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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0315.005 2020-2022 Dennis Hart,President Alan Brown,VP Kaleo Paik,Secretary Ray Broggini,Treasurer Keoni Fox + vA K ��. I Linda Gallano Ethan Souza Kahealani Wright Ala Kahakai Trait Association P.O Box 2338 Kamuela,HI 96743 July 19, 2021 Sent via email County of Hawaii County Council, Committee on Finance counciltestlmony�hawaiicounty.�ov Re: Testimony in Support of Resolution 161-21 Authorizes the Director of Finance to Enter into Negotiations for the Acquisition of Lands and/or Conservation Easements for All or a Portion of the Properties Identified as TMK 9-4-001:008,009,016, 017,and 023,Situated in the Ahupua'a of Kiolaka'a and Wai'oma'o, District Of Ka'u, Utilizing the Public Access,Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund Aloha Chair Kaneali'i-Kleinfelder and Members of the Committee, "Ma muli o keia loa'a ana o keia mau mea maika'i o kakou, mea pono no is kakou e hang i kahi mau mea a waiho iho ai no na po'e e hele mai ana mahope. E 'ike keia lakou." Because we have these good things, we should do the right thing to leave something for those who are coming after us. So that they may know. Herbert Ku'umi Kin/n, 1960 These words from my Uncle Ku'umi are displayed on the walls of Hawaiian Hall at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu. Born in 1903 at Ka'alaiki, Ka'u, he was a year older than my great- grandfather, Alfred Kalama Kahakua. Both brothers deeply loved their ancestral homeland of Ka'() and embraced the values of our kupuna. They were interviewed extensively by Tutu Kawena Pukui in the 1960s as she worked diligently to record our Hawaiian history, culture and language. In those recordings, they spoke fondly of the lands below Na'alehu and Waiohinu; Waikapuna, Kaunamano, Kawala, Kamilo, Ka'alu'alu and Ka Lae. Their words often expressed sadness about the loss of our heritage, our language, our flora,fauna and the Ka'u way of life. These messages from our ancestors provide guidance for our generation and the next. We have a rare opportunity to honor the legacy of our kupuna by protecting these lands and resources that have been passed down to us and preserving them for the next generation. The Ala Kahakai Trail Association (ATA) strongly supports Resolution 161. A registered non- profit established in 2008, ATA's mission is to support and guide a community- Comm. No. Ref. To: p Date— i 20 managed trail that honors those who came before and perpetuates for those to follow — with protocols and respect for Hawai'i's past, present and future. Congress added the Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail to the National Trails System in 2000 for the preservation, protection and interpretation of traditional Native Hawaiian culture and natural resources. Today, the Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail is a 175-mile corridor and trail network of cultural and historical significance. It traverses through hundreds of ancient Hawaiian settlement sites and over 200 ahupua'a extending from 'Upolu Point on the north tip of Hawaii Island down the west coast of the island around Ka Lae (South Point) to the east 3 boundary of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. We are a Native Hawaiian Organization and our board is comprised of mostly descendants with ancestral ties to geographic sections of the trail. Our goal is to connect our communities with 3 the trail through preservation and community-based management. I serve as a volunteer board member representing the Ka'u District. I For many years, the Ka'u community has advocated for the protection of the entire 80 miles of coastline. Our goal is to work together with community stakeholders towards collaborative landscape protection of the Ka'u coastline. The trail provides this connectivity. 3 3 My family has a deep ancestral connection to these lands. With the closure of Ka'u Agribusiness at the turn of the century, many of these coastal lands below the highway were sold to real estate developers and land speculators. Soon after, applications were submitted to County Planning for large luxury style subdivisions. For the past twenty years, we have been desperately seeking ways to protect the cultural and natural resources of these lands for 1 community stewardship and management. These lands are critical for the health of our Ka'u families, many who access this area for subsistence fishing and gathering. In July 2009, the State Historic Preservation Department granted an exception to the developer i of the Kiolaka'a property for a full archaeological inventory survey due to claims of "economic hardship." Only a survey of the planned roadway corridor was required. In April 2010, the developer received a variance from County roadway and water requirements as part of its 22 - lot subdivision. According to the approval letter, the variance would allow for the subdivision to be created without providing a water supply system to meet the minimum requirements of the Department of Water Supply and constructing minimum dedicable and nondedicable roadway improvements meeting with the requirements of the Department of Public Works. If we are unable to raise the funds to preserve this property, it will be subdivided and developed. In addition to the extensive trail network and multiple lava tube cave systems used for habitation, water collection and defense, the property includes a freshwater spring, anchialine ponds, pristine coastal plant habitat and a significant dryland forest remnant with rare trees. i In April, the Ala Kahakai Trail Association secured a positive recommendation by the State of I Hawaii Legacy Land Conservation Commission and concurrent Board of Land and Natural 3 Resources approval of a Legacy Land Conservation Grant Award in the amount of$1,475,000 to purchase the Kiolaka'a Property and to manage, protect and sustain its historical significance, unique cultural resources and natural environment for the citizens of Ka'u and Hawaii Island. 3 i i E i i i With State funding, the County of Hawaii would have an opportunity to leverage its potential contribution towards the preservation purchase of Kiolaka`a Property by joining with the Ala Kahakai Trail Association to acquire title or a conservation easement. If the preservation is successful, we intend to work with the community to steward natural resources by partnering with local environmental organizations such as The Nature Conservancy and Hawaii Wildlife Fund, both non-profits who are already providing resource protection in the area. We value our relationship with all Ka'u stewards and stakeholders as collaborative community partnerships are vital to achieving landscape level protection. In the State Legacy Grant application, ATA has committed to developing a Community Management Plan for Kiolaka'a within 18 months of closing, if the conservation acquisition is successful. ATA sincerely welcomes everyone's participation in the Community Management planning process which will likely be facilitated by a planning consulting firm. Earlier this year, ATR conducted extensive community engagement and outreach including two separate community meetings which were well advertised, open to everyone and facilitated by a professional facilitator. Through this process, we received great suggestions and support from the broader community which has helped to shape solutions for us to move forward as a community should ATA successfully raise the necessary funds for the preservation purchase. The commitments which were adopted as conditions in the State grant approval are as follows: 1. ATA shall make an inclusive community management planning process for Kiolaka'a; 2. ATA shall invite Ka'u descendants, residents, non-profits, community groups, ranchers, and anyone who has a relationship to Kiolaka'a to participate in the community management planning process; 3. ATA shall invite Ka'u descendants, residents, and organizations to partner on stewardship projects for Kiolaka`a and/or participate on the Stewardship Committee; 4. ATA shall add additional board members that are Ka'u residents; 5. ATA shall host quarterly community meetings to keep the Ka'u community updated about its land protection efforts; and 6. ATA shall—if it determines in its discretion that a Ka'u nonprofit, a State agency, or a County agency has the capacity to carry the kuleana of owning these lands, meets State and County requirements, and is supported by the community—work with that entity to request BLNR and County approval to transfer the deed to said entity. Protection of the Ka'u coastline has been a long-standing goal of the community and Kiolaka'a is an integral part of that collaborative landscape. With only a few privately owned properties at risk of development remaining, this vision of protecting the entire Ka'u coastline can be achieved. For my family, the threat of development is very real. These conservation purchases are a last resort to save these lands from subdivision and development which would disturb iwi kupuna, compromise hundreds of cultural sites, and result in private gated communities where public access is restricted. i Mahalo for this opportunity to testify in support of the resolution. i 'i Keoni Fox Board Member, Ala Kahakai Trail Association foxCc�alakahakaitrail.or� � '11 i