2011-05-04 Windward transcript HAAS

Home

extension. Again, this is not something we want and something that we don’t want to take on. And we have, our reactions are the same as yours. But these are the recommendations proposed by the Director. We’ve discussed it extensively with our client, and we don’t like them but we can live with them. KERN: Okay, very good. Madam Director, go ahead. LEITHEAD TODD: Mr. Hong, I’m not wild about these conditions either. You know, these were based on the recommendations of both DPW and DOT. I personally believe that most of these improvements should be paid for by State DOT. But having said that, what I would suggest aside from the conditions is that you work with your representative. You’ve got Faye Hanohano, you’ve got Fred Blas. And I would recommend that within the next two months you make appointments with them and ask that they try to incorporate these improvements into County and State CIP, and the argument being that because this is a public school, although it’s a charter school but it’s part of DOE, it provides a service to the State and that ultimately these costs should be borne by the State. KERN: Mr. Hirakami? HIRAKAMI: Well, you know, even five years is too long. It’s something that even in five years I don’t think that we can account it. So are we going to extend it to ten years? The whole thing about our charter school, it’s opening up opportunities for a lot of families where we’re actually giving a choice to a lot of families that move here or have been born here. And I see it as my commitment to fulfill that, like your daughter and there’s other people waiting in line. Like now I drive there every day and I cross that intersection every day from Post Office Road. The longest I’ve had to wait is 30 seconds. And, you’re right, there’s traffic there but it’s not unusual. The bigger, the bigger picture is there are so much things happening on Highway 130 from Kea‘au Bypass, that traffic jam that they haven’t been able to solve for six years and it keeps o getting worse. There’s a Malamala Market intersection that’s getting worse and worse, accidents every week. There’s an intersection , the new one at Burger King and that development that has had accidents with Kahakai Boulevard. So we’re like a band aid. If you put a street light and median strips and whatever, crosswalks, that’s a band aid. The big thing is the comprehensive plan. What is the State doing overall for Puna? And you’re very right, we shouldn’t have to do it. It’s the State’s responsibility. I’ll give you a history of the Bypass. You know why the Bypass is there in the first place? It was to bring all the geothermal equipment because they couldn’t drive those rigs through the town. They fast- tracked that in. They hired Bryson’s Cinders to mine Leilani Hill, 500 acres, 500 feet deep, to truck down millions of cubic yards down there to, to -. We’re in Pāhoa as a business. I was in real estate. And we go, wow, why don’t you shoot us? Because you’re taking all the businesses away and you’re bypassing. For what reason? At that time people were still going through Kea‘au. When they built the Pāhoa Bypass, mind you, there were traffic jams galore going through Kea‘au going past all the schools. Why not Kea‘au first? Why Pāhoa Bypass? Scratch the head. So, anyway, that’s part of the history. The Pāhoa Bypass was fast-tracked in with no design, no infrastructure, no electricity, no water. It was just fast-tracked as a State project. Now the State won’t take responsibility. Here we are the County and, you know, you expect the County or a nonprofit to take over that? 21 EXHIBIT A