2006-01-06 TGARDNER - Laserfiche WebLink

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GALDONES:Mostly a lot of homes, they have residential -? TUCKER:Yes. But the question you ask is a good one because as I tried to answer it looking at J&J Self storage on Kaloli, what Im grappling with is a precedent. Now a precedent has been made in an agriculturally zoned largely residential area where a self storage facility was permitted. And its with that same viewpoint that Im looking at the potentials for a precedent of commercial development on 130. Because 2 or 3 years from now we wont be looking at just one or two more applications, there will be many for such, you know, conversions. GALDONES:So is it the Main Streets objection is you dont want anything on Highway 130, any businesses being developed along 130, Highway 130? TUCKER:Commercial businesses, that would be basically our flat position. We would probably support well-thought public uses, such as Fire Department and Police. We understandthattherestalkaboutanewpostofficealongthatroute,too;andwehavetotakea look at that, its plans and intentions. We believe that the town areas or village areas of Keaau and the village areas of Pahoa are approximate enough to be able to reach half way toward each other and provide commercial opportunity without creating massive more traffic into Hilo every day for every little thing. So we think it would be logical and practical for the County to look at Keaau Village and Pahoa Village for its primary development of commercial and light industrial uses; and we need the jobs and we need, you know, we need the business. But we just dont need it spread, you know, from edge to edge, which is what we think this would open the door to. GALDONES:How active is this Main Street Pahoa Association? TUCKER:Well, it meets actively once a month. It has annual meetings. We have a membership of approximately 80 plus on the town. We have just promoted and put on the Pahoa Christmas Parade, for example. It was just held last month. We have some other activities were involved with. Weve been involved highly in the past couple years on the acquisition of the 56- acre parcel for Pahoa district park use; and that was a ten-year effort on Main Streets part. And so we have the ability to function over a long period of time on these views; and were taking the long view here. This is the long view. GALDONES:And the Association has taken this subject matter thats before us right now and has established the position that you had articulated in your letter? TUCKER:Yes, sir. Approximately 18 months ago we were approached by a private developer from Bakersville, California who was interested in acquiring some agricultural land and was looking for our support for an application, and he was a little discouraged. Unfortunately, for him, it wasnt personal, but when we examined the issue and we looked at it, we had to just write a letter of lack of support for his project. And it wasnt personal. And, in fact, at the same time 18 months ago we felt that the town could probably use a self storage facility in the area. But for the same issues Ive enumerated here, we took a vote on that; and when we took the vote on that issue, we took it rather broadly that we werent just opposing that project and that development. In that sense we were taking the opposition in a more general sense, which is what Im expressing here at this moment. 13EXHIBIT B