COM 1007.000 2008-2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The Honorable J Yoshimoto, Chairman and Members of the County Council Page 5 outlined below, more specifically, the development of a TOD Village Master Plan, the recommendation from the Planning Department would have been favorable. The Kona Community Development Plan (KCDP) was adopted by Ordinance 08- 131 on September 25, 2008 by the Hawai`i County Council. The Kona Community Development Plan encompasses the judicial districts of North and South Kona. The 800 square miles of land area, which comprises the North and South Kona districts, accounts for approximately 20% of the total land area of the Island of Hawai`i. In order to achieve the vision of the KCDP, eight guiding principles were derived from public meetings and working groups. These principles are the foundation for the goals, objectives, policies, and implementation actions of the KCDP. One of the eight guiding principles is "direct future growth patterns toward compact villages, preserving Kona's rural, diverse, and historical character." The preference to encourage future urban and rural growth to occur in the form of compact, village -style development was a very strong message from the public meetings. The KCDP provides an integration mechanism as a means to avoid the current trend toward sprawling lot- density developments, disconnected subdivisions and business centers, and a general decline in the quality of life that people believe reflects the "Kona Way of Life." The overall land use strategy is to proactively implement public policy through a regional framework for growth. While respecting landowner entitlements, this framework provides additional direction so that individual planning decisions are made as part of a larger, integrated program for achieving an efficient growth pattern, optimizing investment in services and infrastructure, protecting the natural environment and cultural resources, and creating opportunities to enhance the quality of life for Kona's residents. Such a framework provides greater certainty and predictability for the community, government, and private sector, allowing all three to participate in a synchronized move towards a mutually planned future. Most of the future growth in Kona will be directed to an Urban Area (UA) defined in the Official Kona Land Use Map. The Kona Urban Area spans from the Kona International Airport to Keauhou. Within this Kona Urban Area, growth would be directed to compact villages located along proposed transit routes or to infill areas within, or adjacent to, existing development. The general locations of these villages are within the Growth Opportunity Areas (GOAs) identified during the public meetings that evolved into the Transit - Oriented Developments (TODs). Within the KCDP, Transit - Oriented Developments (TODs) are identified as development of compact, mixed -use villages which would integrate housing,