HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0044.016 2020-2022 From: Darrow, Jeff
Sent: Friday, January 01, 2021 1:39 PM COUNTY CLERK
To: Council Testimony COUNTY OF AT a T
RECEIVED
Subject: Appointment of Zendo Kern as Planning Director Time- FN A
ft By de—
Date JAN 0 1 2021
Aloha Honorable County Council Chairwoman David and Honorable County Council Members,
I am providing testimony in support of Zendo Kern as Planning Director. I have been recently
appointed by the new Administration to the Deputy Planning Director position to provide support for
our new Planning Director. I have been working for the County of Hawaii for over 28 years will]
over 22 years in the Planning Department. My last position was the Planning Program Manager for
the Planning Division and before that were different Planner positions in the Planning Division
(Planner IV, Planner V and Planner VI).
I met Zendo Kern over 10 years ago when he volunteered for the County of Hawaii Planning
Commission. During his time on the Planning Commission it was evident that he was familiar with
the planning processes in the County of Hawaii, which my understanding was in part from his
experience in the local construction field as a general contractor. He was elevated by his peers on the
Planning Commission to become the Planning Commission Chair. During his time on the
Commission, I observed him to fair and impartial, to "think outside of the box", as well as provide
valuable insight to the Commission from his local contracting experience.
Mr. Kern then ran and was elected to the Hawaii County Council for the District 5 Seat representing
the Puna District. During his time on the Council, he served as the Chair for the Planning
Committee, which provided a tremendous amount of hands on experience for planning decisions for
the County of Hawaii including land use permits, such as State Land Use Boundary Amendments
and Change of Zone requests.
After his term with the Hawaii County Council, Mr. Kern used his planning experience to start a
Planning Consultant business known as Kern and Associates, which also consisted of several
employees that he managed. His business has provided a much needed service to our island assisting
many people through the sometimes difficult processes of land use permitting in the County of
Hawaii. He has prepared a number of different types of land use permits that have gone through the
Planning Commission and/or the Hawaii County Council such as State Land Use Boundary
Amendments, Change of Zones, Special Permits, Use Permits and SMA Major Permits. His office
has also prepared many types of Administrative permits such as Plan Approvals, Ohana Permits,
Additional Farm Dwelling Agreements, etc., as well as hundreds of Short Term Vacation Rental
permits when the Zoning Code changed to require these permits.
As Planning Program Manager, I have worked with Mr. Kern on a number of land use permits that
have been processed through the Planning Division. I have seen him grow considerably as a
Planning Consultant and have seen his applications be refined as he has grown in his experiences
representing his clients before the Commission and the Council. In my experience workin w�itl] Mr.
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Kern as a Planning Consultant, I have seen him represent his clients to the best of his.ability and at
times, even having the Planning Commission approve his client's request, which was contrary to the
Planning Director's recommendation to the Commission. In addition, I have always appreciated Mr.
Kern's responsiveness,to requests from the Planning Division for additional information or
additional submittals for permits of clients that he was representing. He has always maintained his
professionalism F'even when the.Planning Director would recommend a denial or an unfavorable
recommendation for the permits of clients he was representing.
More recently, I have had a short opportunity to work with Mr. Dern in his new appointment as
Planning Director. In this short time I have observed that he has very strong work ethics, including
showing up to work very early and staying late, well beyond a normal 8-hour work day. I have seen
him actively working to gain an understanding of how the Planning Department operates and what
can be done to make it run more efficiently.
I am humbled and honored to be considered to the Deputy Planning Director position. If Mr. Dern is
confirmed as our new Planning Director, I will work to the best of my ability to provide the needed
support and needed advice to Mr. Kern in his new position. I personally believe that Mr. Kern will
do an excellent job as the new Planning Director, which is based on my past extensive experience of
working with him while on the Planning Commission, the Hawaii County Council and as a Planning
Consultant.
Lastly, as Mr. Kern has worked on a number of planning permits and projects in his role as Planning
Consultant, there has been concern regarding conflicts that may arise as a result of his previous
representations. To provide some relief in light of the concern regarding these conflicts, in my new
position as Deputy Planning Director I will be able to assist in making decisions for these planning
permits and projects on behalf of the Planning Director when these conflicts arise.
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to submit this testimony of support.
Jeff Darrow