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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN COUNCIL 2024-12-02 2024-2026 NEW Hawaii County Council 1" Session West Hawaii Civic Center 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Building A Kailua-Kona, Hawaii December 2, 2024 INVOCATION: Pastor Charles Brodhead of Kona Church of Nazarene gave the afternoon's invocation. CALL TO The regular meeting of the Hawaii County Council was called to order at ORDER: 4:05 p.m., in the Council Chambers, Kailua-Kona, by C. Kimo Alameda, Chair Pro-Tem. PLEDGE OF The Chair Pro-Tem directed the Council to the next order of business, Pledge of ALLEGIANCE: Allegiance. (At this time, Mr. Henricks led the Council in the Pledge of Allegiance.) PETITIONS, The Chair Pro-Tem directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, MEMORIALS, Petitions, Memorials, Certificates of Merit, and Expressions of Condolence. CERTIFICATES OF MERIT, AND (There were none.) EXPRESSIONS OF CONDOLENCE: STATEMENTS The Chair Pro-Tem directed the Council to proceed to the next order of business, FROM THE Statements from the Public on Agenda Items. PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS: (There were none.) ROLL CALL: Present: Ms. Michelle M. Galimba, Member Mr. James E. Hustace, Member Mr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Member Ms. Jenn Kagiwada, Member Mr. Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Member Ms. Ashley L. Kierkiewicz, Member Ms. Heather L. Kimball, Member Mr. Dennis "Fresh" Onishi, Member Ms. Rebecca Villegas, Member Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 ORDER OF The Chair Pro-Tem directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of RESOLUTIONS: business, Order of Resolutions. Res. 1-25: DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI`I Designates Holeka Goro Inaba as the Council Chairperson. Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 1-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 1-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Inaba, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, and Villegas —9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. PRO-TEM ALAMEDA: Motion passed. Alright, Chair Inaba, will you please switch seats. I hereby relinquish the gavel to the newly elected County Council Chair Inaba. Congratulations. Relinquish Chair: At this time, Chair Pro-Tem Alameda relinquished the chair to Chair Inaba. CHR. INABA: Mahalo, Mayor Alameda, for presiding over our first Council meeting. With that, Mr. Clerk, can you please read in Resolution 2-25? Res. 2-25: DESIGNATES THE VICE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI`I Designates Dennis "Fresh" Onishi as the Council Vice Chairperson. Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 2 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 2-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 2-25. Seconded by Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 3-25: ADOPTS THE RULES OF PROCEDURE AND ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAI`I Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 3-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 3-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 4-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON FINANCE AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Matt Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder as Chairperson and James E. Hustace as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 3 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 4-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 4-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 5-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Jenn Kagiwada as Chairperson and Matt Kaneali`i- Kleinfelder as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 5-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 5-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 6-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, REPORTS, AND COUNCIL OVERSIGHT AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Michelle M. Galimba as Chairperson and Rebecca Villegas as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 4 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 6-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 6-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 7-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE APPROVALS AND ACQUISITIONS AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Heather L. Kimball as Chairperson and Dennis "Fresh" Onishi as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 7-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 7-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 8-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE POLICY COMMITTEE ON PLANNING, LAND USE, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Ashley L. Kierkiewicz as Chairperson and Michelle M. Galimba as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. I Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 5 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 8-25: Ms. Galimba moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 8-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 9-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE POLICY COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELL-BEING AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Dennis "Fresh" Onishi as Chairperson and Heather L. Kimball as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 9-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 9-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 10-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE POLICY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS AND MASS TRANSIT AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members James E. Hustace as Chairperson and Ashley L. Kierkiewicz as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 6 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 10-25: Ms. Villegas moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 10-25. Seconded by Ms. Kierkiewicz and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 11-25: APPOINTS MEMBERS OF THE POLICY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND DESIGNATES THE CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON THEREOF Designates Council Members Rebecca Villegas as Chairperson and Jenn Kagiwada as Vice Chairperson (remaining Council Members to serve as Members of this Committee). Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Vote on Res. 11-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 11-25. Seconded by Ms. Galimba and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Res. 12-25: APPOINTS THE HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE AND ALTERNATE REPRESENTATIVE TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE HAWAI`I STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES Designates Council Members Heather L. Kimball as Representative and Jenn Kagiwada as Alternate Representative, effective December 2, 2024. Reference: Comm. l Intr. by: Council Member Inaba Page 7 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 Vote on Res. 12-25: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to recommend adoption of (Approved) Res. 12-25. Seconded by Ms. Villegas and carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. CHR. INABA: Communications, please. COMMUNI- The Chair directed the Committee to proceed to the next order of business, CATIONS: Communications. Comm. 1.1: APPOINTMENT OF THE DEPUTY COUNTY CLERK From County Clerk Jon Henricks, dated November 15, 2024, appointing Aaron Brown to the position of Deputy County Clerk. Motion to Close File: Ms. Kierkiewicz moved to close file on Comm. L L Seconded by Mr. Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. CHR. INABA: I'm going to hand it over to our County Clerk Jon Henricks at this time. MR. HENRICKS: He's better than nothing. CHR. INABA: Mr. Brown, if you'd like to come forward to the table and I would like to give you the opportunity, and this will be for those in attendance from the administration, kind of our format for appointments and nominations. MR. HENRICKS: Before he proceeds, I just wanted to thank everybody in the office that has been able to do our best to fill in the gap that Aaron has been gone for a year doing what he needed to do, and we're very relieved to have him back. But I want to appreciate everybody out there that stepped up in his absence and did whatever they could to, again, fill that gap, and I ask for the Council's support to bring him back to the Clerk's Office where, you know, he can do his best work for the people of this community. CHR. INABA: Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Mr. Brown. (Note: At this time, appointee Aaron Brown came forward to address the members of the Council.) Page 8 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 MR. BROWN: Hi, guys, Council Chair, Vice Chair, Council Members. It's nice to be before you today. Thank you, Jon, for those kind words. And yeah, I'm looking forward, with your blessing, to be back in the Clerk's Office continuing the work that we've done over the past six years. I had a great opportunity to work in the Finance Department with some great people up there. I was able to learn a lot and I think we did our best to continue some of the good work up there and I'm forward to bringing, you know, some of that learning back to our office as well. So, yeah. Thank you very much for this opportunity. CHR. INABA: Thank you, Mr. Brown. Council Member Onishi. MR. ONISHL Thank you, Chair. Mr. Brown, you can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think former Council Member Aaron Chung had looked at you as being the deputy because of your knowledge in accounting and looking at the budgets. And so, I'm looking forward to working with you to not only working with our Council budget but also with administration's budget which will be coming up. So, thank you and welcome back. MR. BROWN: Thank you, Council Member Onishi. CHR. INABA: Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Mr. Brown, wonderful to have you back on our side of the building. I have one, two words, actually. Air conditioners. MR. BROWN: Noted. I went downstairs to my old office, and it was a nice sauna down there. So, we'll get on that right away with the thanks of the administration and Public Works, of course. But, yes, noted. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: I say that because you have experience in many different departments in many different areas including small business and have always been a wealth of knowledge for myself and for others on the Council, and it's been a pleasure working with you in all your different facets and I'm happy to have you back on our side of the building and thank you. MR. BROWN: Thank you, Council Member Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder. CHR. INABA: Council Member Villegas. MS. VILLEGAS: Welcome back. Amazing and feel really grateful and honored that you have chosen to return to the Clerk's Office and working as closely as you guys do with the County Council can be a wild ride, you never know. Regardless of the process and all of the perimeters around keeping things as organized as possible, things happen and having had the opportunity and privilege of working with you before you sampled Finance for a little while, I'm really grateful to have Page 9 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 you back. And the team that you have with Jonsorry, Clerk Henricks, your humor and prioritizing connectivity and authentic encounters with people that we work with is heartfelt and I really appreciate it. So, it'll be nice to have you back in chambers all the time instead of just when we're drilling Finance about the budget. Just kidding. Just, welcome back. It makes my heart feel joyful. MR. BROWN: Thank you very much. MS. VILLEGAS: So, I yield. CHR. INABA: Thank you, Council Member Villegas. Council Member Kagiwada. MS. KAGIWADA: Thank you, Chair. Welcome back. We're very excited to have you back. I just wanted to say, you know, my first budget season you were extremely helpful and now having been over in Finance I sure you'll even know more and can help us when we're trying to, you know, figure out all the nitty gritty and what we need to know around budget. So, I really did appreciate that this first year; missed it the second year so glad to have you back. I yield. MR. BROWN: Thank you. CHR. INABA: Council Member Hustace. MR. HUSTACE: Mahalo, Chair. Aloha, Aaron. Thank you for stepping forward and supporting our communities. I worked with you in a different fashion actually when I sat on the Redistricting Commission. I know you weren't necessarily up and close with us, but I felt your support through Elections Division. So, grateful for the opportunity to work with you going forward. Mahalo nui. MR. BROWN: Awesome. Thank you. CHR. INABA: Council Member Kierkiewicz. MS. KIERKIEWICZ: Mr. Brown, I can't even begin to tell you how lost Clerk Henricks was without you. He really was. He was so mopey and grumpy. I had to tell him jokes to get him back in the mood. And so, it is a delight to have you back. My jokes didn't always hit. Sometimes they did. But it is a delight to have you back. I am really hopeful that everything that you've learned and absorbed at Finance, you are able to bring back to the Council and increase our capacity and ability to connect with the administration on budgetary manners and even work on refining some of the programs that we run, such as our CRF (Contingency Relief Funds)program and our Waiwai grants. So, you are a man with a lot of capacities and skills, and we are so lucky to have you back. Thank you. Page 10 Hawaii County Council-1 December 2,2024 MR. BROWN: Thank you. CHR. INABA: Council Member Kimball. MS. KIMBALL: Yeah, thank you. Mr. Brown, we're thrilled to have you back in the legislative branch. I won't repeat what everybody has said here, but I just want to let you know how much I appreciate how knowledgeable you are and how responsive you are. You've always responded to my texts, you know, lightning fast and that's really helpful, you know, when we're trying to get through things on a day to day basis. So, look forward to working with you again and thank you for coming back home to us. Aloha. MR. BROWN: Thank you. CHR. INABA: Council Member Galimba. MS. GALIMBA: Welcome back. I'm very glad to have you back. And we needed you because Jon needed the competition for sharpest dressed guy. So, raising the tone again. MR. BROWN: He sets the bar really high. I'll do my best. CHR. INABA: Thank you, Council Members. Mr. Brown, no words,just really grateful to have you back. So, thank you. MR. BROWN: Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Council Members. I really wasn't expecting all those really kind words. But I promise I'll do my best every day and I'm looking forward to working with you all. CHR. INABA: With that, all those in favor of closing file on Communication 1.1 and approving the appointment of Aaron Brown as Deputy County Clerk, please say "aye." Vote on Comm. 1.1: The motion to close file on Comm. 1.1 and approve the Filed appointment of the Deputy County Clerk was carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Council Members Galimba, Hustace, Kagiwada, Kaneali`i-Kleinfelder, Kierkiewicz, Kimball, Onishi, Villegas, and Chair Inaba—9. Noes: None. Absent: None. Excused: None. Page 11 Hawai`i County Council-1 December 2,2024 CHR. INABA: Thank you,Mr.Brown. That brings us to the end of our agenda for our first Council meeting. Any announcements? Council Member Kaneali`i- Kleinfelder. MR. KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER: Thank you very much, Chair. I'm very pleased to be part of the Council, but also in watching today's ceremonies and the inauguration of our Mayor as well as all of our new staff members to different departments,there's always a big shift when this happens and there's a chance for tremendous change and I'm really looking forward to see what happens. But today I was really overwhelmed by the faces that I was seeing that are going to be taking over departments and the direction that I think we're going in and I'm just really impressed. So, I wanted to mahalo everyone who's here as well as everyone who was at the inauguration ceremony and really just give my mahalo to the Mayor for what he's done so far. Thank you. I yield, Chair. CHR. INABA: Mahalo. With that, our first meeting comes to an end. The meeting is adjourned at 4:24 p.m. ADJOURN- There being no further business, Chair Inaba adjourned the meeting MENT: at 4:24 p.m. CHR. INABA: Mahalo to those in attendance and to all of our Council Members and Mayor. JAN 2 2 2025 Council Approval: UNTY JH/tk Page 12