2015-09-17 Leeward Exh B (SMA 15-060)

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CHANG: Deborah Chang. I reside in Pa‘auilo Mauka, Hāmākua District. NUUHIWA: Aloha. I’m Kalei Nuuhiwa and I reside in Hilo in Waiākea. Do you need my address? UNGER: That’s fine. DICKSON: Aloha. My name is Ma‘ulili Wilbur Gay Dickson, Jr. and I reside in Waimea, North Kohala. UNGER: Thank you. HAMM: Aloha. My name is Kalaniola Hamm. I am a lineal descendant of the Kahulamu Kahina ‘ohana of Kahalu‘u. We must build for the future. By looking at the restored heiau, one is but amazed by the evidence of highly intelligent Hawaiians. Here in Kahalu‘u this becomes our cultural heritage. Our heritage is knowing how developed our ancestors were in surviving, their capacity to remember things in oli, to live their life in balance with nature. In the past years of changes, we have allowed cultural sites to be destroyed, perished. Why? “Preservations” was a word of small importance at that time. Or were cultural sites destroyed because of a lack of understanding in culture? But today Pauahi’s legacy is awaken and continues to grow strong in preserving what’s left and restored. Kamehameha Schools hosts numerous meetings with update information for ‘ohana and to seek our input. Throughout this whole restoration process, their purpose and intentions are set on a Trust foundation, on Pauahi’s legacy and trust, trustee commitment to learn from the past. Their fate, hope in trusting the vision for a learning complex here in Kahalu‘u for future generations to come. Seen is an outdoor learning environment in which past Hawaiian knowledge is applied to our learning today. I speak in support of Kamehameha Schools’ permit request to remove the former Keauhou Beach Hotel and to redevelop the areas as a place of learning that includes our restored cultural sites. With kupuna lenses, when I see Kahalu‘u Ma Kai, I see Pauahi mo‘okū‘auhau, the genealogy. They were here first upon this ‘āina, as were and are generations of ‘ohana who love for ali‘i and aloha ‘āina goes deep. These are ali‘i lands. Ali‘i lands used, once again, in a way that first honors kūpuna of the past. Keiki become students of Hawai‘i studies and later become the teachers. We have the chance to become our own experts as anthropologists, doctors, biologists, and engineers. We, as ‘ohana, support and trust that Kamehameha Schools and its representatives will protect Kahalu‘u Ma Kai from unauthorized walk through traffic so that our keiki and educators are able to learn without concern for interruption, provide for public to access the shoreline in locations that preserve the natural resources and ecosystems. My family and I continue our commitment to Princess Pauahi’s education legacy, to see this project through, because we know ‘āina is the teacher and the healer. Mahalo for this opportunity to testify. CHANG: Aloha mai kākou, Chairperson Unger and Members of the Leeward Planning Commission. I’m Deborah Chang, and you have a letter already, dated September 15, that I wrote to you. It is representing my own personal view; it is not representing any group or organization. I’m here to testify just for myself today. I will not read through the letter, but instead will briefly emphasize my main concern with the Kahalu‘u Ma Kai development. While I fully support the conversion of this property from resort to educational and cultural uses, my main concern is that a very bad precedent could be set, if a Special Management Area Use Permit is approved with safe school zone buffers preventing the public from accessing the ocean on the north side of this property. The applicant 9 EXHIBIT B