HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0675.364 2022-2024From: rowlyroy
Seat: Saturday, July 6, 2024 6:22 AM
To: Council Testimony
Subject: Re; Bills 121 & 556
My apologies - I've corrected my typo in the subject line here: Letter tragrds Bills 121 & 556 (not 557)
Kind regards
Rowly Johnson
rowlyroy@gmaiLcom
On Jul 6, 2024, at 09:19,
Hello Councll-
wrote:
Thank you foryour openness to listening to perspectives of small business owners on
island, when the louder voices will always be the well -funded hotel lobbies.
We have successfully and legally operated our transient vacation rental property which we
built specifically for that purpose in 2016.
With hundreds of guests, bringing thousands of tourist dollars to the island, we have never
had a single complaint from nearby neighbouring homes or anyone else. Our home is
professionally managed with noise sensors and 24/7 response from the property manager.
Our home is located in Kamuela, in a region zoned as "resort node." if Hawai'i County
ultimately bans TVRs, we will be forced to sell as we can't afford it on our own. This home
is not taking from local housing stock; we developed a vacant property with poor access to
grocery stores, schools and other amenities that would otherwise likely still be sitting
vacant. Its size and location are not of interest to most local Hawaiians, and only as a
business can it pay for its high taxes and operating costs.
Every month the house contributes over $20,000 directly to the local economy. This
includes paying local landscapers (who regionally do not have to travel far from their
Kohala homes), pool service workers, HVAC technicians, grocery workers, garbage
collection businesses, pest control technicians, caterers, handy people, a local bank
(interest from a large mortgage) and over $50,000 annually in direct property tax
contributions to the County *in addition to over $100,000* in accommodation taxes paid
by guests. As well, we set aside 10% to donate to local not -for -profit organizations that
support growing local Hawaiian businesses and young people in creating and sustaining
initiatives to support locals like the Koi Fond Initiative and other charities. Last year we
operated at a loss to meet these commitments - we're not a wealthy hotel enterprise but a
couple who love this island and its people.
comm.
i Ref. To:
Ref. DoW—UL t—rm_
Please pause these bills until more thorough examination of their impacts can be
understood. A very few "bad apple" TVRs can have problems while the vast majority are
responsibly operated without issue. The County has already set reasonable limits - further
controls risk harming the proverbial baby as the bathwater is tossed away on the way to a
total ban. Other jurisdictions set reasonable limits for peaceful and successful co-
existence. In still other areas, powerful hotel lobbies have fear -mongered total TVR bans to
protect their own interests, driving small business owners elsewhere and harming healthy
accommodation competition. Many tourist families do not prefer hotels and wish to stay
together in a house. They will travel to other destinations than Hawaii if houses are no
longer available.
Thank you for reading this. Please don't shut down our livelihoods, and jobs for dozens of
locals.
Kind regards
Rowly Johnson
YOLO Holdings LLLP (a Hawaiian limited partnership)
rowlyroy@gmail.com
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