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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN PC 2021/06/01 2020-2022 Committee on Planning 9th Session Hawaii County Building 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawai i June 1, 2021 CALL TO The regular meeting of the Committee on Planning was called to order at ORDER: 11:00 a.m., in the Council Chambers, Hilo, by Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Chair. ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Chair Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Vice Chair (via videoconference from Kona) Ms. Maile Medeiros David, Member (via videoconference from Kona) Mr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Member Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Member Ms. Susan L. K. Lee Loy, Member Absent& Excused: Mr. Aaron S. Y. Chung, Member Mr. Herbert M. "Tim" Richards, III, Member 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: The following individuals registered to speak and came forward when called by the Chair: Janice Palma Glennie: Comm. 263, comment. Cory Harden: Comm. 263, comment. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you very much, I'm closing public testimony at this time and moving on to the business of the day. Mr. Clerk, if we could please read in our communication. COMMUNI- The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. PC-9 June 1,2021 Comm. 263: REQUESTS AN UPDATE FROM THE ADMINISTRATION AND THE PLANNING DIRECTOR REGARDING DELAYING APPOINTMENTS TO THE KAILUA VILLAGE DESIGN COMMISSION AND THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ACTION COMMITTEES From Council Member Rebecca Villegas, dated May 7, 2021. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Ms. Villegas, motion to close file, Comm. 263. Motion to Approve: Ms. Villegas moved to close file on Comm. 263. Seconded by Ms. David. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Ms. Villegas, why don't you go ahead the tee up the conversation. And just so you're aware, we have Planning Director Zendo Kern here, April Surprenant from Planning as well, Managing Director Lee Lord, and Executive Assistant Pomai Bartolome here in Council Chambers for you today. MS. VILLEGAS: Fantastic. Thank you guys so much. This is in essence a follow-up based on the concerns expressed by a number of my constituents, specifically of District 7, brought to me after two of the appointment meetings when I happened to ask the question about the Kona CDP (Community Development Plan) and the Kailua Village Design Commission. As Cory Harden stated, and I would love to just go ahead—if Mr. Kern could go ahead and come and join us? And April, fantastic. So I wanted, you know, I called for this communication today to provide an opportunity for more clarification on what's been going on, as so many concerns were raised over the statements made during the March committee meeting on March 171h about pausing appointments. And then followed-up also on March 21 st (Note: At this time, Planning Director Zendo Kern and Planning Program Manager April Surprenant came forward to address the members of the Committee.) So I guess I will just go ahead, and based on the request for this communication, if you guys could provide some updates and specifically answer some of the questions that were expressed during the prior testimony. And if you need any updates on those or reminders of what any of those specific questions were, I'm happy to do that. MR. KERN: Good morning, Madam Chair and members of the committee. Zendo Kern, Planning Director. Thank you for the opportunity to be here. I will do my best to answer all those questions. And if anything needs to be further clarified, please remind me of that. Page 2 PC-9 June 1,2021 So coming in with the new Administration, there's a lot of things going on, as I'm sure you're all very aware. And some of you are coming in as fresh Council Members. And something that we wanted to do that was kind of to understand how everything was working and prioritize things. So that's where the conversation is around just taking a brief pause came up. Regarding the—I'll talk both about the Kona CDP Action Committee as well as the Kailua Village Center Design Commission. And I have April here to talk further about that. So currently, we're in the process of filling CDP vacancies. We have various holdovers as one of the testifiers mentioned. In certain cases, that's kind of good to have some of that institutional knowledge there. Bottom line is for Kailua-Kona CDPAC (Action Committee), it has been functioning and operational and fully staffed. Same thing with Kailua Village Design Center Commission, operational and fully staffed. Lots of holdovers but fully staffed and operational. Coming out of COVID, it was very interesting. I was not a part of the Planning Department at that time. There were a lot of changes, budgetary, meeting-wise, etcetera. April can talk about that a little bit further. So coming into 2021 with a new Admin, there's a certain amount of uncertainty; how things are going, how are we going to do our meetings. Are we coming back in person; are we staying virtual? So again, there was various reasons to kind of take a slower pace at it, but true to what I said, we're in about three months. And we're in the process of filling the CDP's. So everything in my mind is perfectly in motion and in alignment to continue to move forward. The notion that we're going to dissolve the Kailua Village Design Center Commission is false. It's codified, couldn't do that. We'd have to come through Council, and we have to talk about that. It doesn't mean that there isn't potentially conversations around, not dissolving it, but you know—even with the CDP's, at some point it might make sense to revisit it and talk story with Council on how are these working? So it's more of an ongoing discussion that would be inclusive of the County Council. And at the end of the day, it's codified, so you folks have the ultimate authority around that. It's not something that we can just do. I know from the Administration, Mayor Roth, we're fully committed to, you know, fill in the CDPACs, Kailua Village Design Commission, and any other commission that we need. The Administration is very supportive of the community and keeping things moving forward. I don't think that's questioned at all. Page 3 PC-9 June 1,2021 Again, it's a process. I do want to underscore the demand. And this is not any type of excuse or anything else, but any type of CDP, there's a lot of demand on the department from staff members. And currently we're in the process of, you know, filling vacancies. And there's a time lag on filling vacancies. So when we have the CDP's, there is that demand. There's a lot of burden upon the staff, which they're doing a great job. But I just think it's important that they don't just live there and exist on their own, there are resources that go into those, and we have a lot of commissions within the department. And we are committed to providing those resources there. And sometimes the timing of that is challenged but we don't stop doing it. We keep moving forward whether that's even having like, you know, one of our secretaries filling in and working on that and getting it done. So, yeah, happy to announce that we're fully functional. I'll start with the Kailua Village Design Commission first. That one is, like I said, fully staffed, fully operational. I know we missed one meeting due to quorum. Otherwise, we've been meeting on a monthly basis. We've been reviewing things, making recommendations. So it's been working. That one's a little bit trickier because there are certain qualifications that go in to making up that commission. So, it's a little bit trickier. It's also unique in that way out of the other commissions. So as I said, right now I feel like we have a good balanced KVDC and we'll move forward on strategically filling those as we move forward. But the goal is not to disband those folks and leave it vacant, but it's to fill as we go, again, prioritizing all of the many needs. There are some challenges in that one ironically. Like we had one example that came through that, you know, we were reviewing something that couldn't be seen from the public, but because it was there we still went through the process of reviewing it because that's what the rules said we had to do. It was somewhat frustrating to some of the members that we came together for that. But those are just minor nuances that getting that understanding of what works, what doesn't work and continuing to move forward to serve the community. Happy to answer more questions on that. But for now, I'll turn it over to April just to give an update on the CDP side. MS. VILLEGAS: Wait one second, if I could? MR. KERN: Sure. MS. VILLEGAS: Okay,just one quick question. So when you say it's fully staffed, there are nine members on the Kailua Village Design Commission right now is what you're stating? Page 4 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KERN: We have one vacancy, so we have eight. MS. VILLEGAS: So, eight, okay. So we are still looking for that vacancy? MR. KERN: Fully staffed by us, and obviously we have a fully functioning operational KVDC. Oftentimes in a lot of these commissions or committees, you'll kind of have one vacancy. Try not to get, you know, too many in there. So yeah, in this case we'll be working on filling that vacancy. We have, like I said, a lot of holdovers. MS. VILLEGAS: When you say fully staffed, that was my question. When you were saying fully staffed, were you implying the full nine members? MR. KERN: So to clarify full-staffed, that we're staffing it from our department, and that we have adequate members of the commission to fully operate. And so in this case it would be eight. Sorry if that came off that it was all nine. MS. VILLEGAS: Okay, thank you. That helps me understand that a little bit better. And I also just want to clarify, one of the reasons for this,just to go back historically, the reason I brought this forward and the reason people were concerned, were statements that were made that brought up questions about why the Mayor and the Planning Director had authority to unilaterally pause appointments. And it related to a statement by Ms. Bartolome on March 17.x' And according to our Council transcripts said, "To my knowledge, the CDP's right now are put on hold and I was told not to fill the CDP's and the Kailua Village Development Plan Commission right now." So I just want to go back to and identify why these questions were coming forward. And your following statement on the 21", was that you anticipated the pause for CDP committees to continue in three to six months. So I kind of just wanted to go back to that so there's an understanding. There was also a statement by Ms. Bartolome that, "There's some conversations going on about it if it's worth pursuing continuing this commission." So I appreciate your explanations here. I just wanted to quickly touch base and share the statements that were made prior in March, which caused the concern. And so I just thank you for continuing to share with us what is happening, how it's happening and what's being done to make sure that—unfortunately, these statements caused a lot of concern. So thank you for clarifying. MR. KERN: And if I may, I do realize how sensitive that those statements caused some concern. I take full responsibility for those. Those were, you know, conversations Ms. Bartolome and I were having. I think, you know, how they got perceived was not accurate. Again, we're in March coming in with a new Page 5 PC-9 June 1,2021 Administration, lots of things coming on. EnerGov alone is a unique life experience. And so, you know, in talking with April, with the staff on where we're coming to and what we need, I said, hey, can we just pause this for a second so I can make sure that we understand, we're moving forward in the right direction. So that was me. And I do say that the Administration was doing a very diligent job of filling all other, you know, vacancies in other commissions. They've been very diligent in that. And the discussion around the Kailua Village Design Center Commission was I think, you know, a general discussion of how is this working. Is it working? Should we look at it? But not to the extent of, you know, well we're shutting it down, right now and we're making a decision that there's no longer exists, but more of a discussion. So I believe, you know, I think it was just—communication is always very challenging. And on this one it got more challenging. So simply put, we've moving forward. We're operating and I take full responsibility for any miscommunications. MS. VILLEGAS: Thank you for that. I appreciate that, Mr. Kern. And then, because we do have one vacant position, but we have a number of holdovers. And as one of our testifiers shared, there is strength in having that holdover because they have a better understanding, especially when it comes to the actual CDP. The Kona CDP Action Committee. As with our Kailua Village Design Commission, I see here that they are all—all but one is a holdover. And then we have one vacancy. So seven are holdovers. So it seems to me that, you know, we're in this interesting balancing time of—do you have a strategy on how you'll be balancing the nomination of new Kona CDP members with allowing holdovers? And do you guys have applications for new members? Are you willing to let the public know before they're brought forward to a confirmation hearing? What's the kind of the process that we'd be looking at for this? Because as you stated before, Ms. Bartolome has been so diligent and worked so hard. And in the first couple months of this year brought forth, you know, dozens of people for our boards and commissions. But there's a lot of sensitivity in my district right now looking at the Kona CDP and Action Committees for involvement in that process. Point of Information: MS. LEE LOY: Chair, point of information. Mr. Kern was discussing the Kailua Village Design Commission, and I'm just trying to track the information, because now Ms. Villegas is making references to the action committee while blending some statements about holdovers. So I just, for clarity purposes, my understanding is, Kailua Village, we're good to go, fully staffed. Some holdovers there, correct? Page 6 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KERN: Correct. MS. LEE LOY: Okay. Now, we're talking about the action committees? I'm just trying to track the statements and making sure we're not muddying the waters across all of these different boards and commissions. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. And I believe Director Kern was going to turn it over to Ms. Surprenant to provide us an update on where we are with the CDP Action Committees. MR. KERN: I will do that in just a moment. And what I'll do is, I'll just kind of close out on the Kona Village Design Commission, and then I can turn it over to April to get into some of those questions to further clarify some of those items. Regarding the Kailua Village Design Commission, because it's based on having various professionals; you know, architects, engineers, etcetera; landscape architects, it's going to kind of drive itself. And I would say, naturally we'll have some holdover because ideally we're probably not going to be able to fill the whole thing immediately. It's also very much more based on these professions, so I think, you know, some of the holdovers is maybe less of a concern based on that depth of knowledge. So I think it's just going to go its course and take care of itself. And we'll diligently be working on filling those vacancies. But again, for me, the primary is that they can function and they can function reasonably well which they're able to do right now and have been. And if, Ms. Villegas, do you have any questions regarding the Kailua Village Design Commission itself? MS. VILLEGAS: No. Thank you. I just do want to clarify that of the nine members of this commission, seven are currently holdovers; one is vacant, and one is new? MR. KERN: Correct. MS. VILLEGAS: Great. Thank you. MR. KERN: No worries. And on the Kailua Village CDP Action Committee, I will be turning that over to April, and she can give an update on it. And then I will also fill in where needed. MS. SURPRENANT: Aloha, Chair and Council, April Surprenant, Manager of Long-Range Planning. So, as Director said we have a lot of boards and commissions in our department. And so, we've been actively pursuing and filling with the Mayor's Office all of those positions. We still have some vacancies we Page 7 PC-9 June 1,2021 have to fill. And like he also said, we're coming off of COVID, which everyone is. We were under,just FYI (for your information), last year under emergency proclamations from the Mayor and Governor to suspend board and commissions and things of that nature and to meet on an as-is basis, which we did last year as we could and started adjusting ourselves to the virtual, as you all have. The virtual opportunity which has frankly has been great, and I think we've seen across the board, and I hope we can maintain some level of virtual allowances, because we have a lot of members of the community who have been able to join during the timeframes of these different boards and commissions when normally they would not be able to travel to attend in person. And so, I think a lot of people also appreciate this option and opportunity. So for Kona Action Committee, it is currently—all the seats are filled. One of those is seated and the other eight are holdovers. We have other action committees which we are focusing on, and a press release went out, I think, last month asking for applications to the CDP's. In particular, we were looking for Puna and North Kohala which do not have quorum right now. And so we are in touch regularly with those different members of the action committee and working with them on various things out in their community. I think Ms. Palma-Glennie said it well in terms of the purpose of the action committees is really grassroots. And it's them working out in the community, which also makes the action committees very different from a lot of the other boards and commissions. They don't just review things and make recommendations and decisions, they actually go out in the community and work with their various groups. So one of the things since December, starting in December, we've been working with them on networking and making connections. We have some really great network maps that we have been developing for each of the action committees. And also helping them make those connections to do some of that great work out in their various communities. We've also met with a few. I know we met with a group from Kona regarding the Kona Open Space Plan, which we are bringing back to life in the next month or so. So we'll be kicking that off again. We have the funding for it so we're ready to move that forward. We have another group in Hamakua that are anxious to talk with us which we're happy to do. So you know, those kinds of things are happening. The AC's are meeting quarterly, which is what we had talked about as part of this transition, and they met in December, they met in March. And we working with them to solidify dates in June, so, later in June. So the plan as outlined previously and what we've also delivered with them. Page 8 PC-9 June 1,2021 And so, our first priority is to fill vacancies and to try to get quorum for those action committees that do not have quorum, so that's number one priority. So quorum is number one. Vacancies is number two. And then, as we can to replace holdovers, probably oldest to newest in terms of holdovers. And who's willing? Some people just have other things they're ready to move on to, which is totally fine and we honor that. So we don't want another vacancy, so we may replace on that basis as well. The process that happens will happen just like any other board or commission, so that's typically run out of the Mayor's Office. I think Council Member Villegas asked about making it public before the nomination is made. I don't think that that's typically done. So they will be brought forth like any other board or commission. The Mayor's Office has asked us they have shared some of the names with us, so we are going through and making sure we're looking at a current list of applicants. And so, we're talking with the Mayor's Office about those and we'll be moving those forward in the near future. Yeah, I think that's it. MS. VILLEGAS: Thank you, April. I really appreciate that and really excited to hear about the Open Space coming online in the next month. I know that you guys have been navigating so many other projects, and that's been on the list and had some funding available. So I'm really excited to hear that that's coming forward. Just a quick question, I did receive an email from the Kupuna for the Mo`opuna. And they had some questions about the Hilo CDP and was just wondering if you had any updates. They weren't able to get any information about that and called the Planning Department. So there were some questions about the outdated Hilo CDP of 1975. Is there any information you can share today that might provide them with good news? MS. SURPRENANT: Sure. One of the requests the last time we met with them, which has been maybe a year ago, was for the funding to be put in the CIP (Capital Improvement Project)to start to earmark or appropriate funds. And so we have done that. We now will need to find funds to go towards that effort in order to allot and move it forward. We also, in finding the funds, we'll need to work it into our work plan. We only have so many staff, so we actually have a work plan for our division. And so, we'll need to work that in. It's a big endeavor; it's a big undertaking, and so we have to make sure we plan for it appropriately. But the funds are at least in the CIP at this point and we'll need to find some actual funding in order to bring that to life. Page 9 PC-9 June 1,2021 MS. VILLEGAS: Fantastic. Thank you so much. With that I'll yield for now, if my colleagues have any questions? MR. KERN: If I may real quick? CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Absolutely. Go for it. MR. KERN: Thank you. I just wanted to say that as I was reviewing the mail this morning and the correspondence, I was pleased to see that the Kona Community Development Plan Action Committee had a subcommittee, and they produced a report on the Alii Parkway Investigatory Subcommittee Report, and that vote to create that subcommittee was on March 22nd 2021. So, you know, they're working. We're seeing the results. And we also got a subcommittee report from the South K6hala Community Development Action Committee. Just wanted to share that. So there's proof right here that it's working. Thank you. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Council Member Villegas, did you get a copy of those reports? MS. VILLEGAS: Mr. Kern is that the report from Shane Nelson about the Alii Highway Bypass? MR. KERN: This would have been signed by the Chair, Mr. Young. This was dated May 261h, 2021. It just hit my desk today, so it just routed through the Planning Department. MS. VILLEGAS: Okay, no, I haven't a copy of it yet. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. Director Kern, can you just make sure my colleagues on the west side get a copy of that? I think that would be helpful. MR. KERN: Yeah, no problem. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. MS. VILLEGAS: Thank you, appreciate it. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Yes, no problem. And thank you for bringing this conversation forward. Chair David, do you have any questions or comments for Director Kern or Ms. Surprenant? MS. DAVID: Thank you, Chair. No I don't. It's been asked and answered. Mahalo. Page 10 PC-9 June 1,2021 CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Great. Here in Hilo? Ms. Lee Loy. MS. LEE LOY: Thank you, Chair. Thanks guys for being here. I wanted to walk back to Kailua Village Design Commission because it is a really unique body. But Director, you mentioned having Planning staff, but this is about design and as we go vertical, which is why we have architects and people in the construction industry on that particular commission. Has there been any outreach to DPW (Department of Public Works)? And I'm asking because they put together a site plan, there's some architectural patina that goes into it. And while there are subject matter experts on the commission, I'm wondering if this is an opportunity for DPW specifically, those who will be issuing the permits can get an early look to identify any barriers as it relates to permits. Because they also do sign review. And we had hit a major speed hump five years ago when a particular hotel was trying to get their sign. Would you mind elaborating on that, Director,please? MR. KERN: Sure, no problem. It's something that has come up. I think it's an area that we can create some synergy. Has it been implemented at this particular moment yet? No. It's something that we are working on,just trying to create even with our department and even inspectors. I believe there's more synergy that has occurred over the years, and I think this is a great area to kind of get an early look at it and understand the mechanics, not only for the Planning, but from the Building side too. And I'm hoping, I know this might solve a lot of things, that through EnerGov we might be able to create a little bit more collaboration through that and just being able to transfer things online and see all digitized. Even without that though, yes, we need to get more collaboration in that. MS. LEE LOY: Great. That's just really wonderful to hear, because in addition to the permitting piece, right, is the Zoning 25; but Building 5; but Signs, that's Chapter 3 of our Code, right? And Planning is shaking their heads, no, right? But in this specific area, you guys do get a look at the signs, right? This commission weighs in on that. And so I'm trying to figure out which is why I thought it was very wise and brilliant of this Administration to take a look at all the boards and commissions; see what their functions, scope, and goals were, and then look at areas that we could improve it. It really wasn't about hitting the pause button so that work wouldn't get done, it was to look at the work that was being lifted up, making sure that they were actionable. Page 11 PC-9 June 1,2021 And so I'm asking about that piece because if there's stuff we need to do as a legislative body to adjust the Sign Code specifically in that area, I would love to hear that from the commission. Is that something we can maybe agendize? Because I want to hear from these boards and commissions on what we could be doing better, right? They're in these rules, they're in these processes, but if they see something we could do more effectively or efficiently, I would like to get that feedback. Is that something we can do? MR. KERN: Absolutely. I would request that we agendize that a little after the EnerGov launch. But yes, and it's something Director Rodenhurst and I have been talking about,too, of having these meetings where we can work on this synergy and that cross collaboration to create efficiencies where we can to understand where we might be gaps and then were we can improve. So absolutely, I'd certainly consider it, Phase 1.5 of my overall plan. You know, first one is absorb, get everything moving on the priorities, and then, yeah. Same thing with inspections, of having our LUPC's (Land Use Planning Commission) with the inspectors. So I see actually quite a bit of collaboration with DPW in these areas, and I think this is a really great place to begin to solidify that. We're doing that now on the Engineering side with roads and whatnot. So it's a yes. If you wouldn't mind, follow-up with my office or I'll have my office follow-up with you and we can get it on the agenda. I'd like to have the meeting first; go through it, and then let you folks know what we're finding out. MS. LEE LOY: Yeah, that would be great. And, you know what, I'll do it from my end. I'll put a request out, and then you can put it on your different boards and commission's agendas. Because that's the other piece, right? We give them work to do, but it would be great if they actually told us how we can make their work easier. I also was interested in something you mentioned which was the network maps. April, can you elaborate on those network maps? How we're allowing these action committees to integrate. And I'm trying to learn about it because I think this is how we lift up the community and what the community is really asking for. Can you elaborate on those network maps? MS. SURPRENANT: Sure, they kind of look like a spider web, so each member has little tentacles like an octopus that has all of the different groups and committees and things that they are a part of. And so each member has that, but from time to time, which is always exciting, some of those octopus legs actually touch another committee member. And so there's linkages. So it shows all of those linkages. Page 12 PC-9 June 1,2021 And then we are looking at the possibility, because it gets pretty vague and complex, of what it look like if we're able to connect all of the AC's so that they can see where they interact. There's also a way you can highlight or colorize based on subject matters. So if you have people in different housing groups for example or groups that deal with Housing on some level then it could be one color. Or natural resources could be another color. And so then they start to see visually very easily where those connections could be made. And "Hey, oh I might learn something if I go connect with this group,"right? And so, that's the purpose of it that we've been working with all of them on to better help them be connected in their community, and also understand more and learn more from each other the information and resources that they have available. MS. LEE LOY: I love that idea, because how we're inter-related to one another and the things that we impact there's a process called journey-mapping which is similar. But I was also wondering if it's possible, April, to elevate that work up to the jurisdictional issues between government. How it touches Federal, State, or County, so that as policy makers, if community really wants to see a shift, they also have to propose legislation or work at civic engagement to make those things happen. And then also, if there was a way to extrapolate information to our existing plans, not only our General Plan and the action committees? But I live and represent, and have the honor of representing a district has a Native Hawaiian community. And DHHL (Department of Hawaiian Home Lands) has their own Community Development Plans. So although we might be looking for new action committees or updating, you know, another community development plan, I think there is a number of other jurisdictions that have existing long-range plans, specifically DHHL, which all of my colleagues have in their districts, and how the beneficiaries are trying to elevate their desires from within, you know, another agency which is a State agency and how then end up providing a voice along with, you know,the goals that beneficiaries want to meet. So maybe not here at this level, but if there's some forethought that could be given to these network mappings or journey mappings that indicate not only to us but even those doing the work, that this work takes a long time. I see you guys nodding, because I think it's also managing the expectations, right? Those are just my thoughts. Thank you both for being here and clarifying what I thought was just a real brilliant move on this Administration. Go ahead, April. MS. SURPRENANT: Just really quick, the mapping that we're using is pretty cool. It's created by a couple guys from Hawaii. And it's called Kumu Mapping. And so you can look it up online. What you see online is what we have been using, so it's pretty great. And I love that it's sourced here. Page 13 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KERN: And just to add to that, I think, I almost consider like a jurisdictional nexus, in a way, right? And I think that would be actually pretty neat and important. Almost like doing the Code audit where you think you're just dealing with one thing, but it spans out in all different places. And where there's an overlap of what might have already been done, or what would supersede something else you'd want to do. So yeah, I think that's awesome. MS. LEE LOY: Ultimately, I think this is where that efficiency piece in government and transparency actually happens, right? Because we might be having a conversation with the action committee. But if they keep going into a process that hasn't changed, then that actionable item becomes challenged. But really, I really enjoy this. Thank you so much for being here. Chair, I yield at this time. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you, Ms. Lee Loy. Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, go ahead. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you, Ma'am. Thank you guys for your information or ladies and gentlemen. Just for me, where does the Puna Community Action Committee sit right now? MS. SURPRENANT: In terms of seats? MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Seats. MS. SURPRENANT: They have one seated, three holdovers, and we have a pile of applications that we're looking at. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Okay, and then timeline to fill? MS. SURPRENANT: It takes time to do that, but we should be able to get some nominations this month into Mayor's Office and then it'll do its track, its typical track. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Okay, thank you. MS. SURPRENANT: You're welcome. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Okay, and then what is the story behind Hilo's Action Plan or their CDP? Page 14 PC-9 June 1,2021 MS. SURPRENANT: There is a CDP in place, which is from I think it's the 1970's. There's actually a lot of things in there that are still relevant, which is the nature of long-range plans. Long-range plans, we call them 10-year plans or 20-year plans, but really the horizon for a true long-range plan is even greater than that. And so that's really the point of them. Hilo also is unique from any other area or urban area on our island, in that it's mostly developed within the urban area. It's actually mostly developed. And typically, long-range plans—and they can look at redevelopment or infill and things of that nature, which is what we would need to look at for Hilo. It's a little different than how we've looked at all of the other CDP's. But largely, it's either conservation, forest reserve, things of that nature, around the fringe of what has mostly been developed. So it's just a little bit different scenario. Hilo also has one thing that no other village has, is the original Hilo Zoning Map, which has a lot more information. Yes, it's zoning, but it also has a lot more information about roadways and things of that nature, which are addressed every time an application comes in. The Hilo Zoning Map is one thing that all of our staff have to review when they're providing comment or looking at how to approve applications, subdivisions, or things like that. And so it has a number of different pieces in Hilo that a lot of the other jurisdictions don't have. And then we also have more recently implemented things like the Downtown Hilo Multimodal Plan, which is not just multimodal, it's really looking at urban design for that portion of the village or the town. So it has a lot of other things like that, that are just a little different from the other cities, similar to Kailua's Village Design Plan, but different. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: But more so why so outdated I guess? You know, because most of the other ones are pretty up to date. We have an active committee, but why the outdatedness for Hilo, given its importance in our community? MS. SURPRENANT: Absolutely. I don't know, I haven't been here that long. And so I don't know all of the reasons for that. I do know when the CDP's were originated and codified, they came out of County Council. And so, the first original three CDP's were Kona; and North and South Kohala. And so those happened first, and then after that came Ka`u. And then after that came Hamakua. And so, South Hilo, I should say, is really next in line. But there's probably a myriad of reasons why, some of which I've stated, and I don't know all of them or all of the history behind it. Page 15 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Okay, thank you. And then, someone asked me the other day and I wasn't sure. What is the weight of the Community Development Plan when it comes to planning? Like if there's something coming up? If there's a subdivision or a roadway? I mean what is the weight that a CDP carries in regards to decision making when it comes to that item? MR. KERN: Yeah, Planning Department is always given it a good amount of weight. I think one of the easiest examples was, there was a project in the Pahoa area that wanted to off of the bypass, directly off of it. And the CDP said, "No, cannot," and so the Planning Department followed that with their recommendation, and the commission chose to actually, you know, concur with that. So it does—we look at the General Plan, the General Plan is the primary, and then it looks at the CDP's, and then any other plan that there might be. So it's absolutely part of our process. It would go into the background report,the narrative, when you folks see change on zone applications. Or if a commission is seeing a special permit or a use permit application or SMA. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: And then Capital Improvement Projects, same thing? MR. KERN: I'd say somewhat, but not in the same way. And quite frankly I'm still figuring out exactly how that comes together. So it wouldn't be appropriate for me to answer in its entirety right now. But from a Planning perspective for sure, definitely does give some weight to the CIP process, but also depends on where they were in there. For example, some of the provisions within some of the CDP's are outdated now. So we've had original CDP Steering Committee members actually advocating for certain things that the CDP was saying like that would go against. So when do you catch up with that? So I know, they all lend some weight. Not quite like the General Plan. The General Plan would be the primary. But those kind of help drive it. But again, then you've got to go back through and get those updated to say current. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Yeah, I've noticed that too, that some of them, I mean some of them are like from 2000. And in 21 years a lot's happened. A lot has changed. MR. KERN: Lot's changed, yeah. Page 16 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Same things don't hold true, but some of the older ideas that still have yet to be implemented in 20 years have become more apparent and more needed so, it goes both ways which is interesting. Okay, so for local projects, small decisions, yes. But for larger CIP's and things, it sounds like it's kind of questionable. MR. KERN: It plays a role. I'm just not going to say it's super weighted. It plays a role for sure in analyzing it, but I think there's a lot of other factors that go into it. Versus where a land-use planning decision, we're kind of looking at it from GP, you know, CDP community; it's kind of very more lineal that way. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you. Yeah, it was an interesting question, and I didn't really know how to respond to it. And I go, I'm not sure, so thank you for clarifying. Thank you. MS. SUPRENANT: The one thing I would add is on our CIP and on the FIS (Financial Impact Statement) sheets, the individual project sheets, there's actually a line item in there that asks for CDP and GP priority. And so, that's one of the things that we look for too. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: So how much weight does that lend to a project? MR. KERN: And that's what I'm working on right now. That's my pause. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: What are you working on? MR. KERN: Oh,just the same thing we're all working on. Just understanding how much weight those have. Understanding how much weight that CDP has within the CIP process. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: It should lend weight, I mean, it's community-led decision making and it should lend a lot of weight to how we proceed. MR. KERN: And then we go back to what we're just talking about, where certain things are not relevant anymore and certain things are. So yeah, with most things, it's a certain amount of balance and trying to take in as much information as we can to make the most informed decisions as we can, and that is one of the areas that we want to take that information in. Page 17 PC-9 June 1,2021 MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Good. I like what you guys are doing. Good that you're breaking silos. It's been an ongoing theme, something we've always dealt with. So,the more you can cross-collaborate, and create efficiency, and be transparent about it,then the better the County works. Thank you. I appreciate your time. Thank you, Chair. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you. Ms. Kimball, you have the floor. MS. KIMBALL: Yeah, thank you, Chair. And thank you, Director and Ms. Surprenant for being here today. We appreciate you answering all the questions. I just want to build on Council Member Lee Loy's ask, which is, help us work with the Code to define the role of the action committee. My limited experience with the Hamakua CDP Action Committee has been that there is a tremendous amount of willingness to serve and participate and be part of this process. But maybe some of the language is unclear about what their role and responsibility is. And I understand that's why, part of the reason anyway, that you wanted to take a pause is to make sure there was this alignment. When I read the language in the Code, it makes sense. They're filling a niche that is definitely needed. It's bringing those CDP's to life and taking them to the next step. But I'd really like to understand, and hopefully your data analysis will yield some information about where that misunderstanding in some cases was happening. So again, appreciate that you got to get EnerGov up and running, but if we can agendize maybe in addition to the ask that Council Member Lee Loy had a discussion around the actual Code for the responsibilities for the CDP's, I think that that would be something that I would find valuable for this group. MR. KERN: Yeah, we'd be certainly happy to do that. And I'm hoping that, you know, as this dialogue between ourselves and the Council continues and I think improves, because some of the challenges when you're going to bring up these types of subjects, and they're tricky right? And sometimes there's multiple answers to things that we can maintain the dialogue and the mindset that we're working on improving, enhancing, solving. I think it's tricky sometimes when we'll get up here and something might be misconstrued and all of a sudden we're dealing with other things. So I just want to put that out there that we're very open to it, and the intention is to serve our community. You know what I mean, I know that's what your folks' intentions are, that's what the Mayor's intention is, that's what, you know, April's intention is, Ms. Bartolome, all of our intentions. Page 18 PC-9 June 1,2021 So I'm hoping we could get into a good positive dialogue where we can have some of those, even challenging conversations around some of that. So, yeah, excited about it. MS. KIMBALL: Yeah, it goes back to one of the comments that I made in the initial budget discussions, was the appreciation that we all come from a place of goodness and wanting to serve our communities. And I certainly feel that from the members of the action committee. I feel it from you folks, feel it from my colleagues. We may all have different approaches. And getting there the way that is solved is through effective communication through the Code. And I do want to see these changes in the Code, not just in your Administrative Rules or something that can change Administration. Let's get this solid and really lift the actions committees up, because I do think, like I said, they play a really valuable role. Something we can't do as legislators and something you can't do as the Administration. And we want to make sure that we're filling that gap. And just to follow-up on one comment that you made, April, about the ability to continue to meet virtually. I did want to just highlight Senate Bill 1034, which is on the Governor's desk, that will allow boards and commissions to continue to meet virtually. It has not been signed yet, so please feel free to send in a letter of support. Thank you, Chair, I yield. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you, Ms. Kimball. Mr. Inaba. MR. INABA: Yeah, I think I just want to agree with you completely, Zendo. When it comes to some of these topics—somebody had talked about an octopus earlier and all these moving parts. And sometimes, these conversations I feel are not as productive as they could be because we're all over the place. So I don't like to interrupt when people are talking, but I just want to share that I think some of these topics can be brought back individually so that we can stay on topic with what's on our agenda today. So I just want to point that out. Thank you. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Thank you, Mr. Inaba. Vice Chair Villegas, did you have any follow-up questions or comments? MS. VILLEGAS: No, thank you. You guys covered any of the other questions I might have had, so thank you. Page 19 PC-9 June 1,2021 CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Perfect. Thank you. And again, we all appreciate you bringing this conversation forward. I think there were just things that needed to be sorted out, clarified for the record. Put everyone at ease. Nothing is being taken away. If anything, you're just finding ways to refine and better empower community so that they can take action, because that's what these committees are. They're geared towards taking action. I just had a little bit of mana`o and some questions to share. Because I've had conversations with both of you; former Planning Director Michael Yee, Bethany Morrison, Keiko Mercado; folks within long-range division about what they've characterized as a pivot with the CDP Action Committees. So maybe a high-level overview of what exactly that means, because I know that you're just trying to find ways in which you can provide tools and build capacity of our committee members so that they can take action? MS. SURPRENANT: Thank you. So,thanks for asking that question. I think that's great and totally appropriate. So from inception, really the purpose of the CDP's was to be that grassroots community stewardship on the community side. And over the years depending on, for various reasons, the way the action committees use to be managed; the people on the action committees which have all done an incredible job. But the focus has shifted over the years, and so what we're actually trying to do is shift back to where it originated and really the purpose, which is that community interaction and community action, which is why they're called what they are, action committees. And community development plans for action committees. And so it's part of that community action. And reconnecting them again,just to reiterate, to help them see their different networks that yes, they're a part of their networks in front of them but they may not be aware of these other opportunities that maybe directly tied to or related to some subject matter that they're passionate about. So that's really what that pivot meant, I think. Or the terminology of pivot meant was to really sort of shift back to that community based. And some action committees have already been doing that very well. Others in the past, maybe not as well. But they all tend to be in that direction now. They're taking action in their own communities now. And so we just want to keep supporting them in that direction. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Great,that's helpful to know, April. Thank you for sharing that, and I think what would be really useful. You kind of touched on this, is each individual member has an area of interest. They may be subject matter experts, they may really be passionate about something. And so if there Page 20 PC-9 June 1,2021 are ways in which we can help them identify it as it relates to the CDP, take action, right? But I think that's really critical. Oftentimes a lot of these projects just seem so vast. If we can figure out ways to kind of smallify, chunk it out, so they're making meaningful progress at the end of the day, they'll feel really good about making a meaningful contribution and doing something to benefit community. You know, I'm going through Section 16-6; 11 things listed as duties and responsibilities of the CDP. I want us to take a hard look at this at some point and integrate it into this pivot piece that you're working on. Things in here that I don't know are getting done maybe because we haven't been able to convene the committees or there is just no consistent process in how all of these action committees are working. But, you know, Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder brought up the CIP project, Operational Budget. Number Four in here, "Provide timely recommendations to the County on priorities relating to the operational budget and CIP." When does that happen, right? There are things where they should be receiving briefings from various County agencies; where they need to be looking a different plans, new technologies, innovative projects. When is this coming forward? Not trying to put anybody on the spot. You guys are working super hard and I love it. Here's the thing right? I love schedules. I love calendars. I love knowing every September we're going to have a conversation about budget, because three months ahead I can start preparing for that conversation. So if it's possible as part of this pivot work, can we look at scheduling these activities so that all CDP's are having this conversation at the same time? And you know, I know there's some Sunshine Law issues with them talking to one another, but let's work that out so that they can be connecting with one another, and we have these really rich and I think necessary conversations, yes. Am I making sense here? MS. SURPRENANT: We're on the same page. So our December meeting with the AC's was an all AC meeting. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Perfect. MS. SURPRENANT: And then we're planning another one, probably for August or September, depending on schedules. So we can get the most people. It means we have to agendize that appropriately, which you know, is kind of a big deal, but we do it and it works. So those are the kinds of things. And yes, we're actually challenged right now. Page 21 PC-9 June 1,2021 We're trying to get quorum in June and we're actually looking at shifting our schedule so that maybe we don't have a June meeting. We'll try to provide a little gap in the typical vacation months. December is a tough one, always is, right? June is actually another tough one, even worse than July. So, we're looking at sort of shifting our schedules and also going back to—we're working with the current AC members now to go back to a set day. So if somebody used to be second Tuesday of every month, it might be second Tuesday of—right? And so we're setting those now, but trying to coordinate that many people and try to find the best days and times. Can you imagine? CHR KIERKIEWICZ: It's a lot. I do not envy you. I applaud you. MS. SURPRENANT: So, we're on the same page. So thank you for bringing that up. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Great. And then I'm just, you know, another wondering I have is, are there moments in which you do, like does the committees do self-assessments? Are there any reflections about process? You know, we have a number of holdovers that are on these various committees. Are we doing that so as you finalize the pivot and what that means, you're using the mana`o of existing members that have had the opportunity to take action? Just curious. MS. SURPRENANT: We have done that in years past. We haven't done it recently obviously, but I think it's valid to bring that practice back. We actually used to do it at the end of every meeting, which is something we might bring back. It's just a quick plus and minus; it takes five minutes, of what worked, what didn't work. Like super-quick reflection, or what do you want to see next time? And so those are the types of things we can bring back. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Great. And I know Council Member Lee Loy is familiar with this, but logic models? You know, I'm just wondering if we can integrate some logic models into the work of the AC's. Director Kern is smiling, shaking his head over here nodding. I just think it's important, right? What are the inputs? What are the activities? What are the outputs? What are our outcomes? Where do we want to go? Let's tie all of that to the plan and that way there's clarity among members, among residents about what's happening. And where and how they can contribute, right? Okay, cool. Last thing. Once you set the meeting cadence up, very excited about General Plan update, because once that's pau, we can begin to look at how we review and update all of our CDP's. Where I'm going with this is that at some point one day in the not so distant future, we as the County are budgeting for outcomes, that we have identified a vision that we want for our County and our island. Page 22 PC-9 June 1,2021 And we're putting our money where our mouth is, right,that every single action committee is one year taking a look at how we elevate and protect natural resources. The next year, we are making critical infrastructure investments so we can spare more economic development. I think you get where I'm going with this. Bethany did an excellent presentation a couple years back to the Puna Neighborhood Watch committee meeting. Just really appreciated how we were getting a little bit more organized here, right? So anyway, that's just a vision that we have, that hopefully we can realize within this decade, especially because we have so much Federal dollars coming our way. Get ready guys. I'm ready to spend. Are you guys ready? Anyway, any final mana`o you guys want to add because I think we are out of questions and comments? MR. KERN: I would say that I think we're all very much on board. Love logic and love logic modeling. So, happy to do that. We're very much results-oriented as well. So super on board with all of that. I think this was a very good discussion to continue to carry on. All the way around, really excited about this. I would like to just say my appreciation for April and her team, and Keiko and all the work that they do, long-range and for the CDP's. It is a lot of work, and the people on the commissions, absolutely—and same with the Kailua Village Design Commission. You know showing up every month, having the meetings and our staff supporting that, working late. It's a lot of work. I'd also like to really thank, you know, Pomai Bartolome for all the work that she does. It's a lot of work. And the more that we are involved in this, you realize just how much work there is in all of that amongst our daily work. And continued support for Mayor Roth and his Administration on wanting to serve the community and really supporting us in what we can do. And I know this conversation will be very supported as well. Because it's very much about how do we improve our community, right? How do we keep moving forward? So just want to thank everybody. And thank you folks for your time and the input and really personally love these conversations. They get the dialogue back and forth. CHR KIERKIEWICZ: Great. Sounds good. And we can look to convene a similar conversation in about three months from now to see progress made and how we as Council Members can be supportive and helpful. Great. Thank you. There is a motion on the floor to close file on this communication, all in favor please say, "aye." Page 23 PC-9 June 1, 2021 Vote on Comm. 263: The motion to close file on Comm. 263 was carried by (Filed) the following voice vote: Ayes: Committee Members David, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kierkiewicz— 7. Noes: None. Absent: Committee Members Chung and Richards —2. Excused: None. ACTING CHR. KIERKIEWICZ: Motion carries. Thank you. ORDER OF The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, Order RESOLUTIONS of Resolutions (There were none.) BILLS FOR The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, ORDINANCES: Bills for Ordinances (There were none.) ADJOURN- There being no further business, at 12:14 p.m., Ms. Lee Loy moved to adjourn MENT: the meeting. Seconded by Mr. Inaba and carried by the following voice vote Ayes: Committee Members David, Inaba, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kimball, Lee Loy, Villegas, and Chair Kierkiewicz—7. Noes: None. Absent. Committee Members Chung and Richards—2. Excused: None. CHR. KIERKIEWICZ: Planning Committee is adjourned. Mahalo. Approved. 0 / (71 Ms. Ashle . Kierkiewicz, Chair (Date) Planning Committee AK/dt Page 24