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VITOUSEK: Okay, to those of you who have requested to testify now, would you please raise <br /> your right hand, the Zoom testifiers. No,please raise your right hand so I can swear you in. All <br /> three of you. Thank you and I'll take that little hand emoji as being raised also. Do you swear or <br /> affirm to tell the truth on this matter now before the Leeward Planning Commission? <br /> TESTIFIERS: I do. <br /> VITOUSEK: Thank you,please, begin your testimony with your name and the town you live in. <br /> WHITE: Good morning, my name is Heidi White. I've been a realtor in Kona for 26 years and <br /> resided 43 years. The bulk of my sales has always been in the Keauhou, Kahalu`u, and Alii <br /> Drive areas, and this is where I raised my 3 children. I'm speaking against this development <br /> today because of the concerns about where Kona is headed and how we can care for our <br /> residents old and young. I'm fully against this development for many reasons, but I'm going to <br /> talk about two. I've seen many changes in the past 40 plus years and many of us have <br /> experienced the tsunami evacuations, and we know they are gridlocked so much that every day <br /> of every year I practiced to park my car forward to drive straight out. As every minute is <br /> essential to make it out before the gridlock. Thank God we haven't had a tsunami to wipe us all <br /> out but it's a looming worry. <br /> Within the past month, a hard-working, non-drug using elder friend of mine who I would watch <br /> pedal his motorized bike in the morning to his side jobs in his 70's recently died in the homeless <br /> camp. What a shock to many of us. Our young families with children, our elders are forced out <br /> onto the streets because there's no housing. These are non-drug user, hard-working citizens of <br /> our community. I feel like the County and all of these people representing us are dropping the <br /> ball. Clearly, the news has been written this last week about fraudulent bribing and illegal <br /> handling of developments who agree to comply with affordable housing agreements and these <br /> requirements are fraudly swept under the rug to be forgotten. Our people have a voice. That's <br /> you and me. You in office and me out working within the community, who I love. <br /> We have to fight for housing for our young, retired, and working class. This development is not <br /> needed and will cause a danger to all that live here for the lack of evacuation solutions and <br /> displacement of our old and our young precious kama`aina. Why should someone come from <br /> somewhere else and get precious housing that's on short supply, when our people have non due <br /> to mismanagement of our County and Planning departments. These two subjects are a crime in <br /> process. Stop this developing crime to Hawai`i's people. Who you and I agree are a treasure <br /> and that's why all these tourists are coming here to experience the aloha and the kama`aina way. <br /> We must take care of them, thank you. <br /> VITOUSEK: Thank you. Janice, are you going to run through the list since you have the current <br /> list? <br /> HATA: Yes, next up is Rebecca Melendez. <br /> MELENDEZ: Hi, so, okay. Am I on? <br /> 2 <br /> EXHIBIT A <br />