2018-09-20 Leeward Exh B (Bill 108 re Short-term Vacation Rentals)

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This is my home for almost 80 years. Matter of fact, this year will be 80 years. And I’ve seen Hawai‘i change like most of you have. Even if you’ve been here only short time, you’ve seen the tremendous changes. From the very beginning I’ve had only one purpose in everything I do in regards to jobs or life, and it’s to try to make Hawai‘i a nice place to live. And I know even that is a simple statement, it’s got to be the most difficult thing because people have different ideas of what is a nice place. The Governor gave me, asked me to take a job recently, and that is Mauna Kea. Because, I think some of you may know about a huge controversy of Mauna Kea, and it’s tied into what we are talking about here, a place to live. The Mauna Kea issue probably will be the hardest job I’ve ever taken in my life. So I was trying to resolve that problem, situation. Because the situation is this: The people of Hawai‘i, the people of the first nation, is in their preference and by right what to be called, that this is their home, that this is their land, and even this is their government, not the Hawai‘i government but their government. Everything I do relates to that in part, to try to be fair in everything we do. I know there will be a good group of you that will disagree with what I’m going to say, but I want you to believe this, because it is of truth: From the day I took office, matter of fact, a week before I took office, I met with various people of the cabinet, Mr. Yee being one of them, giving them priorities of what we need to address from the simple things that everyone knows about, the status of the transit system, the status of the wastewater, etcetera, those structural things that we must address and try to address as best as we can. On Mr. Yee’s, the finest department, Public Works, it was this, what we are talking about. The tremendous amount, and this is before I got inaugurated, of people asking us to address what is happening to Hawai‘i, and one of them was the short-term rentals. For those of you who are, you know, in the business of short-term rentals, all I ask for is just try to understand an attitude, and I’m not saying right or wrong. I think there were two issues that was the most, as far as being called upon \[inaudible\] that you have to address, and one of them was in regards to the hiring policies of government, contractor of government, and the second was what is happening to this land and, with that, short-term rentals. For those of you who are old-timers of Hawai‘i, I think you know, I was just explaining to someone what Kona was like just a few years ago. And excuse me for belaboring this, but I think it is important enough. Just a few years ago, if you told anybody in Kona that someday you are going to have a Costco or a Home Depot or the kind of condos or traffic problem you have today, they would ask you what you’ve been drinking. And that’s not that long ago. The east side people would come to Hilo because of the peaceful, tranquil type of fishing village atmosphere in Kailua. Where Ali‘i Drive ended before what we called Kona Lagoon before it was torn down. That’s how old I am – 80 years old this year. This has everything to do in regards to what we are going to discuss today. I don’t expect anyone to change their mind. All I’m asking is understanding of why I’m taking this position. I called his department in June, and said you must develop to regulate the short-term rentals, you would do it as fairly as you can, it is a fault of government that we allowed it to progress to where it is at that time, a year ago, a little over a year ago, but we must develop policies to regulate it. Hawai‘i Island is the last sanctuary of people being able to live here. Maui, Kaua‘i and O‘ahu openly admits, openly admits, no longer, and I mean no longer, would average income or below moderate income by any measurement be able to afford ever a home to live in 19 EXHIBIT B