Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN FC 2020/11/05 2018-2020 Committee on Finance 43`'d Session Hawaii County Building 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawaii November 5, 2020 CALL TO The regular meeting of the Committee on Finance was called to order at ORDER: 11:05 a.m. in the Council Chambers, Hilo, by Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Chair (via videoconference from Kona) Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Vice Chair Mr. Aaron S. Y. Chung, Member Ms. Karen Eoff, Member (via videoconference from Kona) Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member (came in later) Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Member Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Ms. Valerie T. Poindexter, Member Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member (via videoconference from Kona) STATEMENTS The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, FROM THE Statements from the Public on Agenda Items. PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: (There were none.) COMMUNI- The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. CHR. DAVID: Actually, if it's okay with everyone that I take a communication item, Communication 614.4, out of order. Is everyone okay with that? Change Order of As directed by the Chair and with no objection from the Council Members, the of Business: following item was taken out of order: CHR. DAVID: Okay, we have Mr. Wilson here from the Kailua Village Business Improvement District. So, Mr. Clerk, can you please read in Communication 614.4,please? Comm. 614.4: 2019-2020 ANNUAL REPORT FROM THE KAIL,UA VILLAGE BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT From Jay Rubenstein, President of the Kailua Village Business Improvement District, dated September 25, 2020. Motion to Close File: Ms. Villegas moved to close file on Comm. 614.4. Seconded by Ms. Eoff. FC-43 November 5,2020 (Note: At this time, Assistant to the Executive Director, Ross Wilson, of the Kailua Business Improvement District, came forward to address the members of the Committee.) CHR. DAVID: And welcome, Mr. Wilson. Would you just please give us a rundown or a brief review of your report. Just identify yourself. MR. ROSS: Good morning. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, introduce yourself for the record. MR. ROSS: I'm Ross Wilson with the Kailua Village Business Improvement District. As a bit of background, the Kailua Village Business Improvement District was established by County ordinance in 2007 as a third Business Improvement District in the State and the first in Hawaii Island. It's defined by set boundaries and property owners within the boundaries, pay mandatory assessments based on real property tax valuations. The Kailua Village Business Improvement District is assisted by the County Real Property Tax Division in the collection of these assessments. Assessment revenues are used to enhance, not replace County services on public spaces within the district and to promote community vibrancy. The Kailua Village Business Improvement District has produced an annual report indicating its activities over the past fiscal year, and it has been distributed to you all. Looking forward, we are cautiously optimistic that assessment revenue will continue to provide for services at the same level throughout this current fiscal year. As we all know, we have lost numerous restaurant and retail businesses over the past several months. The recent survey that the Kailua Village Business Improvement District conducted on business owners indicated pessimism and instability for the coming year. We are hoping that the safe launch of tourism will put employees back to work and stabilize small businesses. We note that in the village, the Royal Kona Resort, the large hotel at one end of the district reopened, and that the Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha's Beach Hotel is slated to open in November 16. A big mahalo to the County for its Holomua program and distribution of federal CARES Act funds, which has helped many businesses and families to stay afloat. A big thank you to Council Woman Rebecca Villegas, Deputy Managing Director Barbara Kossow, Hamana Ventura from the Finance Department, and DPW (Department of Public Works) Director David Yamamoto for their participation, oversight, and absolutely,participation on the Kailua Village Business Improvement District Board of Directors. Page 2 FC-43 November 5,2020 I'm happy to answer any questions about the BID (Business Improvement District) that anybody might have. CHR. DAVID: Thank you so much, Mr. Wilson, for that rundown about the this important organization that(inaudible). Questions? While I go to Hilo first, any questions for Mr. Wilson? Seeing none, any questions or comments from Kona? Ms. Villegas, go ahead. MS. VILLEGAS: Aloha, Ross. Thank you for being here today, and for this great printout and presentation that we have in our packets. You know,just in this last week we've had the opportunity to work together and check on some of the issues with our homeless—kind of hanging out in areas in Kona, and to the detriment of the local business owners. I just really want to express my appreciation. It was a Sunday afternoon when I was started getting texts and reached out to you, and within a few hours we had answers from the Police Department and had security from the BID down there interceding in the issue, and we have since been able to come up with some solutions for making sure that there's allowable beach access there. We still have a long way to go as we continue to navigate management of some of the homeless and vagrant issues that we have in town, but we're still not alone with that. And I also want to thank you for your willingness and capacity to work not just within our BID, but utilizing your relationships and connections with other improvement districts. I really look forward to continuing to explore what's working in other districts as far as managing, and municipalities as far as managing this kind of protocol. I'm also really excited for the one of the programs, and hopeful that we can find the rest of the funding to light up that tree, the big banyan tree right by Hulihee Palace. MR. ROSS: We have money in the budget to light up the tree. We're waiting for Hulihee to trim the tree. But as soon as they trim the tree, we're ready to go. You know, lighting up in these dark areas of the village, you know, helps us to alleviate some of the criminal elements from hanging in those dark areas. We lit up the banyan tree that's adjacent to the Courtyard by Marriott last year, near the pump station, and it's just gorgeous and it's really helpful in that area. You know, as you and I have discussed, the homeless issue is probably—it is the biggest issue that we're facing in the village. And working together, as we discussed, there are a lot of compassionate groups and people are willing to bring solutions so that our community and our businesses and everybody as safe. Page 3 FC-43 November 5,2020 MS. VILLEGAS: I completely agree, light casts out darkness. I'm really excited for those opportunities, and hope to be helping Hulihee Palace and you guys with funding to trim that tree. So if they're any tree trimming people out there that want to contribute or participate in this project, that would greatly improve the safety and the lighting in Kona town,please feel free to reach out o my office because we'd love to work with you on that capacity. I alsoI guess I was wondering in your printout here, can you give me the update on the new board members and how that's happened? MR. ROSS: Sure. The new board took over on July 1. Jay Rubenstein is the present Chair, Josh Porter is the Vice President, Nancy Sakamoto is the Secretary, and Barbara Kossow is the Treasurer. The new Board Members: Jacquelyn Awa came on board as did Hobbs Lowson. Jacqueline Awa, from Lanihau Properties and Hobbs Lowson, from Bank of Hawaii. MS. VILLEGAS: Fantastic. And then is everything the same on the Standing Committees? MR. ROSS: No. Let me go through. Barbara Kossow continues as Finance Chair; Governance is Jay Rubenstein as the Chair; Matson Davis continues as Chair of Marketing Special Events; Nancy Sakamoto continues and Placemaking Chair; Michael Bell continues as Program Services Chair; Riley Smith continues as Public Private Partnerships; and Josh Porter is the Strategic Planning Chair. And all of this took place in this fiscal year, and the report that you have is from the previous fiscal year. MS. VILLEGAS: Great, thank you. Just asking for clarity on a couple of those topics. So thank you for being here. Thank you for continuing to work with us. And I look forward to as we navigate our way through what I hope at some point will be the end of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease) in a way that's affected our community and visitors, that we will be able to work together to support our local businesses and recover. MR. ROSS: We all look forward to supporting our local businesses and supporting our local economy. It's vital to get everybody back to work so that we can get back to some level of normalcy. And, you know, I've told everybody to stay positive and test negative. MS. VILLEGAS: Well said. Well said, Ross. Thank you. With that, I yield. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Ms. Villegas. Ms. Eoff, go ahead. MS. EOFF: Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning, Ross. MR. ROSS: Good morning. Page 4 FC-43 November 5,2020 MS. EOFF: Thank you again for being here today, and thank you for your commitment to the village. I remember—how long has the Business Improvement District been ? MR. ROSS: Since 2007, when the ordinance passed. I need to take a big shout out. You know, the reason it passed is that the County administration at that time really supported it. And the person that waved the flag all the way through was Bill Takaba, and that's the reason why this Business Improvement District exists today. MS. EOFF: Right. And just a little bit more on that history, now that you're there isI think Ms. David and Councilman Pilago at that time in our office worked on that(inaudible). And I think it's the first Business Improvement District on the island the second one in the State. MR. ROSS: It's the third one in the State, the only one on the island. And it's a way for us to enhance services to areas. It makes a lot of sense. I know that the Kailua Village Business Improvement District has had a lot of meetings ongoing with Downtown Hilo and Hawaii Island and others about starting improvement districts in different places on the island. MS. EOFF: I think over the years, since the inception, we see what that potential is and the possibilities. And like Ms. Villegas said, once we get through the pandemic situation, I'm looking forward to our continued focus and work to make the Kailua Village revitalized. MR. ROSS: We'll cross our fingers to get back to normalcy and bringing everybody back to work. We're concerned about—the asset downturn, and to be really frank, you know, the level of poverty that exist everywhere on the island, it's scary. MS. EOFF: So it's a lot of work to do, but maybe this model will help in other places too, to see how we can get back on our feet. Mahalo. MR. ROSS: You're welcome. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Ms. Eoff. Anyone else? I'm going to Hilo again once last time for comment. If not—no? Alright. Then I'll just say mahalo, Mr. Wilson, for all that you folks have done from 2000 ? MR. ROSS: Seven. CHR. DAVID: Seven. And I really believe and agree that the KVBID would be or is a prime organizational role model that I think we can implement anywhere on this island that can enhance the economic MR. ROSS: Let's cross our fingers. Page 5 FC-43 November 5,2020 CHR. DAVID: I know. I know. So thank you so much for you and everyone that works for the organization, for your hard work. And on that, Council Members, all those in favor of filing Communication 614.4, please say "aye." Vote on Comm. 614.4: The motion to close file on Comm. 614.4 was carried Filed by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Thank you for being here, Mr. Wilson. Mr. Clerk, I believe we can go to the top of the agenda. Thank you. Return to Order The Chair directed the Committee to return to the Order of Business. of Business: Comm. 10.48: REPORT OF CHANGE ORDERS AUTHORIZED: SEPTEMBER 16 —30, 2020 From Finance Director Deanna Sako, dated October 7, 2020, transmitting the above report pursuant to Hawaii County Code Section 2-12.3. Motion to Close File: Ms. Villegas moved to close file on Comm. 10.48. Seconded by Ms. Eoff. CHR. DAVID: Any discussion on Communication 10.48, Council Members? MS. LEE LOY: Yes, Chair, please. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Ms. Lee Loy. Go ahead. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you. And I know we have James Komata here, or maybe Roxcie. But on this change order form we have Pana`ewa Zoo & Equestrian Center, and it's a small change order. But I was wondering because we found some cost savings with the donation of the trimming of the trees, and I was just wondering where that is going to be realized or recognized in the contract. James? Thank you. (Note: At this time, Deputy Director James Komata came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. KOMATA: Good morning. James Komata, Deputy Director for Parks and Recreation. The savings on the tree trimming have already been incorporated, I Page 6 FC-43 November 5,2020 believe, by change order. So it was used to offset some of the additional cost that were incurred on the project. MS. LEE LOY: Great. So because I think it's a just a small percentage on this change order from the original contract. But we've already realized the cost savings with the tree trimming? MR. KOMATA: Yeah, we've already made that change in the scope of work, and it's been reflected inI'm not sure if it's in this change order. It might have been a previous change order. MS. LEE LOY: Okay. Thank you. Thanks for being here. MR. KOMATA: Yeah, you're welcome. MS. LEE LOY: I yield. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Ms. Lee Loy. Anyone else from Hilo? Seeing none. Kona? None in Kona. Alright then, all those in favor of filing Communication 10.48,please say "aye." Vote on Comm. 10.48: The motion to close file on Comm. 10.48 was carried Filed by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Mr. Clerk, please move on to Communication 57.7. Comm. 57.7: FIRST QUARTER CLAIMS REPORT: JULY 1 —SEPTEMBER 30, 2020 From Claims Investigator/Adjustor Clifford D. Victorine III, dated October 15, 2020, transmitting the above report pursuant to Section 2-9 of the Hawaii County Code. Motion to Close File: Ms. Eoff moved to close file on Comm. 57.7. Seconded by Ms. Villegas. CHR. DAVID: And any questions, Council Members in Hilo? MR. RICHARDS: Chair? CHR. DAVID: Go ahead, Mr. Richards. Page 7 FC-43 November 5,2020 MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, I'm not sure who I ask this for, Deanna maybe. Come on up, Clifford. (Note: At this time, Claims Investigator/Adjustor Clifford D. Victorine, III, and Corporation Counsel Joe Kamelamela, came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. RICHARDS: Identify yourself,please. MR. VICTORINE: Good morning, Council. Cliff Victorine, with the Corporation Counsel. MR. KAMELAMELA: Good morning, Chair and Members of the County Council. Joseph Kamelamela, Corporation Counsel. MR. RICHARDS: Thanks, and thanks for coming up. My question for you is, knowing where Canada-France telescope is, what County park? What are we talking about? MR. VICTORINE: There's a trail the County was accessed to. They're building the trails. MR. RICHARDS: Is this the nature park behind, on the stream? MR. VICTORINE: Yes. It's on the stream, and the County has that portion that would have been a walking exercise-type of trail that they—we have—it's an Executive Order. They gave us the use of their property. MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, because that's State land. But has it been signed over to the County then? I've been working with that, and I thought that was State land. Has it been signed over to us? MR. KAMELAMELA: So we do have an agreement with them to manage, yeah. MR. RICHARDS: Okay, so that's why the liability comes up upon us? MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah. MR. RICHARDS: Okay. And why do we have two different claims on the same date? MR. KAMELAMELA: Oh, because they're two different vehicles. MR. RICHARDS: Oh, okay. Alright. Okay thanks, Chair, I yield. Page 8 FC-43 November 5,2020 CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Mr. Richards. Anyone else in Hilo? Seeing none, thank you, Mr. Victorine and Corp. Counsel Kamelamela, for being here. No one else in Kona? Then all those in favor of filing Communication 57.7, please say Ic aye. Vote on Comm. 57.7: The motion to close file on Comm. 57.7 was carried Filed by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Mr. Clerk, please move on to Communication 1122,please. Comm. 1122: SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMARY OF BONDED INDEBTEDNESS AS OF SEPTEMBER 29, 2020 From Finance Director Deanna Sako, dated October 8, 2020, transmitting the above report pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 47C-3. Vote on Comm. 1122: Ms. Eoff moved to close file on Comm. 1122. Seconded Filed by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Mr. Clerk, please, Communication 1129 Comm. 1129: FUND BALANCE NOTIFICATION FOR JUNE 30, 2020 From Finance Director Deanna Sako, dated October 15, 2020, transmitting the above report pursuant to 2-12.4 of the Hawaii County Code. Motion to Close File: Ms. Eoff moved to close file on Comm. 1129. Seconded by Ms. Villegas. Page 9 FC-43 November 5,2020 Vote on Comm. 1129: The motion to close file on Comm. 1129 was carried Filed by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Thank you. Mr. Clerk, please move to Order of Resolutions. Resolution 757-20. ORDER OF The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, RESOLUTIONS: Order of Resolutions. Res. 757-20: ACCEPTS A GRANT OF PUBLIC PEDESTRIAN ACCESS EASEMENT, IDENTIFIED AS TAX MAP KEY: 2-5-015:022 (POR.), SITUATED AT PONAHAWAI, DISTRICT OF SOUTH HILO, COUNTY AND STATE OF HAWAII, FROM PAUL DAVID BROTZMAN AND AMY JEAN BROTZMAN The easement would provide the residents, tenants, and property owners access to a public park via Chong Street. Reference: Comm. 1123 Intr. by: Ms. David (B/R) Motion to Approve: Ms. Eoff moved to recommend adoption of Res. 757-20. Seconded by Ms. Villegas. CHR. DAVID: And I believe Mr. Yoshimoto is in our Hilo Chambers. MR. CHUNG: Maile, it's Joe. Joe is going to take this one. CHR. DAVID: Oh, okay. Thank you, Chair. Thank you. Mr. Kamelamela will be explaining this access easement grant for us. Mahalo, Mr. Kamelamela. (Note: At this time, Corporation Counsel Joe Kamelamela came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. KAMELAMELA: Aloha, Chair. Again, members of the Council, Joe Kamelamela, Corp. Counsel. So this easement, it's going to allow people within the Chong Street subdivision to have easier access to a new park that had been built in the Hokulani Street area. Actually, we had worked with the grantors, seems like years, you know,just to get it to this point. You know, they're very generous landowners that reside there, Page 10 FC-43 November 5,2020 and then saw the need to provide the public access. I'm not too sure if you even know that there have been more, but ask any questions. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Mr. Kamelamela. Hilo, do we have any questions for Mr. Kamelamela on this easement? MR. CHUNG: Maile? CHR. DAVID: Oh, go ahead. Go ahead, Chair. MR. CHUNG: Yeah, I don't know if this is, you know,just for Joe. But, James, can you come up, too? You know about this project right, or this matter? You've been working on this too, right? (Note At this time, Deputy Director James Komata came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. CHUNG: So I'll just ask the two of you. By the way, Maile and the rest of you, this park in the district that I represent. CHR. DAVID: Thank you. MR. CHUNG: So I just wanted to ask a few questions. Joe, you mentioned that this matter of the easement has been going on for a long time, for years. What's been the considerations during that time? If you could share it with us, so that we know why it took so long. MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah, so there were issues that the department and us had to resolve. Because, you know, there's features on the property that we have to look at, and then maybe James can get into more details. But it's just a matter of looking at certain land features. Because I know that there's a hill in a certain area. So in one area you know, we want to make sure that there's a good transition from the easement on to the park. And then on one side of the property, the owners, the grantors, had actually built a wall on one side, so we have to look at that, and we wanted to ensure that the passage will be reasonably safe for the public to use. So once we looked at all of that, then it moved forward. MR. CHUNG: Okay. Before I let James comment on that, let me just give you guys a better picture of what this situation is. There's a recently constructed park that is in what they call the "Hokulani Street Subdivision." So the access to that park would be from the street Hokulani. And I've said for the longest time, you know, I've never tried to take any credit for the construction of that project because it was really spearheaded by my predecessors, Donald Ikeda, and coincidentally, J Yoshimoto, who is with the Corp. Counsel's office, yeah. So Page 11 FC-43 November 5,2020 they were really the driving-forces behind all of this. But it was completed during my time here. But parallel to Hokulani Street, on the other side of the park is Chong Street. And David Brotzman and Amy Brotzmanactually, Amy Brotzman is a Chong, you know. She's one the of the Chong people. And as Mr. Kamelamela said, you know, they've been offering to provide this easement for a number of years. James, isn't there a fence there? There's a fence that separates those houses on Chong Street from the park. I haven't been up there for a long time. MR. KOMATA: Yeah, sorry. James Komata, Deputy Director for Parks and Recreation. Yes, the park does not abut the Chong Street right-of-way or Chong Street property. So that's the necessity of the easement. It would—it's needed to connect the park property to the Chong Street property. MR. CHUNG: Right. And there's a fence that separates those houses on Chong Street from the park, right? MR. KOMATA: Yes. The entire park perimeter is fenced. MR. CHUNG: Okay. Okay, so that's the lay of the land, so to speak. You know, I'll tell you right now, I have no problem with the concept of this, but I'm just wondering if it's wise for us to really accept an easement there because there are liability issues that come with any easement, right, or ownership rights. So, Joe, what's your thought. I mean, have you created or prepared the easement document yet? Do we—do you have draft of that? MR. KAMELAMELA: Yes. MR. CHUNG: Oh. I mean MR. KAMELAMELA: I mean, it's typically not part of the resolution. MR. CHUNG: Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay. MR. KAMELAMELA: So we have a draft. And then, you know, there's typical provisions. And then there's sections on, like maintenance and repair that, you know, that we have to go through. MR. CHUNG: What about the indemnification? Are we going to assume the liability or will the landowners assume the liability? MR. KAMELAMELA: Well, let me just look at that section. So generally in a lot of these situations, County will assume liability. That's the typical indemnification language. Page 12 FC-43 November 5,2020 MR. CHUNG: Right. Because the resolution, if I'm not mistaken, talked about some things that were done by the owners, right? MR. KAMELAMELA: Right. MR. CHUNG: Okay, the grantors have invested significant efforts and resources in improving a portion of their property in anticipation of allowing pedestrian traffic. MR. KAMELAMELA: Right. MR. CHUNG: Maybe if you guys could just let us know what those improvements look like. MR. KOMATA: So my understanding, and from what I've seen and spoken with the Brotzmans, they've built a rock wall on—if you're looking at it from Chong Street—looking at the park from the Chong Street right-of-way, they built a rock wall on the right side to be able to level out the easement so that it's traversable by people. They've cleared the overgrowth on that portion of land so that you get free and easy access to the park perimeter. They've also planted a hedge, but it's on their side of the easement, what would be on their property. And they filled in a lot of the low spots, the undulating terrain, they flattened that, leveled it out. And I believe it's grass now. MR. CHUNG: Oh, okay. And it's pretty safe? MR. KOMATA: The easement itself is safe. Where they built the rock wall, there's a bit of a drop-off, so one of the things we'd have to go andoh, before we open the easement, would be to put in a fence just to protect that edge. MR. CHUNG: Okay, and then—so you guys are going to create a breach in that fence now? MR. KOMATA: In the park's fence, yeah, we'd have—so back inI don't know exactly-2015, when we started the planning for the park, or might have been even before that, that's when Paul Brotzmans had asked about the potential of providing access from Chong Street. So when we designed the park, we had integrated a gate into the fence in an area that we thought that—where the easement may end up going. The gate has never been opened, it's been locked. Oh, I'm sorry, it's been framed for a gate but the chain-link fence runs passed it. So we don't have a gate installed. But we have a provision, so a gate can be installed readily. MR. CHUNG: Okay. Page 13 FC-43 November 5,2020 MR. KOMATA: And so ever since thenI guess since when the park was completed, the Brotzman have been inquiring about the willingness of the County to accept the donation of an easement. MR. CHUNG: Right. You know, conceptually I don't have a problem with this, in fact I think it's a good idea, right? It would create a walking opportunity for the people on Chong Street to gain access to that property. And it would alleviate traffic coming through Hokulani, yeah. And then it's only a small parking lot they have, or bunch of parking spaces. But you know what I'm going do? I'm going to support this because I know you guys have really worked hard on this over the years. But I want this to come to the full Council when the new administration takes over, too. Because this is an operational matter, right? And I just want them to weigh in. And you know, James, you're going to be there too, probably advising them on this. But I just want to make sure that they have a fair opportunity of weighing in on this, and that's all. We're just looking at a delay of about a month, right? But that's all. I'm willing to support this. And we can talk about it more, if necessary. Thank you. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Chair Chung. Anyone else in Hilo? MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, Chair. CHR. DAVID: Oh, go ahead, Mr. Richards. MR. RICHARDS: Thank you. To echo what Chair Chung, the liability standpoint,just approved a claim for trees falling on cars. And I get it, I agree with the concept, but that whole liability question. And so, Mr. Kamelamela, I understand we have to grant access and it's help for the community as a general overall, but then we also are accepting liability of that. We've rendered this in other situations. So is this general policy? What took this so long to bring it to fruition? And you were a little soft on your answer concerning the liability standpoint. So I'm just trying to get a clear answer here. MR. KAMELAMELA: Okay, so I'm not sure why it took long. But with respect to the liability aspect, you know, this is typical if we were going to have an easement. You know, so the County you know,we have crews, we have personnel, to ensure that when we do have an easement, we will keep it safe, you know, to the public. So we will rely on Parks to handle that. And because this is an open area, you know, so like if there are big pukas, that's going to be fixed so that—to limit the liability. The thing that I just noticed in here, I'll probably—in regards to the indemnification, put language that actually ensures that if there's a claim more than $10,000, then the claim should be brought back to the Council as to whether Page 14 FC-43 November 5,2020 to settle that. So that's one change that I would make because I just noticed it. And then that way we don't subject ourselves to agree to something right now. That's very expensive in nature. MR. RICHARDS: Okay. Well, I agree with Chair Chung as far as bringing it to the next administration. We need the access. We are inherently accepting liability, I think, when we are granting access. So I just want to be sure that when we do this, we're lined-up and understanding what we're doing. So, I appreciate that. James, you have a comment on that? Okay. MR. KOMATA: Well, I just want to say that the two issues, you know, the Waimea Trails and Greenways, the Ulu La`au site, is markedly different than the site they were talking about here. We've got no trees, no vertical construction, nothing next to this easement; whereas in Waimea, that's the stand of eucalyptus trees. Massive, old eucalyptus trees. MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, right. MR. KOMATA: Very different. MR. RICHARDS: And I appreciate that, but still the question of liability is across. Alright. Thank you, Chair. I yield. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Mr. Richards. MR. CHUNG: Maile? CHR. DAVID: Oh, yeah. Go ahead, Chair Chung. MR. CHUNG: Yeah, you know, I just wanted to make this comment, and it's not for you guys to respond or anything,just to kind of think about it. You know the fact that this thing has been going on for years, I think has less to do about concerns over the topography and other things. If I had to take a guess, it was probably a lot of discussion within the administration as to whether this was a good idea or not. It's just my guess. Just kind of think about that, okay? MR. KAMELAMELA: Well, I can offer something briefly. Is that, you knowI mean, there were communities that had voiced their perspective on it. You know, it's not—you know, some was positive and some was negative. MR. CHUNG: Yeah, okay. Well, those are things that you guys had to be concerned about. MR. KAMELAMELA: Right. MR. CHUNG: Alright. You know, with regard to the liability issue, I'm really concerned about that. Joe, how do we go about extinguishing an easement? Page 15 FC-43 November 5,2020 Would it have to come back to the Council or is there a vehicle for extinguishing it? We can, right? MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah. MR. CHUNG: Because we're the holder, we'd relinquish our rights. MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah. MR. CHUNG: Right, if it comes to much of a burden. MR. KAMELAMELA: And, you know, mindful that, we're only getting a part of the interest of the property because it's an easement. MR. CHUNG: Right. MR. KAMELAMELA: And so we still have the grantors, and so we can tell them. Or they can tell us or MR. CHUNG: I don't think they can tell us, right? MR. KAMELAMELA: Oh, well—you know, it's an easement, you know, so MR. CHUNG: So what I'm asking is—okay, if they try to extinguish the easement, it would probably have to be done by agreement, right? MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah. MR. CHUNG: But if we wanted to have the easement extinguished, could we do that unilaterally? MR. KAMELAMELA: You know, I would have to MR. CHUNG: Being the holders of the right. MR. KAMELAMELA: Yeah, so I'll hold off on the answer on that because I just want to make sure. MR. CHUNG: Okay, well we have time. MR. KAMELAMELA: Okay. MR. CHUNG: Yeah. Alright, thank you. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Chair Chung. Anyone else on the Hilo side? Seeing none, none on Kona side. So, Chair Chung, can I just clarify that this would like Page 16 FC-43 November 5,2020 to take this up—are we just going to schedule it? Maybe it's for the Clerk to answer. Or are we postponing it? How do we do this? MR. CHUNG: Yeah, I'd like to move this ahead, if possible. But just to have this hit the full Council, either on the first meeting in CHR. DAVID: In January? MR. CHUNG: Yeah, somewhere around there. CHR. DAVID: Okay. Alright, I just wanted to make a note for staff in case—for that scheduling. This is not a formal postponement,just your desire to keep this to the next administration. Okay, on that note, all those in favor approving Resolution 757-20 and forward to Council with a positive recommendation, please say "aye." Vote on Res. 757-20; The motion to recommend adoption of Res. 757-20 was (Approved) carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, Villegas, and Chair David–9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Mr. Clerk, please move on to Resolution 765-20, please. Res. 765-20: CHANGES THE FUNDING SOURCE OF ONE SENIOR ACCOUNT CLERK TEMPORARY POSITION A contract position currently funded by an agreement with the United States Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration would be retained by the County's Public Works Department to assist with FEMA recordkeeping and reporting required to obtain disaster/emergency reimbursements. Reference: Comm. 1134 Intr. by: Ms. David (B/R) Motion to Approve: Ms. Eoff moved to recommend adoption of Res. 765-20. Seconded by Ms. Villegas. CHR. DAVID: Okay, I believe for any questions, we have—do we have Deanna in the Hilo office? Page 17 FC-43 November 5,2020 MR. BROWN: Madam Chair, Deanna and Director Yamamoto from Public Works is also here. CHR. DAVID: Thank you very much. So, Council Members, questions? MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Chair, I have a question. CHR. DAVID: Okay, good. Go ahead, Ms. Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. I'm not sure who this one is for, so I'll just ask it. I noticed in the B-52, the disaster this position would be managing funding for, Tropical Storm Iselle, the 2014 lava flow, and CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act. So I'm just curious, how much money left over from the 2014 events, and maybe some clarification around why the 2018 eruption is not listed considering there are tens of millions of dollars from FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) that need to be managed. (Note: At this time, Public Works Director David Yamamoto and Finance Director Deanna Sako came forward to address the members of the Committee.) MR. YAMAMOTO: Good morning. David Yamamoto, Director of Public Works. Actually, they inadvertently—it should have included actually the lava flow of 2018 and Hurricane Lane as well as Kiholo Bay. There are about 38, or actually, more than 40 projects that we have that are in various stages. A lot of them the older ones, like Kiholo Bay and Iselle and the 2014 lava flow, is in the process of trying to close out the claim with FEMA, and that takes a lot of effort, being that you have to make all these reports and stuff. Like for Kiholo Bay, there's like four small projects, totaling $89,000. Iselle, there's two projects, totaling $938,000. 2014 lava flow, there are five projects, $2.8 million. The 2018 lava flow, there's $62.5 million there. And we're trying to get started on Pohoiki as well as some of the other projects. So, you know, the paperwork there is going to start flowing. And there are 17 projects for Hurricane Lane, totaling $13.9 million. So total over 40 projects worth $80 million. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you, Director. I'm sorry, did you mention COVID projects? MR. YAMAMOTO: Oh yeah, and she's also working on the CARES Act. I'm not sure how much funding is involved there. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: And so then she's keeping track of her time spent on each of the disasters? MR. YAMAMOTO: Yeah. Page 18 FC-43 November 5,2020 MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay. Is it possible to get a list of those 40-plus projects that you mentioned before this goes to Council? MR. YAMAMOTO: Yeah, okay. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: And remind me again, how is this person's position being funded right now? MR. YAMAMOTO: We have an 89-day contract, and we were trying to get it renewed or extended, but Human Resources kind of discouraged us with that, and you know, preferred that we try and make a temporary position. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: So who was managing the paperwork for these projects in the past? MR. YAMAMOTO: The various clerks as well as the engineers involved, but they all continue to have their regular work to have to accomplish. We had some movement within the fiscal section, where people got promoted and/or moved to other locations, so we fell short of the assistance we need here. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: And Finance doesn't really play a role in this, Deanna? No? Okay. Because they're Public Works projects, all of this has to be kind of watched and administered by Public Works, interesting. So, Director, you guys often reach out to Finance to see how they're organizing things, because they often have a lot of experience in reporting and keeping track of Federal funds. I guess the question I have is, why did it take so long to get someone onboard? MR. YAMAMOTO: Well, you know, they started falling short and recognizing that they weren't processing the reports and claims with FEMA. So that's why there are a lot of old projects that they're in the process of just closing out and/or—couple of them—several of them, they pulled it back to add additional expenses, so that takes a lot of effort to justify all the additional expenses and stuff like that. MS. SAKO: So one of the things that's happening right now is because of COVID out there, State HI-EMA (Hawai`i Emergency Management Agency) has gotten a lot of additional staff, so they're using that staff time to close out some of the older projects. And so all of the FEMA projects go through HI-EMA. They're actually the auditor and the closeout. A lot of the information was actually submitted to them back in 2014, and they misplaced it, so we have to turn it in again. The process has improved now. FEMA came up with a new system, where we upload it into the system, so no one can lose it. But it's a long process; and so when HI-EMA gets ready, they're ready, and they want to just move and close out these projects as well as do all the amendments. And then when their staff goes away, they will take a break. And that's why it takes so long to close out some of the projects. So they're in they're geared up Page 19 FC-43 November 5,2020 and ready to move. But like Finance doesn't have time right now because we're so busy reporting on the CARES Act, so typically DPW, at the department, with some of these long-term projects especially, they usually take the lead. So in the past, we've been able to get grant funding. This time, I don't think you have a they don't have a particular grant that will fund this, but they should be able to charge it as part of the admin. cost to the grant, to FEMA. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Okay, that's helpful background information. Thanks, Deanna. I mean, I'm going to be supporting this. I think it's really important that we keep up on reporting because I certainly don't want to jeopardize our chances of getting Federal funding for failure to report and be in compliance. And so I'm just requesting that we get a copy of the list of projects, descriptions, you know, the status because I think you mentioned you have that information on the price tag for each of those things. I think we all want to know. You know, this is $80 million worth of Capital Improvement Projects that really need to happen for our island and can be a huge boost to our economy, so we're very interested. Thank you, Director. Chair, I yield. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Ms. Kierkiewicz. Anyone else in Hilo? MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, Chair,just a quick comment. CHR. DAVID: Go ahead, Mr. Richards. MR. RICHARDS: Yeah, thank you. Deanna and David, don't need to come back to the table. I just want to make a comment. I know through all these CARES money the initial rules and regulations out of the Treasury were a lot more lax, then got real tight. And our County took the position of being very methodical and squeaky-type early on, which was to our benefit. So I want to thank you guys for doing that. The concern for our claw-back of the funding, if we didn't do the extra paperwork, frustrated the hell out of me. But when they changed the rules after the game started, it worked to our advantage. So I just wanted to compliment, shout out to you guys for keeping and making sure we don't get the claw-back. Chair, I yield. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Mr. Richards. Anyone else in Hilo? Seeing none, then thank you, Director Yamamoto and Director Sako. Anyone else in Kona? Seeing none, all those in favor of approving Resolution 765-20 and forwarding to Council with a positive recommendation, please say "aye." Page 20 FC-43 November 5,2020 Vote on Res. 765-20; The motion to recommend adoption of Res. 765-20 was (Approved) carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, and Chair David—8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member Villegas — 1. Excused: None. CHR. DAVID: Thank you. Mr. Clerk, can we move to the final resolution, 766-20, please? Res. 766-20: AUTHORIZES THE OFFICE OF THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII Funds in the amount of$20,207 would be provided to the University of Hawaii for its Examining Korean Natural Farming in Anthuriums: A Systems Approach project. Funds would be used toward labor for data collection, analyses, travel to experiment sites, purchase of supplies, and publication costs. Reference: Comm. 1135 Intr. by: Ms. David (B/R) Motion to Approve: Mr. Richards moved to recommend adoption of Res. 766-20. Seconded by Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. CHR. DAVID: I believe Glenn Sako is in the Hilo Chambers. Is he still there? MR. BROWN: He is not here at the moment. CHR. DAVID: Okay. Well, I guess then—if we have questions, then we'd have to get someone here. But other than that, I believe it's pretty self-explanatory, providing funding for Examining Korean Natural Farming in Anthuriums. So I think it's a great program. If everyone is okay with MR. CHUNG: Maile? CHR. DAVID: Chair Chung? MR. CHUNG: Yeah. CHR. DAVID: Okay, go ahead. MR. CHUNG: Yeah, this thing is specific to anthuriums, but let me just make a side comment about this whole Korean natural farming. You know, it's really big, I understand. Just for the information of all the Council Members, we have a sister-city relationship with a town or city in Korea called Gokseong. I think it's Page 21 FC-43 November 5,2020 the only sister-city we have in Korea. And they are the leaders in Korean natural farming. Just recently, maybe about three or four years ago, a delegation of farmers, local farmers from this island, went to Gokseong to see how they did stuff. Accompanying them was our Council Member Fresh Onishi, who also went to Gokseong two or three years after that, I mean, on successive years, on his own time. So I just wanted to point that out to you guys. So whoever is interested in this, should make it a point to go and visit. It is a sister-city, and I heard it's very fascinating. So I just wanted to make that point to all of you. Thank you. CHR. DAVID: Thank you, Chair Chung, and thank you for that brief description of that. Sounds exciting and maybe we'll take you up on that offer. Alright, anyone else have any comments? No? In Kona? No, none here. Alright, all those in favor of approving Resolution 766-20 and forward to Council with a positive recommendation, please say "aye." Vote on Res. 766-20; The motion to recommend adoption of Res. 765-20 was (Approved) carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, and Chair David—8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member Villegas — 1. Excused: None. BILLS FOR The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, ORDINANCES: Bills for Ordinances. (There were none.) CHR. DAVID: Please, a motion to adjourn? ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business, at 11:56 a.m. Ms. Eoff moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Mr. Richards and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members Chung, Eoff, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Lee Loy, Poindexter, Richards, and Chair David—8. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Member Villegas — 1. Excused: None. Page 22