2003-11-07 TNANI KONA - Laserfiche WebLink

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that was mentioned in the newspaper or 175 that was mentioned earlier today, it is clearly more than 100. Now Director Yuen said that without having a subdivision of 100 homes, you're not required to do a traffic study. That is, in fact, what the rules says, required. You may still do a traffic study though. And I think the requirement or the job of the Planning Commission, as Commissioner Graham said, is to represent the constituency that's already here and not have all these things development-driven or developer-driven, instead be driven by the desires and the needs of the people who are already here. So you have the ability to do a traffic study. You have approved other zoning in the area that coupled with this one will be over the 100 home limit and, in fact, being responsible planners, you should in fact do that major traffic study and solve some of the problems that you've heard here today. Number two, we've heard about infrastructure being planned and the developer's Applicant representative said that one of the reasons the property is proposed at R-10 is to pay for all of the infrastructure. And to pay for the major infrastructure, additional developers will have to be asked to throw money in a pot, and then some of the things like water and street improvements can be financed. In fact, the County could bond the whole area now, bring in those developers, sell bonds in increments to be able to finance infrastructure in the area, including additional roads, and do that before the development is approved and before any ground is broken for new homes. Then as developers came in to request land use changes, zoning changes, they would already know that the infrastructure was there, the neighborhoods would know that the infrastructure is there, and the things that we're talking about today could be in place to enhance this kind of development and not be doing it piecemeal. Number three, we've talked about what's possible with the State and what's not possible with the State, and I understand why the State would not want to have access points along the major highway every few feet. On the other hand, if you look at that highway, it is currently proposed and budgeted to be expanded from Henry Street toward the airport and made into a four-lane road. It will be expanded south to a four-lane road in the foreseeable future, maybe five years, maybe 10 years, maybe 20 years, but the traffic on that road is very significant, and as you increase more residential zoning and commercial zoning along that road, there's more traffic and it will, in fact, be widened. It is highly likely that the State, and I think everything is negotiable with the State, it is highly likely that when that road is turned into a four-lane road at some point in the future, that additional access could be allowed, both north and south, major intersections on that road. And I think it's again the responsibility of the Planning staff and the Planning Commission to talk to the State about that and see if that's possible, make that a condition of this rezoning. Approve it, approve other rezonings in the area, but make it a condition that they are only acceptable and building can only start when the major north-south road, the highway, is 22