Comm No 0021.003 - Testimony - CA-7 - PONC fund and Maintenance fund

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Presenting Kura kW_ Karnehameha in North Kotula Hapset" PRESERVED Kaparmia Purchase Underway Nits PRESERVED Map createdby John Winter and Toni Withington 201 Lighthouse, were acquired in 2012 with money from the State )I fundraising by Maika'i Kamakani 0 Kohala, the non-profit that ie Trust for Public Lands helped arrange the purchase, which ners. )st, whose 50 acres includes much of Halawa Gulch and the ed high on the County Priority List since 2012, and has been itions are expected to start soon. ;ed the first 22 acres using Open Space funding in March 2018. -ne of Hale 0 Ka'ili Heiau. Two other parcels on the cliffs, totaling )ved and awaiting the beginning of negotiations. Jing for 93.5 acres that includes Kapanaia Bay, Kapalama Heiau :y Council approval, the County is seeking matching State Legacy The North Kohala coastline has always been a place for fishing, gathering anc changing that. The story of Kohala's local community effort to protect its acce and engulfs many generations of people. What started in the 1970s as proti developments has evolved into the purchase and conversion of hundreds of a for the benefit of the people. Miles of coastal trails have been opened officially consequence, the stewardship of the coast and its many historical and cultural a continuing volunteer activity. The 29 -mile coast was populated seven hundred years ago, but archaeologists are just beginning to understand the treasure trove of knowledge about early Hawaiian life on the undeveloped leeward coast and the northern coast, which was the homeland of Kamehameha the Great. Through the efforts of five Kohala community organizations in partnership with the County, State and Federal governments, two Hawaii land trusts and generous land owners, 390 acres of coastal land have been dedicated to open space in perpetuity during the last seven years. In addition to the donations of land owners, the partners raised a total of $20.9 million to make the transfers happen. The County's 2% Open Space Fund and the State's Legacy Land Preservatioi funding. The Trust for Public Lands and Hawaiian Islands Land Trust, as well a donors pitched in. But it was the cooperative work of the Kohala groups that k the North Kohala Community Development Plan, which was, and continues remarkable is that the accomplishments were achieved with all volunteer labor The five groups are Malama Na Wahi Pana 0 Kohala, led by Fred Cachola; Ka 1\ Kanoa Withington; Malama Kohala Kahakai, led by Gail Byrne Baber; Maika'i Naihe Laxton, and the Kohala Historic and Cultural Preservation Group, led by t annually nominated Kohala lands to the County's Public Access, Open Spac (PONC) priority list since 2006. The current 2017 list of nine properties aroun North Kohala.