2006-08-14 Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Commission Minutes (Hilo Mtg)

Home

acquisitions imply future management by the County; they can't just buy them without having a plan in place even if the goal is to not develop a full blown park with parking lot, restrooms, etc. Mr. Yuen stated often times there are management issues such as: do they increase public access and if so what will come of it and how do they handle it. When the County government takes over, it's expected that the County will take care of it. If there is a hazardous issue, the County has to take care of it in the liability aspect. Mr. Yuen expressed he would like to engage in a dialogue so that he may have an idea of what the Commission and the public wants and what the purpose of the acquisition is so they can understand what they need to do to meet those purposes, beyond just acquiring. (Maps were then passed out by Mr. Yuen) Mr. Yuen asked the Commission what they have been working on since April. Chair Replogle replied the Commission talked about redoing the intake forms, adjusting the criteria and discussed the problems that the Commission had run into. Mr. Yuen stated they understood Kawa`a however they had a question about the extent of the area that the Commission would like the County to look at for acquisition. In looking at the map where it was marked "SM ", that was around Nmole cove, south of Punalu`u Beach Park. Mr. Yuen clarified that "SM" is a company that owns the Punalu`u area; the former C. Brewer Punalu`u development. The map showed the various properties, each of the dotted lines represented tax map key parcels. The 234 acres of Kawa`a was bought on an option. Real Estate agent Marcia Johnson owns that now. Most of the rest of the property is owned by "Olson ". There is a 100 acres owned by the Apiki's which a lot of people have a fractional interest in the property. The "Carrol" property has been controversial in Ka`u in the last few months. The State owns the property by the highway. After that is the Honu`apo property. Commissioner Paul Campbell asked Mr. Yuen if the 234 acres included the spring which was just north of the bay where everyone surfs; just below the heiau. Mr. Yuen replied yes. He stated the heiau was on the north side of the bay and the access trail is on the 234 acres. Mr. Yuen stated the County administration was currently doing an appraisal of the 234 acres. Mr. Yuen stated that it was a big stretch of coast between "SM" and Honu`apo with several different owners; Olson being the largest owner in addition to the 234 acres; Chair Replogle stated the priority was from the Olsen 81 acres to the Johnson 234 acres and that the 106 acres is where the turtle nesting takes place. Chair Replogle stated the Olson goes across the highway. Mr. Yuen stated he owns quite a bit of property mauka. Chair Replogle stated he could see the confusion and that the Commission didn't think about that. The Commission was mainly talking makai of the highway. 2