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REPORT OF THE <br /> COMMITTEE ON PLANNING <br /> DATE: February 22, 2022 Re: Comm. No. 617 <br /> PLACE: Council Chambers <br /> Kailua-Kona, Hawaii <br /> TIME: 3:00 p.m. <br /> Council Chair and Members <br /> Hawaii County Council <br /> Hilo, Hawaii 96720 <br /> Your Committee on Planning, to which was referred Communication No. 617, reports as <br /> follows: <br /> Communication No. 617, submitted by Mayor Mitchell D. Roth, dated February 1, 2022, <br /> submitted for the Council's review and confirmation the nomination of Lauren Balog to the <br /> Windward Planning Commission. <br /> Executive Assistant to the Mayor, Pomaika`i Bartolome, was present in the Hilo Chambers to <br /> introduce Ms. Balog, who appeared via Zoom. Ms. Balog is a lifelong resident of Hawaii Island <br /> and a graduate of St. Joseph High School. She currently attends the University of Hawaii at Hilo <br /> College of Agriculture and is employed with Edwin De Luz Trucking and Gravel LLC where she <br /> oversees the dispatch department and assists with prescreening candidates for employment. She <br /> has volunteered and contributed numerous hours of community service through youth programs <br /> and food distributions. If confirmed, she will serve a term ending December 31, 2026. <br /> Committee Member Tim Richards disclosed that he has known Ms. Balog and her family for a <br /> long time. He voiced his support for Ms. Balog noting that she is very thoughtful. <br /> Committee Member Sue Lee Loy thanked Ms. Balog for stepping up and noted that her work in <br /> her family business gives her an industry mindset and a deep level of understanding of the issues <br /> that come before the Windward Planning Commission. <br /> Committee Member Heather Kimball asked Ms. Balog if she had read the Hamakua Community <br /> Development Plan and stressed that she would not like to see further subdivisions and one-way <br /> roads and bridges. Ms. Balog noted that she had gone over the Hamakua CDP and agreed with <br /> Committee Member Kimball's sentiments. <br /> Committee Members Holeka Inaba and Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder asked Ms. Balog what <br /> motivated her to volunteer for the WPC and how she plans to represent communities as a whole. <br /> Ms. Balog responded that she has always found land use planning important and has seen how it <br /> impacted her communities, which inspired her to want to get involved. <br /> PC Report No.: 46 <br />