visits to the garden typically consist on half-hour, self-guided tours. Panels around a short looping trail at the center of the garden provide guidance, and plants throughout the garden have labels that explore their traditional uses. The Garden also provides on-site and outreach educational programs, school visits, and activities, workshops, plant sales, and endangered species research and conservation. The Garden's 3`d Annual Grow Hawaiian Festival was held on February 24, 2007, attracting several hundred visitors to lectures, exhibits, and hands-on activities conducted by scientists and cultural practitioners.