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HAWAII COUNTY CHARTER COMMISSIONPage 30 of 51
<br />IRVINE: No.
<br />HIGASHI: How they work it out at the end, is exactly what you say, Gary. It’s going to be up to the
<br />Administrative -
<br />YOSHIYAMA: Yes, but let me respond to that. If we put it in this document, we’re creating a Division
<br />of Permitting, and I don’t think we should go that far.
<br />RAY: Steve.
<br />BESS: If you look at 5-4.2(i), it talks about the Planning Director exercising all the powers, "perform all
<br />the duties of the planning director and the administrator of the commission as authorized by law or
<br />ordinance and exercise such other powers and perform such other duties as shall be required or
<br />delegated by the mayor, planning commission, or council."
<br />HERKES: Says it all, doesn’t it?
<br />BESS: That kind of language is not present in Department of Public Works. If you look at its powers,
<br />duties and functions under 6-2.3. If 6-2.3 was beefed up with the same kind of language that we had in
<br />(i), and this would require some legal help here in terms of trying to provide, through an (i) type
<br />provision, the flexibility that would allow that to happen administratively, so that they wouldn’t be stuck
<br />- let me ask you this, directly, Chris. The language of 5-4.2 talks about here, he’s the head of the
<br />department and shall do the following things. Then you have, for instance, the same kind of language
<br />that’s in (i) on 6-2.3 that provides for this flexibility and such other duties, public works, as the mayor
<br />may deem, for instance. Do you see that the Mayor could, with that language, require the Public Works
<br />Department to do something that the Planning Director, under the code, says, you shall do these
<br />following things? I know I haven’t made myself clear but -
<br />YUEN: No, I think to accomplish what this particular proposal that’s come forward from the
<br />Administration, it does require a Charter change in the area of the subdivision approvals, and zoning
<br />code and subdivision enforcement. Because the Charter specifically says the Planning Director approves
<br />the subdivision plans, then the Council has gone ahead and enacted a subdivision ordinance that
<br />implements that. It has the specific standards, but in the end, although some of the plan review functions
<br />are done by Public Works engineers, things like is the drainage system adequate, are the roads adequate,
<br />those kinds of decisions are currently, actually, made in the Public Works Department. In the end, the
<br />subdivision plan gets signed and approved by somebody under the Planning Director. In order to move
<br />that under the Public Works so somebody in the Public Works Department decides it, that’s going to
<br />have to be changed in the Charter.
<br />BESS: Okay.
<br />IRVINE: Marni did mention this section 5-4.2 and the various provisions under there that would pretty
<br />much have to be changed if Public Works was going to do this. I think the question is can we just
<br />eliminate this and somehow add something simple under Public Works that would be acceptable to the
<br />public so that they wouldn’t feel like the Mayor was then getting all this power that used to be at the
<br />Planning Department, even though he’s in charge of the Planning anyway? I didn’t make myself clear.
<br />YUEN: I know what you’re saying. Whether we say it in the Charter or not, as a practical matter, if the
<br />Commission adopts the suggestion that the Charter would simply say that the Mayor, with Council
<br />approval, can reorganize the function of granting of subdivision ordinances, and zoning and subdivision
<br />file://\\coh01\cohweb\council\charter_commission\minutes\minutes 9-29-99.html7/1/2011
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