Planning Director's Letter to the Puna CDP Steering Committee

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and Volcano Village. Shipman Business Park was the primary area development. It may be that allowing more neighborhood-oriented commercial development outside these areasÏespecially in the subdivision area midway between KeaÓau and PahoaÏwill reduce the need for highway travel. This general area, including Hawaiian Paradise Park, Ainaola, and Orchidland, contains about 16,000 lots, and is rapidly becoming one of the islandÓs biggest population centers. In the 1990Ós, special permits were granted to allow a small commercial area on Orchidland Dr., to serve the subdivisions between KeaÓau and Pahoa. The 2005 General Plan formally designated this area as Medium Density Urban to encourage commercial development. In addition, the 2005 General Plan adopted the por Hawaiian Paradise Park Master Plan by designating two 20 acre sites in Paradise Park as Medium Density, and two other 20 acre sites as Industrial. Later in 2005, I initiated interim General Plan amendments to expand the Orchidland Dr. commercial area, and to add another Medium Density Urban area along Ainaloa Blvd., but still within Orchidland. The council eventually decided against approving these, preferring to wait for the CDP. 3. What should the CountyÓs policies be toward commercial and light industrial development on special permits? In the state land use agricultural district, commercial and light industrial development can be allowed by special permits. The decision on a special permit is made by the Planning Commission; the Planning Department makes a recommendation. A wide range of businesses have applied for special permits over the years: retail commercial operations th like the Wiki-wiki Mart in Orchidland, a self-storage facility in Paradise Park on 13 St., contractorÓs baseyards and warehouses, auto repair shops, cabinet shops, certified kitchens, and even small personal services like hairdressers. The locations generally do not follow any overall land use plan. Typically, the entrepreneur buys a lot and starts the business there. Often, the business is started illegally, and the special permit application comes after the owner has been cited by the Planning Department. The special permit route is a tempting one for many small businesses. Many lots in Puna are large enough to fit a warehouse, a contractorÓs baseyard, or other small business, and the ordinary lot is far less expensive than a finished light industrial lot with infrastructure in Shipman Business Park. On the other hand, it is usually considered good planning to designate areas for commercial and light industrial activity in advance, and to zone them for such use, to reduce the potential for conflict with residences. The current attitude of the Planning Department is that significant commercial and light industrial development should go to the sites currently designated in the General Plan.