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SWEENEY:My name is Jeff Sweeney and I am -.
<br />NOMURA:Microphone, please.
<br />ALAMEDA:Speak into the mike, please. Yeah, thank you.
<br />SWEENEY:My name is Jeff Sweeney and I live in Naalehu. And I am opposed to this
<br />project for a number of reasons, most of them have to do with the slippery slopes aspect of the
<br />way development has gone, not only on this island but all over the place. Kau is one of the last
<br />remaining, as John Replogle said, panoramic beautiful spots; and more subdividing that goes on
<br />and building changes, the more in jeopardy that is.
<br />Now, Im sorry Im not educated enough on who owns all the land now currently or which land
<br />is in escrow or that aspect. But one of the things that hasnt been addressed that bothers me is
<br />thatyearsagotheBrewerCo.cametothisareaandputthesugarplantingsinandlefthuge
<br />messes everywhere. The fish pond Ninole are silted in from their misuse through the roads, there
<br />are huge buildings that are just falling in decay, all around that they still own. There has been
<br />runoff, and especially in traveling in the roads between, you know, in the Kau, part of the Kau
<br />district; and the fact that they can just do that, go away and make, you know, billions of dollar is
<br />just, I think, a tragedy for the land and the people here.
<br />Something else that has come up is the, you know, I was here for the Hesters, through the
<br />County Council meeting there. And same people, and I respect them, were worried about the
<br />jobs in the future and everything for those folks. They were granted their subdivision approval.
<br />They had paid originally $968,000 for their land, got their okay, and now their land is listed for
<br />$6,000,000. So there goes anybody being able to afford it here and their kids from the former
<br />sugar workers. Its just a done deal.
<br />You know, if, if 99 percent of these lots are already spoken for, which Mr. Savio said that kind
<br />of stacks up in favor of that, of this going through -. There was, you know, at one time 20-acre
<br />parcels were thought to be reasonable General Plan Land Use of the agricultural lands here.
<br />Now when people are trying to cut down to five that, you know, its the slipper slope aspect that
<br />Im in fear of.
<br />Also, is there any, maybe its Michaels or John Replogles view, but what, is there any
<br />conditions built into the contract for this project that, that, for instance, someone that buys it and
<br />then turning around in one year and selling it to such a price that cant be afforded by these very
<br />farmers and intended for farmers that this is supposed to be benefiting? I think that there needs
<br />to be some iron-clad, in perpetuity, that a clause is put into the contract here that you guys cant
<br />turn around and sell it for three times as much no matter what the landowner/buyers changes the
<br />future zonings and such.
<br />And also, you mentioned, said something, Mr. Yuen, that I found interesting. You said you cant
<br />make decisions now for 20 or 30 years as things, conditions might change, and it cant be, you
<br />remember that, one of the last things? Theres going to be, you know, this is the first call, a lot
<br />of meetings in Kau because of all kinds of things on the horizon as we all know, especially in
<br />hearing codes. Does that mean that we can change zoning and decisions that were made 30 years
<br />ago in maybe backroom deals that didnt get much public scrutiny? And now that theres more,
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