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<br />As stated earlier, we have reviewed all of the publicly available plans. We are strenuously <br />opposed to all plans that try to create a district extending from South Hilo into upper Puna. <br />Likewise, we object to Plan 8, as it creates a gerrymandered District 5 that runs counter to the <br />stated guidelines and goals of this committee. We would like to endorse Plan 9 as being the kind <br />of redistricting scheme the people of Puna deserve. Plan 9 creates a District 5 that runs from <br />Hawaiian Paradise Park down Highway 130 to the ocean, including all points east. Also, a <br />District 4 that includes the towns of Kea'au, Pahoa and Volcano, along with Kurtistown and <br />Mountain View on the south side of Highway 11. These are all communities with similar needs <br />and similar lifestyles. We are all a single community, the community of Puna. <br /> <br />Therefore, on behalf of all of the members of "Friend's of Puna's Future," we would urge you <br />to consider and adopt Plan 9 or any plan similar to it, or base your final decision upon the broad <br />strokes outlined by Plan 9, with regard to Puna. <br /> <br />CHR. SIRACUSA <br />: The next testifier is James Weatherford, representing himself speaking on <br />Draft Alternate Plans. <br /> <br />MR. CARVALHO <br />: Excuse me, madam Chair. I think our last testifier went way over the three <br />minute limit. We have a lot of work to do, so could we limit it to three minutes, please. <br /> <br />JAMES WEATHERFORD <br />(At this time James Weatherford came forward to address members of the Commission.) <br /> <br />JAMES WEATHERFORD <br />: Good evening Madam Chair and members of the Commission. <br />Thank you for your work on the task on hand. We will be addressing a specific agenda item. I <br />did go on line and create an account and logged on and worked on the software awhile. Being <br />very familiar with Puna, and to a lesser degree with Hilo, I tried a few scenarios using locations <br />in those areas as starting points. One goal I had was to have two complete districts in Puna and I <br />think that needs to happen. As I worked online with the software for awhile, two things became <br />clear to me. The first, which I had already suspected, while the numbers are there, the <br />population distribution and community boundaries make it difficult, but not impossible, to get <br />two reasonable districts in Puna. The second, which I should have suspected, but did not, was <br />my own ignorance about West HawaiÒi communities which I would be applying to the district <br />boundaries on the other side of the island, and the equal ignorance that someone over there <br />would be applying to working on Puna and Hilo boundaries. With that said, there are among <br />some of the nine plans, some common problems that exist. They all deal with the community <br />that IÓm most familiar with, near where I live. I would encourage all of you to really take that <br />concept on board. <br /> <br />Plans number 1, number 2, number 3, number 7, and number 9 all violate the principal of not <br />dividing communities of interest. The others may also, but I know that those five plans do. With <br />Plans 1, 2, and 3, they just chop Hawaiian Paradise Park in half or a big piece out of it. But <br />Plans number 7 and number 9 use Highway 130 as the principal district boundary. This is an <br />unacceptable division of communities because part of both Hawaiian Paradise Park and part of <br />MakuÒu Hawaiian Homelands are on the mauka side of Highway 130, <br />5 <br /> <br />