2013-05-16 Leeward Exh B - Council Initiated Amend re Ag Tourism

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Due to the recent overreach of the County Planning Department with regard to what is acceptable in South Kona in compliance with our Community Development Plan, I’m skeptical about what may happen as far as unintended consequences of expanding farm tours and events. Now, I’m speaking to minor, not the major ones. Middle Ke‘ei Road and Painted Church Road are, at best, one and a half lanes wide in many places, and there is little roadside parking. Farms have septic systems or cesspools, uneven walking surfaces, and no ability to accommodate ADA compliance. The idea of having up to 100 people per week on any given farm is possibly acceptable, if all these issues are addressed. I also worry about visitors tracking in harmful insects and plant species from other areas. We coffee farmers have been severely impacted by Coffee Borer beetle, Coqui frogs and all kinds of funguses. The last thing we can stand is more migration of alien stuff. Important to me is special use permits should be required for all of these activities. Neighbor notification should be mandatory. It took us three and a half years to get the methamphetamine manufacturers off the Kamehameha Schools lease land because they didn’t want to do anything. I have a current neighbor with 35 old cars on his property, which no government agencies that I’ve contacted seem the least bit concerned about. I don’t trust that any organizations or government entities have our best interests at heart because they have no investment in our quality of life in a rural setting, and no abiding interest in South Kona as the west side premier agricultural area. The idea of an application being considered as approved if it is not acted upon in 30 days is ludicrous. This encourages an already tardy and cumbersome system to just opt out of due diligence. I appreciate the educational value of farm tours and encourage visitors to learn more about our industry, but not at the expense of peace and quiet, or our public safety, or our livelihood. Thank you. GIFFIN: Thank you. Commissioners, any questions of the testifier, Louise Winn? Seeing none, thank you, ma’am. I’m sorry. Director? LEITHEAD TODD: Ms. Winn, would you recommend that there be some type of a notification system to neighbors before the start of agricultural tourism by a farmer, something like, well, right now, if you were going to rezone your property, if you were going to seek a variance or something, there would be some requirements that there be a letter going out to the neighboring properties to let you know. So it sounded like you wanted some kind of -. So are you thinking something along those lines? WINN: I am, I am thinking that. I am thinking that, you know, at least the surrounding, because it affects the road and everything else. So I think it’s fair to have the neighbors notified and have some recourse. GIFFIN: Thank you very much. If you’ll step back, I have room now to call up Nancy Ginter-Miller. Okay, and I will swear you in in a minute. 4 EXHIBIT B