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agencies,departments, and all parties all around the ahupua'a can be fully addressed. You may all be familiar with the <br /> major flooding that happens just below these areas on Kuakini. There's a lot of concern that any changes or alterations in <br /> contouring the land could create destructive outcomes if done improperly or alter a properly working watersheds or <br /> streams,i.e., similar concerns to the major flooding on Kauai which caused massive flooding resulting in property <br /> damage,casualties and fatalities due to contouring work done without proper consideration of the entire area even miles <br /> away. These are important issues and it is believed that the environmental impact studies and other studies done were <br /> incomplete and those can leave big but important gaps in real consequences of development,contouring,changing the <br /> land. <br /> Back to our taxpayers and the County of Hawai'i and others being stuck with the bill,very big bills,once the builder is <br /> long gone. These will be the major infrastructure components that really need to be addressed before any permits should <br /> be allowed or any equipment would ever be allowed to move on to the property assuming all the other issues had been <br /> addressed in a transparent and community-based manner. By the time,our County and our taxpayers realize how much <br /> additional infrastructure this whole project will take these builders will be long gone counting their cash while our <br /> taxpayers and our County have to foot the bill. <br /> We just simply don't have the infrastructure in the area to deal with the transportation flow with this many more people in <br /> the area. Some of the roads were not even constructed properly and cannot handle additional flow. An example is <br /> Puapuaanui,too steep a grade,blind spot curvatures in the road that make this particular road which is already very busy <br /> very dangerous without any additional overload of traffic. There have been numerous meetings with the state and county <br /> highway and safety committee on this. It is a known problem. (Note when the developers conducted traffic studies it <br /> seems those were done during covid times when traffic was,to say the least,rather light. That is not the case now <br /> and clearly not what we would anticipate in the future.) Roads would likely have to be reconfigured,expanded and or <br /> merge lanes, lights,etc. Movement of huge amounts of traffic through residential communities poses a whole lot of other <br /> issues and risks that are in many ways untenable. Additionally,the extra traffic loaded on to Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway <br /> just north of Puapuaanui and south past Lako would not be helpful or popular with our commuters and public. If you have <br /> not travelled these areas during peak and even non-peak times to "experience"this significant congestion you may not be <br /> as aware as this as our Kona community. <br /> Infrastructure issues continue with other concerns. Schools do not have the capacity at this point to handle additional <br /> students,we think you already are aware of this issue. Water taps,water pressure, and water supply (wells and aquifers) <br /> has been an issue in our communities and Kona in general. Many other services from both public and private resources <br /> and vendors would also be greatly strained. <br /> Do we really have the capacity to handle all this extra infrastructure cost?These are just a few of the issues that would <br /> arise by granting these permits or any extensions. Is that the legacy that this commission wants? <br /> The best decision, a good choice here would be to make sure that this application is paused and deferred until: <br /> 1)An actual COMPLETE archaeological study is done of the whole property in question. There is considerable evidence <br /> that rather significant Hawaiian archaeological and perhaps cultural materials are on this property. <br /> 2)A proper query to add layers of real transparency about this whole development and who the developers are and who <br /> they've had contact with needs to be better known by decision makers and stakeholders. This would hopefully avoid the <br /> actual or perceived conflicts of interest that some have expressed concern. County officials and other county decision <br /> making parties that are involved with this process should probably certify that they have never done business with nor had <br /> any financial interest with any of these developers in the past or this consortium of investors. This would be important to <br /> give the public ease and assurance about the parties and the process. <br /> 3)The public and all key stakeholders have a proper opportunity to in a transparent way vet and understand these issues <br /> and share their concerns as well as their mana'o on these matters. This is important in that if this is to go forward and there <br /> is to be an additional cost to the community and to the County,we need to do that with some consciousness and full <br /> awareness of why this would be moving forward given the history. (Let's also understanding that some stakeholders are <br /> say creatures or the aina itself and not human beings and we citizens and interested stewards will have to speak on their <br /> behalf.) <br /> 4)A full rigorous assessment of infrastructure risk and potential costs downstream needs to be done in earnest.Not to do <br /> so would seem reckless of the power you currently hold and of the positions and responsibility that our County <br /> administration has for being good stewards of the resources and the planning decisions. Given that the costs are likely to <br /> be quite large due to highway and road concerns,due to lost endangered and protected species habitats,expansions to our <br />