2024-10-29 Malia Mares Testimony Renegade

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From:Malia Mares To:WPCtestimony Subject:Comments on (PL-USE-2024-000028) - Renegade Towers LLC Date:Tuesday, October 29, 2024 2:09:17 PM Attachments:Comments on (PL_USE_2024-000028).docx 10-29-24 Aloha Planning Commissioners, Thank you for allowing me to present my comments on the use permit application request for Renegade Towers LLC’s proposed Telecommunications Facility Project. My comments and exhibits are attached and also copied in the body of this email for convenience. ------------------------------------------ A 150’ monopole tower with equipment is not consistent with the general character of the community and surrounding properties. Visual impact from Pahoa-Kalapana Road - Highway 130: The applicant states in their application that the project site property and surrounding roadside is heavily wooded and that the taller trees would screen the tower effectively from Highway 130, a protected beauty corridor. While the applicant’s geospatial analysis of the terrain and tree heights indicate that at present the taller trees would hide the tower along much of the highway, there are still gaps where the tower would be visible. The forest on the property and surrounding area is made up of an overstory of native ‘Ohi’a Lehua trees which have been heavily impacted by the fungal disease Rapid Ohia Death (ROD). Each year more of the mature ohia’s along this stretch of highway are killed by ROD and are not being replaced by younger ones, mostly due to the understory of invasive weeds and feral pigs. Therefore it is reasonable to expect that there will be less screening over time as more taller ‘ohi’a trees succumb to ROD. As the climate becomes warmer and drier the threat of wildfire becomes more immediate, especially along roadsides. In the event of a fire along this corridor much of the screening forest could be lost. Visual impact from adjacent properties: Where the property shares an edge with Ho’onone Road there is very little vegetation between the road and adjacent properties. This property was previously cleared as a pasture and the view is open all along the southern edge. There are several nearby privately owned properties which are heavily wooded at present but may at some point in the future be cleared by their owners. This would make a 150’ monopole even more widely visible to the surrounding properties. Along Ho’onone Road and at the top of these surrounding properties the terrain is fairly flat and a 150’ monopole would be highly visible and quite imposing in the open pastureland. Exhibit 1 - Terrain model of Ho’onone Road with average vegetation height and density with 150’ monopole. (3D terrain model for Hoonone Rd using Terrainview in Google Earth Pro 3D).