Comm No 0035.18 - Testimony - CA-18 - PONC Maintenance fund

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Z 445 ie./ The popularity of the 2% Fund is partly due to the people of Hawaii Island's sense of kuleana. Land protection financed by the Fund is currently an entirely positive and remarkable process that enables everyone to benefit, from the landowner who, because of a conservation easement, may be able to afford to stay on their land, to conservation groups that have identified lands for preservation that are critical for protection of habitat, clean water and air, and locally grown food. Eminent domain has no place in the 2% land fund process. The mere threat of its use sours the relationships necessary for conservation success. Of course eminent domain is necessary at times, and the County already has this power. The amendment does nothing to extend or restrict the County's eminent domain power, but it inserts a discordant note into the 2% Charter provisions that needs to be avoided. Let's keep the 2% Land Fund as an expression of our kuleana and discard Amendment CA -27. Briefly, the proposed 10-15 Section (g) states that a conservation easement "shall be the preferred method" for achieving the goals of the provision. Presumably, this provision assumes that an easement is a cheaper alternative, and it maintains ownership in private hands. I suggest that the provision remain as it is; the best method of protecting land is the one that is needed in the particular and unique circumstances of each piece of property. Outright purchase may make sense sometimes, and an easement may make sense in others. Please reject CA -27. Thank you!