2008-06-05 TSULLIVAN - Laserfiche WebLink

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BOWMAN: Okay, thank you. WATANABE: Okay, can I cut in here for a second. You know, we’re going back and forth about whether the State was certifying it at any given time, when the application came in, etc. And to some degree maybe we’re not being fair to the applicant because the applicant really is not allowed to join in to this conversation because they haven’t been sworn in yet. Nevertheless, yeah, I think we should also point out that we did take the time to do a site visit today, yeah, irrespective of whether we’re contesting whether it was a 2.8 or a 3.2. We do know that the shoreline was established at those 14 or so points with the white blocks and the surveyors were present today and we did establish that it was significantly further than 40 feet from the building site. So maybe, maybe, all of this is moot. So, you know, rather than look at, okay, who’s wrong or what came first, whatever, why don’t we consider all of these things first and try and contain some of these questions maybe that would not prejudice, let’s say, the applicants while they can’t respond. Yeah, and we can save those other questions for later when the applicant is sworn in. BOWMAN: I apologize but I do think it’s important that I got the information from the Director and I definitely want to hear the applicant; but I do think it’s important that we get the information. WATANABE: Okay. Yes, Mr. Director. YUEN: There’s something I wanted to say with respect to Commissioner Woodward’s comments. We can all have our opinions about how we think the shoreline should be certified. But as far as the State’s shoreline certification rules they will include high surf events as establishing the shoreline. They will not include where the water goes in a hurricane or other similar local heavy storm, which was not the case of the photographs that we took in th December 29, not that we took but the photographs we showed you of December 29, 2007. So as I said they will include, there are times in a year when you have, where water rushes in farther inland because of high surf events, because of strong trade winds and the like. They will include that kind of event in determining where the shoreline should be located, and that is pursuant to their rules. WATANABE: Yeah, okay. Ms. Siracusa. SIRACUSA: I have two questions, well, they’re sort of a pair because they both refer to how the shoreline is established. And one is at what point, and maybe it’s not any more, but the vegetation line was one of the parameters or criteria that was used. So I’d like to know if that is still germane. And the other question is if there are anchialine ponds on the property how does that affect, that presence of anchialine pond affect shoreline determination according to the rules? YUEN: I don’t know whether the DLNR, the DLNR does have rules on shoreline certifications. I don’t know what they say about anchialine ponds. If an anchialine pond is not connected on the surface with the sea, clearly, even though it’s connected subsurface and rises and falls with the tides, it’s not part of the ocean and has nothing to do with the shoreline certification. When we were doing the determination of the shoreline without a shoreline certification if the pond was connected with the sea at high tide then we considered that pond to 9