2005-01-21 TLAURANCE - Laserfiche WebLink

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ROTHSTEIN:May I try to answer some of those questions? SPRINGER:Is that question posed to the testifier as well? MCCALL:Sure. ROTHSTEIN:If its metes and bounds as the makai boundary, then the person owns up to the metes and bounds, and that happens a lot of times with Land Use Commissions. But a lot of times the shoreline, the certified shoreline becomes the makai boundary; and then thats subject to change. The fact is that a shoreline is certified for one year. And next time it could come around, which could be never, unless the property owner wants to have it done again for whatever reason it stays wherever it is put, at the shoreline certification. About public access, you know, theres a 3-foot easement along that wall. But whether the shorelineisatthewallor20feetout,thepublicstillhasthesameaccess.Andaboutataking, thats very interesting, you know, youre concerned about the possibility of taking. Well, Ive been watching, Ive been involved with this subdivision for, for 20 years going back when it was occupied by the Hawaiians at Kukailimoku Village. And I can tell you that if there was any taking it was taking of the public shore, because almost all those shoreline certifications are too far makai. This happens to be one that was done correctly. There are few others that are done correctly. But for the most part the public has lost a lot of public shore as a result of shoreline certifications done a long time ago before- before there were the rules for public notice that there are now, so the public had no opportunity to participate in the process. So, if theres any loss its the public, its the publics lost shore as a result of the certification in the past; and its good when, when you can have something finally corrected and done right, as happened in this case. SPRINGER:Thank you, Mr. Rothstein. Commissioner Siracusa, did you have a question for the testifier. SIRACUSA:Yes, well, actually, I forgot the question I was originally going to ask because of all the side-tracking. But Mr. Rothstein brought something else up and that was about how much land has been lost. I understand like, for example, the highest wash of the waves. But when the state surveyor comes out to do the shoreline certification, does he always come out to certify a parcel shoreline at the highest tide of the year and at the highest time of tide? ROTHSTEIN:First of all, the state surveyor rarely comes out to do that work. Its done by private surveyors owned, hired by the property owner. And what was the other part of the question? There was a- who does the survey-? SIRACUSA:Whether the surveys are done at the highest wash of the waves. ROTHSTEIN:Oh, at the high tide. No, theyre done anytime the application is put in 12 months of the year. And theres a very fundamental flaw the way shorelines are certified. And, I tell you from personal experience that an overwhelming majority of the time they are done too far makai resulting in the loss of public shore. There is legislation in this, in this current session that hopes for the third year in a row to try to resolve some of these problems. 13