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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0315.034 2020-2022 Dennis Hart,President Alan Brown,VP • - Kaleo Paik,Secretary 411111111111b® � Ray Broggini,Treasurer L� K• Keoni Fox A L !A-e K ®A H A; A: I Linda Gallano Ethan Souza Kahealani Wright Ala Kahakai Trail Association P.O Box 2338 Kamuela,HI 96743 August 03, 2021 COUNTY CLERK COUNTY OF HAWAII Sent via email RECEIVED .IJ County of Hawaii Time (I'S�8 a.. • By l /1 County Council Date AUG 0 4 2021 counciltestimony@hawaiicountv.gov 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 David and Members of the County Council, 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- 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 Hawai'i Island down the west coast of the island around Ka Lae (South Point) to the east boundary of Hawai'i 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 the trail through preservation and community-based management. I serve as a volunteer board member representing the Ka'u District. For many years, the Ka'u community has advocated for the protection of the entire 80 miles of coastline, a sentiment strongly reflected in the Ka'u Community Development Plan. These lands contribute immensely to the conservation values that the Ka'u community cherish: vast, Our mission is to support and guide a community-managed trail that honors those who came before and perpetuates f r� .� those to follow —with protocols and respect for HawaiiComm.'s past, present and futuNo. re. /�y,/� "r/JJ� Ref. To: UMW Ref. Date AUG - 4 2021 scenic views and open space free from development. Continuing to preserve, protect, and perpetuate the values of open space that accommodate a rural and subsistence lifestyle are critical to maintaining the quality of life to Ka'u residents. Our goal is to work together with community stakeholders towards collaborative landscape protection of the Ka'u coastline. The trail provides this connectivity. The coastline has always been an important resource for Ka'u families who utilize these areas for recreational space, subsistence fishing and gathering, and cultural practices. Many families share a deep ancestral connection to these lands. Like many other coastal properties in Ka'u, these lands were purchased by a developer after the closure of Ka'u Agribusiness and the property has been under the threat of development for many years. A proposed subdivision plan has received an exemption from the State Historic Preservation Department for a full archaeological inventory survey which puts unrecorded cultural sites and iwi kupuna at risk. The landowner also received a variance from County roadway and water requirements which further facilitates the development process. If we are unable to raise the funds to preserve this property, it will be subdivided and developed. For the past twenty years, our community has been desperately seeking ways to protect the cultural and natural resources of these lands for community stewardship and management. 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. The property includes the east side of Ka'alu'alu Bay, a popular spot for remote camping and surfing. In April, the Ala Kahakai Trail Association secured a positive recommendation by the State of Hawai'i Legacy Land Conservation Commission and concurrent Board of Land and Natural 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. With State funding, the County of Hawai'i 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. Our mission is to support and guide a community-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. Earlier this year, ATA 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 Kali] 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. Acquisition would not only protect the Kioloka'a and its immense biocultural resources, it would also conserve a critical land piece in the Ka'u coastal conservation puzzle. With only a few privately owned properties at risk of development remaining,this vision of protecting the entire Ka'u coastline can be achieved. 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. Mahalo for this opportunity to testify in support of the resolution. Keoni Fox Board Member,Ala Kahakai Trail Association fox@alakahakaitrail.org Our mission is to support and guide a community-managed trail that honors those who came before and perpetuates for those to follow — with protocols and respect for Hawaii's past, present and future.