2017-04-10 Leeward Exh B (Amend Zoning Code re Meeting Facilities and Community Buildings)

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NOBRIGA: Thank you. UNGER: Commissioner Church. CHURCH: Just, probably really more of a statement, you know, in looking at your, at the prior and current definitions of the meeting facilities and community buildings, it’s almost humorous; they are different words, but they must mean the same thing. So I think that the initiative to start cleaning up the Code to be, to clarify it and to be more specific is a great idea. And the suggestions that were made by the Windward Planning Commission seem to be really outstanding in coordination with you all. So I think that this is really very supportable initiative. UNGER: Commissioner Carr Smith. CARR SMITH: Just a little bit confused here. So in Number 1 the Windward Planning Commission’s suggestions they added “or governmental functions,” then when I heard that, I assumed that we were talking about buildings such as this, County buildings, is that true? DARROW: This particular building, and buildings, is a public use building. So we have a separate section in the Code that the community buildings were fallen under; they were fallen under the public uses building. And so that’s where there was confusion happening, because somebody would come in and want to do a community building, and yet it’s fallen under a public use building, yet the definition says that it was, could be a public or privately owned building. And so there wasn’t that distinct difference between a public use and a private use. And so we wanted to make that clear that public uses are for public uses, although that can include, like in this particular situation, if it’s for the community, it can be used. But there are particular facilities that are meant to be, like, a good example, I don’t know if you are familiar with Sanga Hall in Hilo, but it’s a, it’s a facility that’s rented out on a regular basis to all types of organizations and groups, specifically just to have a place to hold a function, and that’s kind of what we are trying to achieve by separating public uses and meeting facilities. So there is no longer a term “community building”; it’s actually fallen, this “meeting facility” covers community type of, they can use it for any type of community event. But normally that’s for a fee, so you would be renting it from somebody. Now, in this particular case, some public uses offer facilities as long as it’s for a public use, I mean a community type of use, not for, I don’t think they would allow it to be a commercial type use. CARR SMITH: So has the Leeward, has the Windward Planning Commission already heard this? DARROW: Yes. CARR SMITH: And that’s why they made these recommendations? DARROW: The first change. CARR SMITH: But then subsequently the Planning Department decided that they would rather not have the public or private, and they did not, you folks did not accept the concept of the governmental functions, is that right? 4 EXHIBIT B