Laserfiche WebLink
JON OLSON <br />(At this time Jon Olsen came forward to address members of the Commission.) <br />MR. OLSON: Good evening, my name is Jon Olson, I am a resident of the Leilani Subdivision. <br />chaired the Puna Community Development Plan Committee. I wish I was here to say something <br />or do something that was going to make your job easier; that is not so. What I think I would like <br />you to go away with is first thing, the things that the district of Puna shares. All of the people in <br />this room share one thing, and that is we live in a district that is dominated by one of the largest <br />land frauds ever to be done in the United States of America, and we suffer the consequences of <br />that. Having said that, to further muddy the water for you, we can be divided along the lines of <br />large lot subdivisions and small lot subdivisions; meaning subdivisions of less than one acre that <br />are on ag land, some as small as 8,050 square feet, if you can imagine agricultural designated lot <br />of 8,050 square feet, and of course twenty -five to fifty acre lots. So the planning process is going <br />to have to make some accommodation for this diversity because the visions that the people who <br />own those lots have of those areas are distinctly different. <br />I have been involved with the Puna planning process since the late `80's. I served as the <br />facilitator for the process that happened in the mid `90's. It was very clear then that the <br />subdivisions were taking on distinct characteristics; the people who lived there, and how they saw <br />their lifestyle, and the kinds of things that they saw themselves doing. So, I think that needs to be <br />taken into account. I have heard some concern about the growth issue. Again, going back to the <br />creation of this district as its land use pattern is now, keep in mind that there are roughly 40,000 <br />lots out there and this is like nowhere else that I know of in the United States or in the islands. <br />Let me paint you a picture. I get on the internet, I buy a lot, I call a builder who gets me a house <br />package, who submits a building permit and I move over here. The County Council has no say, <br />the State of Hawaii has no say, the Federal Government has no say in my coming. So, anytime <br />you talk about out into the future, the only thing I can tell you for sure is someday, 225,000 <br />people are going to live in this district if no one divides another lot. So, if you want to worry <br />about what is going to happen when you are done, you are going to have to get a much bigger <br />crystal ball than I have, because that is truly in the wind. All we can deal with is what we have <br />facing us now. It would be very helpful; it would be an absolute necessity, to have two full <br />Council districts to support our issues. Ten years from now you are going to be arguing over <br />whether we get four or five Council seats. That is irrespective of whatever else happens, because <br />people will continue to come here. I wish you well, my job is done. <br />CHR. SIRACUSA: Thank you. Our next testifier just signed in as Mikey. <br />MIKEY GLENDON <br />(At this time Mikey Glendon came forward to address members of the Commission.) <br />MR. GLENDON: My name is Mikey Glendon. I wanted to sing one song, but I lost my voice. I <br />am going to play one CD. <br />CHR. SIRACUSA: Shall we take a two minute break, do you want us to take a two minute <br />break? Okay, what I'll do is I will call the next testifier and give you a chance to get that <br />together. The next testifier is Ken McGilvary. <br />12 <br />