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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0573.003 2020-2022 Comments on Communication 573 re. Papa'ikou for Hawaii County Council Finance Committee, 11:30 AM Tuesday,January 18, 2022 from Cory Harden, Sierra Club, Hawai'i Island Group COUNTYCLERK COUNTY OF HAWAII RECEIVE Tire :�� A . R Date—JAN-1-9- Why are we hearing that the Mayor's office has put public access to Papa'ikou Mill Beach on hold? Isn't the Administration supposed to carry out the will of the Council? s Also,what is Corporation Counsel's role?Are they legally required to support the Mayor with his hold on access?Or support County Council in its Resolution 732-20 to enable access? We have learned that the ancient trail along the shoreline may be preserved by a public access easement,which would be another reason to enable access. We're trying to find out more. Regardless,the County has a legal obligation to provide access, and it's taking far too long.Three different mayors have now watched as the can is kicked down the road. Babies born the day the original resolution passed are now in fourth grade. Support for access has been widespread and unwavering. Over 5,000 people signed a petition. Hundreds 3 of people turned out for hearing after hearing. Many people held signs by the road.The County Council voted in favor. Support has come from Global HOPE,the Surfrider Foundation, Sierra Club, and individual testifiers, young and old, kama'aina and newbies,from diverse cultural groups and diverse walks of life. Old-timers have recounted memories of plantation days. Lawyers have analyzed deeds and statutes. A County trail to the beach would be the only officially recognized public access in a stretch of shoreline three and a half miles long. But still access is denied. In fairness,the property owners deserve credit for building a safe trail to Mill Beach, opening the trail to the public most days,and trying to keep the beach clean and safe.They also try to keep the road passable for emergency vehicles. But they have had community residents arrested, fined, or barred from the trail for not following the owners' rules.Those rules include no access at certain times(sometimes the best fishing times),and no coolers, strollers, skateboards,or bikes. Families who have freely accessed the beach for generations sometimes find themselves locked out. Kalani Lyman,a native Hawaiian and also a descendant of the Lyman missionaries, was once arrested for using the trail at the wrong time--despite his constitutionally- protected traditional and customary rights, rights that have been repeatedly upheld by the state Supreme Court. Other public beaches have restrictions, but these are decided by officials who are accountable to the public, not by private citizens. Papa'ikou access should be comparable to other beaches—for subsistence Comm. Ref. To: t1 Ref. Date JAN 1 9 2022 I fishing, surfing, and just being on the beach,any time,without the threat that property owners could suddenly lock the gate forever. I But even if the property owners had a right to make rules,the trail and beach are an enormous kuleono --too much for one or two property owners.Access is best managed by officials with access to government resources. I Stepping back for a moment, we realize there are larger forces at work here. One is the worldwide privatizing of the commons.We've almost forgotten that once everyone could graze their cows in common pastures, and once there were no leases in the ocean. In Hawai'i,once land was like air--it was for everyone. i A second force is our loss of relationship to the land. In old Hawai'i, people had deep spiritual, cultural, and working relationships with the land.Today,too often, land is treated as just another commodity,to be bought, sold, and used,with little thought for future generations or the health of the planet. For Papa'ikou, we urge that the County follow the law and provide public access to the shore.