2003-11-07 TCLIFTO - Laserfiche WebLink

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GIMPEL:Thank you. It has been a long day but IÓm still Joel Gimpel, Public Affairs Chair for the Kona Traffic Safety Committee. Our previous written comments and testimony regarding this application are already part of your CommissionÓs record. But IÓm appearing here today, this evening, to draw to your attention an article that appeared in the th Friday, October 17 edition of West Hawaii Today, which some of you may not have seen, and which should also be a part of the official record. I have attached a printout of that article to my written testimony which you have before you. It lists ten projects that are slated for development along Queen Kaahumanu Highway between Kailua town and the airport. In addition to CliftoÓs Kona Coast, they include an 18-hole golf course between the Police Station and Kealakehe Parkway, State housing mauka of the golf course, commercial and hotel development of 500 acres by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands makai of the golf course, and marina expansion by the Department of Land and Natural Resources, a 335-acre West Hawaii business park north and mauka of Kealakehe Parkway, 1,500 commercial and industrial lots mauka of the Kaloko Light Industrial Park and north of West Hawaii Business Park, and a 500-lot subdivision with an 18-hole golf course, north and makai of Hinalani Street. These, of course, would be in addition to the existing old industrial area, Makalapua Shopping Center, Kohanaiki Business Park and Kaloko Light Industrial Park. We estimate that these proposed developments, when completed, wo 3- and 4,000 vehicles per day to the traffic on Queen Kaahumanu Highway, not to mention the many heavy construction vehicles and workersÓ cars before completion. This is unacceptable. The Kona Traffic Safety Committee brings this to your attention to emphasize the fact that while a particular development, in this case, CliftoÓs Kona Coast, might not itself add significantly to the vehicle load on Kona streets, we must take into account the anticipated total vehicle load that will be added by all developments in the area within the foreseeable future when evaluating the applications for rezoning and special management area use permit Here, our present road infrastructure is sorely lacking and the planned widening of Queen Kaahumanu Highway will probably create more traffic snarls than presently exist; accordingly, we urge that all developers in the area be required to fund the planned collector road between Hinalani Street and Kealakehe Parkway and that additional access Highway not be permitted until an alternate north-south road makai of the highway is available. Further, we suggest that the County explore extending Kuakini Highway north to the harbor. Finally, we request that the Planning Department help push for a the makai side of the highway to help offset this increasing demand of motorized travel. This pathway was initially part of the Queen Kaahumanu Highway widening project, but the section from Makala Boulevard north has been left off the current plans. Despite the attention drawn to this concern by the State Department of Transportation District Engineer, the decision-makers on Oahu are under the impression that this area is not under development, how mistaken they are, and will not be developed for many years to come. The community gave this pathway project No. 1 priority in recent public hearings on the State of Hawaii Bike Plan, which is now in final draft form. So, please, add your voice to the communityÓs in requesting this much-needed facility. 11