COM 0409.000 2012-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The Honorable J Yoshimoto, Chairman and Members of the County Council Page 4 The Hawai`i State Plan, County General Plan and Puna Community Development Plan (CDP) all encourage new urban growth to occur near existing urban areas where adequate public facilities are already available or can be provided with reasonable public or private expenditures, and away from areas where beneficial resources are present such as important agricultural land, natural, historic or cultural resources. These plans also suggest that communities should be planned to ensure that adequate support services and facilities are provided to accommodate population growth. The subject property is located in Pahoa,the largest town in the lower Puna district, near existing urban areas that are zoned commercial and industrial, which include Woodland Center, Pahoa Marketplace, and Pahoa Auto Parts. Other urban uses such as a church, self-storage facility and feed and fertilizer store have also been established nearby with special permits. As urban uses already exist in the immediate area, the urbanization of the project site will not contribute towards scattered urban development. Nearby public facilities include a fire station, police station, post office,regional park, and medical clinics. Water, electricity and commercial-standard transportation facilities are available or can be made available with reasonable public and private expenditures. Although Pahoa does not currently have a public sewer system or municipal solid waste collection, wastewater and solid waste generated by development of the land with urban land uses can be disposed of in compliance with Federal, State and County regulations. The Puna district is one of the fastest growing districts in the State; however, the development of urban lands with commercial and light-industrial businesses to provide goods and services to the population has not kept pace with growth. The General Plan Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide(LUPAG) Map component of the General Plan is a representation of the document's goals, policies, standards and courses of action. It is also a graphic depiction of the physical relationship between the various land uses and establishes the basic urban and non-urban form for areas within the County. The General Plan's LUPAG Map for Pahoa Village was recently amended to encourage rezoning of lands to urban zoning districts in order to provide these necessary goods and services. One of the primary reasons for the LUPAG Map amendment was to support the policies contained in the Puna CDP to develop Pahoa as a regional town center for the lower Puna district by increasing the designated urban density within the town center and directing commercial and industrial uses away from the Pahoa Bypass Road. With this amendment, the LUPAG map designation for the subject property was changed from Low Density Urban, which includes single-family residential and neighborhood commercial uses, to Medium Density Urban which allows for higher density urban uses such as village shopping centers and multiple-family residential. The reclassification action would be consistent with the goals, objectives and policies of the Hawai`i State Plan, County General Plan and Puna Community Development Plan by providing future employment opportunities and improved living standards and stimulating the development and expansion of economic activities in the lower Puna district.