2010-04-01 TWAILANI - Laserfiche WebLink

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FUKE: Thank you. WOODWARD: Thank you. Before we go open this up to questions from the Commissioners, maybe since this affects the recommendation, I’ll ask the Planning Director for her response to your recommended amendments. LEITHEAD TODD: I have no objections to the proposed amendments submitted by Wailani. I do have some comments though on the restrictive vehicular access. You know, these conditions reflect what was in the prior project district. I am not a fan of roadways that are blockaded. It has been an on-going issue throughout the island. And what happens is that an existing community is very comfortable with being kind of a deadend subdivision or having limited access. From a planning perspective it’s poor planning not to extend roads and connect roads. Because we’re having major issues in Kona with this. And it ultimately impacts emergency access for ambulances, it impacts whenever you’ve got a highway project; and in the long run it’s poor planning policy. I understand the applicant’s desire to accommodate the existing neighborhoods. But I would like to have some flexibility in this. And so what I was going to suggest is that on the language on Condition S that to, the proposed amendment should just say that the Planning Director upon consultation with the Department of Public Works and the immediately affected existing neighborhoods may lift this restriction. And the reason I’m saying that is I think that the other language that says that the immediately affected existing neighborhood’s desire to have the barriers removed is kind of ambiguous and also is a real, could potentially lead to litigation over where the authority to remove the barrier lies. And the reason is, I don’t have a problem with putting that barrier up initially and, but I would like to have the flexibility if the needs of the community change, if the traffic issues in the community change, that upon consultation and notice to the community and working with the community that we have that flexibility and avoid getting into a situation of potential litigation. Because what if you have, you know, 40 percent of the community coming forward and providing legitimate reasons but you have another group that doesn’t want it open but ultimately from a health and safety and planning perspective and traffic safety it make some sense to remove the barriers? And we’ve also found in some areas that people’s concern over connection frequently is based on a worst case scenario. And in those areas where we actually have connected and opened up communities, in the end the people who live there have actually benefited because it has increased their options in terms of how they access their homes and how they get to businesses. And at full buildout if you have a shopping center here with a supermarket I suspect that the people who currently live in these existing subdivisions will actually want to come in and access the shopping facilities, rather than have to go all the way out to Waianuenue and then down and around Komohana to get to the shopping, that they’d rather go through the back street. So I just want some flexibility there to respond to the changing needs in the future. I have no problems with the barrier initially. But I think I’d like that flexibility. And I have found that most people’s fears over the traffic are, as long as you’ve got options and alternatives and all the traffic isn’t through a particular area usually their fears are exaggerated. And in Hilo we do have other options; and I think that in the long run the community will be better served by having at least one. So I’m glad that we’re going to build at least one road connecting so that we have that option of opening it up in the future. And, you know, we might to do something like test runs for a while, just to see and, you know, we open it for a month and see what happens and get feedback from the community. And if there are concerns, then we could block it up again. But, you know, give us some flexibility. But thank you very much. I think it’s a good plan. And I do want to comment that on the extension of Ponahawai Street, I think it’s fair to say that that is regional rather than just generated by this subdivision. Cause it’s really about connecting 10 EXHIBIT C