2008-05-22 TPUNACDP - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

providing the opportunity to make future changes for a more well-rounded and widely accepted plan. Thank you. WATANABE: Do we -? Yes, Ms. Siracusa. SIRACUSA: Yes. I think that what we are looking at here is, you know, you’ve already got your commercial zoning; I don’t see why you are flustered about it or think that it’s being threatened. I don’t see it that way; I see it as what they are proposing is expanding that industrial and commercial zoning to the other side of the Highway. Nobody is taking anything away from Foster Kern. Ulupono has already been approved. It’s got the zoning. So I think you are misunderstanding the threat to the company that you are representing. And maybe that’s because you had the same problem I did looking at the color coding on the zoning, since none of these maps were labeled current zoning. So everyone thought that was proposed zoning. And I think that really has to be clarified. Would you agree? SULLIVAN: Yes, I do agree that it needs to be clarified. And, but I also wanted to point out that only Phase III, the one that has just been completed, and we have infrastructure for right now, is zoned commercial. And if the whole 28 acres is not included, or at least that’s fine if you don’t want to include the Phase III, but the second phase is zoned Ag right now. So if we are not included in this boundary that we’ve been talking about, we will not be able to change the zoning to commercial; and what we will have is a half of the Center, and it won’t be something that we’ll be able to achieve all the goals that we want to achieve here, and provide all those services, especially 2 to 3 acres for community services whatever you think that might be, the County Council might think that is, whatever the community wants that to be. And I think that’s really important. Thank you. WATANABE: Any further questions? Thank you for your testimony. I believe -, Jeff Mermel. MERMEL: Thank you. Good afternoon. My name is Jeffrey Mermel, P. O. Box 342, Volcano. At the first meeting of this Planning Commission regarding the Puna Community Development Plan, the Volcano Community Association did present written testimony in favor of supporting this Plan by ordinance, not resolution; there is a difference. Today I’m here really as a parent and pretty much speaking as an individual, though I happen to be the president of the Association. I’ve lived a half of my life here; I’ve been here 32 years – You can do the math now. I have three things to say just as an individual. First of all on plans, why bother. I’ll speak to that. I’ll speak to also about that I believe this is as good as a grassroots plan can really be. And thirdly I think it’s already doing its job; it’s already starting to work. Reading from the Plan itself certain points jumped out to me. Puna has the fastest rate of growth on this island. The 2000 census had 31,000 people in Puna, in March of last year 43,000 estimated – that’s a 37 percent increase in seven years – and by 2030 a projected population of 75,000. We need one plan. The key sentence that jumped out to me is that since only a fourth – so it’s only a quarter – of the available lots have been developed at present. It’s clear that these extensive subdivisions – and I would say these subdivisions are, you know, substandard is the word that usually jumps out to people – these subdivisions present formidable challenges to the natural environment and the rational management of development in future population growth. And by example of what’s happening with this kind of growth, I have two pictures that I’d like to give you. (The pictures EXHIBIT C 16