MIN RDC 2011-11-03.tif - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

MS. WIL,LE: I would just like to comment to that. I brought forward the plan that I worked on, and I felt that it was being totally ignored to some extent at the last meeting. So I may, I apologize to the extent that I took a two by four and went around not just to you all, but say to Hamakua to speak up to this. So, I agree that I've been aggressive about it, and trying to promote it. I haven't said anything as intentional or unintentional. I think it is skewed to Hilo; that is what I said. CHR. SIRACUSA: I would just like to point out that you left the last meeting an hour early. More happened and you weren't aware of it. But we never took Plan_40 off the table, which you accused us of doing. At any rate, we have accepted your apology and we have cleared the air, and let's move on, please. Jon Olson is the next testifier. JON OLSON (At this time Jon Olson came forward to address members of the Commission.) MR. OLSON: Good morning, Jon Olson here. I guess you all know, I chaired the Puna Community Development Plan Steering Committee. The first thing I would like to make clear is that Volcano is socially and economically a part of Puna. They were significant contributors to the CDP, both in time and energy and personal capital. To have them removed from Puna, I think, would be to our detriment, to Puna's detriment. If you need to create a third district, I would suggest to you that that third district needs to be in Puna. Tell me what district on this island has had 40% growth in any of the last 50 years; oh, Puna. What district on this island has had 30% growth in the last 50 years; oh, Puna. What district has 40,000 buildable lots in private hands; oh, Puna. What district has been socially and economically disadvantaged for the last half century; oh, Puna. I don't think I need to go on about this. If there is to be some kind of advantage from this plan - -and we wish to talk about fairness- -it's about time Puna got maybe above, if you want to talk about just simple fairness. The process itself, you figure that of roughly 40,000 TMK's that are sitting there waiting to be built on, a third of those lots are in the hands of Hawaii residents, meaning that they could be voters in the Puna district by tearing the page out of the front of the phone book and sending it in. That is all it would take for them to become residents of the district of Puna; they own land. That is not going to change. The numbers, if you go forward with any of the current plans, within five years we will be under represented again. And that is if we only get 20% or 25% of growth, which is highly unlikely given that the baby boomers, those of them that still have wealth, that number in the tens of millions are going to come and live on their land. You know it, and I know it. They are coming to build a dream. So, if you need to find a home for another district; it is in Puna. Thank you. CHR. SIRACUSA: Thank you, Jon. MR. MELROSE: Jon, are you suggesting that because you say you will be under represented in a period of a couple of years, are you suggesting that perhaps the district should be at a lower end of the population, so you grow into your representation? Or, some W