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i <br /> I <br /> REPORT OF THE <br /> COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS j <br /> AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT <br /> DATE: March 25, 2020 Re: Comm. No. 767/Res. No. 506-20 <br /> PLACE: Hilo, Hawaii <br /> TIME: 1:02 p.m. <br /> Council Chair and Members <br /> Hawaii County Council <br /> Hilo, Hawaii 96720 <br /> Your Committee on Governmental Relations and Economic Development, to which was referred <br /> Resolution No. 506-20, reports as follows: <br /> Resolution No. 506-20,'transmitted by Council Member Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder via <br /> Communication No. 767 dated February 3, 2020, urges the Mayor and the Department of Public <br /> Works to enter into an agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop a plan for <br /> review to mitigate surface water in Puna. <br /> Your Committee scheduled this resolution for a hearing on March 10, 2020, at which time it was <br /> postponed to March 25, 2020, due to time constraints. <br /> Vice Chair Sue Lee Loy presided over this meeting in the absence of Committee Chair <br /> Kierkiewicz. The meeting was held by videoconference from Hilo, Waimea, and Kailua-Kona <br /> without oral public testimony or representatives from the Administration, in order to minimize <br /> physical contact and to maximize social distancing,pursuant to the Governor's supplementary <br /> emergency proclamation issued March 16, 2020. <br /> Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder said the resolution was "incredibly important" and that it <br /> affected every subdivision and every person in Puna due to the amount of water involved. He <br /> said he was able to have a meeting with Managing Director Roy Takemoto and Mike Wyatt, <br /> Chief of the Honolulu District Civil and Public Works Branch of the U.S. Army Corps of <br /> Engineers. Both provided favorable recommendations. There was some preliminary talk about <br /> doing LiDAR(Light Detection and Ranging) mapping. It doesn't cost anything for the County <br /> and it's a way to start working through the process for working on drainage, which is a huge <br /> issue, he said. <br /> Council Member Aaron Chung asked for and received clarification that Mr. Takemoto gave his <br /> support. <br /> Ms. Lee Loy appreciates the LiDAR mapping and the road map forward. She questioned Council <br /> Member Kaneah'i-Kleinfelder's 2020 population projections for Puna based on the 45 percent <br /> growth reported in the district between the 2000 and 2010 censuses. The data was taken from a <br /> previous resolution introduced by another Council Member, and Council Member Kaneali`i- <br /> Kleinfelder estimated that the population of the district was likely to be in the range of 55,000 to <br /> 65,000. <br /> GREDC Rept.No.: 3 <br />