2017-08-09 Letter to Ms. Luana Kawelu re Halau overnight stay at Parks & Recreation facilities

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Ms. Luana Kawelu August 8, 2017 Page 2 DPR's findings are as follows: While there are no DPR Administrative Rules that explicitly prohibit overnight stays at DPR facilities, pertinent excerpts from Chapter 15 of the Hawaii County Code indicate/state: Section 15-3 defines "Camper'— means any person who remains in a park area between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., and "Camping" - means the act of remaining in a park area between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. Section 15-8 designates the authority of the Director to establish visiting hours and states in part: "all persons shall observe and abide by the officially -posted signs and designated closed areas and visiting hours." Article 4, beginning with Section 15-39 and continuing through Section 15-48, designates Camping and all rules associated, including the names of the parks where camping is allowed. Based on these DPR Administrative Rules, overnight stay at the facilities listed above are prohibited. With respect to the Hawaii County Building Code, fire sprinklers and/or alarm systems are required for any facility used for sleeping, with the R-1 designation as described below. County gyms can possibly be evaluated as transient accommodations, but must meet the standards of this section of the code: 302.1 General. Structures or portions of structures shall be classified with respect to occupancy in one or more of the groups listed below. A room or space that is intended to be occupied at different times for different purposes shall comply with all of the requirements that are applicable to each of the purposes for which the room or space will be occupied. Structures with multiple occupancies or uses shall comply with Section 508. Mov, I a*00how"O W OpW for a purpose that is not speciftw#y proviOed, fW in I tft,40ft e0oh ON, sh*600 shall be classified in the group Met dw according to the fire safety and relative hazwlotO6100d� The current occupancy type of a gymnasium is Assembly Occupancy. Use of gymnasiums for sleeping would change the occupancy type to R -I Occupancy. • Fire Sprinkler Requirement. R-1 Occupancy in Section 903.2.7 of the Building Code requires a fire sprinkler system; therefore, a gym or other facility used for sleeping shall have a fire sprinkler system. • Fire Alarm Requirement. R-1 occupancies in Section 907.2.8 of the Building Code require a Fire Alarm system and smoke alarm system. County of Hawaii is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer,