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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0235.000 2024-2026C. Kimo Alameda, Ph.D. Mayor William V. Brilhante, Jr. Managing Director Merrick Nishimoto Deputy Managing Director County of Hawaii - Office of the .Mayor 25 Aupuni Street, Suite 2603 • Hilo, Hawaii 96720 • Phone (808) 961-8211 • Fax (808) 961-6553 KONA: 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Hwy., Bldg C • Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740 Phone (808) 323-4444 • Fax (808) 323-4440 April 9, 2025 Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Dear Chair Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba and Council Members: COUNTY CLERK COUNTY OF HAWAI'I RECEIVED Time Togam RV f PateIL2��"...__� SUBJECT: Change of Zone Application (PL-REZ-2024-000069) Request: Single -Family Residential-10,000 Square Feet (RS-10) to Village Commercial-10,000 Square Feet (CV-10) Applicant: L. A. Services Inc. Tax Map Key: (3) 9-5-009:001 (por.), Na`i lehu, Ka`u , Hawai`i As required by Chapter 7, Sec. 6-7.5 (a)(3), Hawai`i County Charter, transmitted herewith for the County Council's consideration and action is the Windward Planning Commission letter regarding the above -referenced request. Sincerely, WILLIAM V. BRILHANTE, JR. Managing Director TCouncilLAServicesPL-REZ-2024-069 Enclosures cc: Planning Department County of Hawaii is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer Comm. . 73& Ref. To: Ref. Date AIR 14 2025 C. Kimo Alameda, Ph.D. Mayor William V. Brilhante, Jr. Managing Director County of Hawaii WINDWARD PLANNING COMMISSION Aupuni Center 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 3 Hi, Hawaii 96720 Phone(808) 961-8288 Fax (808) 961-8742 April 09, 2025 Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Dear Chair Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba and Council Members: Louis Daniele III, Chair Chantel Perrin, Vice Chair Lauren Balog Wayne De Luz JoNelle Fukushima Gordon Takaki SUBJECT: Change of Zone Application (PL-REZ-2024-000069) Request: Single -Family Residential-1.0,000 Square Feet (RS-10) to Village Commercial-10,000 Square Feet (CV-10) Applicant: L. A. Services Inc. Tax May Key: (3) 9-5-009:001 (por.), Na`alehu, Ka`u , Hawai`i The Windward Planning Commission (Commission), at its duly held public hearing on April 3, 2025, considered the above -referenced application for a Change of Zone from a Single -Family Residential-10,000 square feet (RS-10) zoning district to a Village Commercial-10,000 square feet (CV-10) zoning district for 6,920.3-square foot portion of a 25,99.4-square foot parcel. The subject property is located at 95-5591 Mamalahoa Highway, at the southwest corner of its intersection with Pua`ala Place, Nd'dlehu Village, Portion of Kaunamano, Ka`u, Hawaii. The Commission voted to send an unfavorable recommendation to the County Council, ultimately adopting the Planning Director's reasons for the unfavorable recommendation as follows: The Applicant is requesting a Change of Zone from a Single -Family Residential- 10,000 square feet (RS-10) zoning district to a Village Commercial-10,000 square feet (CV-10) zoning district for a 6,920-square-foot portion of a 25,955-square foot parcel. The Village Commercial (CV) zoning district, with a minimum area required for each building site of 10,000 square feet, would allow a maximum density of two building sites www.planning.hawaiicounty.gov Hawaii County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer planningghawaiicountv.gov Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii April 09, 2025 Page 2 (lots) for the 25,955-square foot parcel. In addition, although the applicant states there are no current plans for development, any permitted use in the CV -zoning district can be established on the 6,920-square-foot rezone area should the change of zone request be approved, including the potential maximum density of 5 double -family residential units or 5 multiple -family residential units. The 6,920-square-foot rezone area was recently consolidated with an adjacent 19,035.1-square-foot parcel under the same ownership, which established the 25,955- square foot subject property. The objective of the current request is to establish a unified zoning designation of CV-10 for the entire property. Although the applicant notes that the rezone area would be ready for commercial use following approval of the change of zone, there is no current plan to develop the rezone area. In considering a change of zone initiated by a property owner or other person which proposes to change the zoning district classification of any property, the Planning Director shall consider the purposes of the existing and proposed zoning district and the purposes of the Zoning Code (Chapter 25 of the Hawaii County Code) and shall recommend a change of zone only where it will result in a more appropriate land use pattern that will further the public necessity and convenience and the general welfare, and be consistent with the goals, policies and standards of the General Plan as well as the standards of the Zoning Code. The Zoning Code for the County of Hawaii is the legal instrument that regulates the use of land. The Zoning Code implements the General. Plan and is a document dealing with existing conditions and shorter -range needs. The Zoning Code is the County's primary land use control. The Zoning Code sets out the various types of zoning districts and uses allowed within each district. Zoning maps, established by ordinance, define the zoning districts for the island on a parcel -by -parcel basis. This unfavorable recommendation is based on the fact that the request does not meet the concurrency standards for water as required by Section 25-2-46 of the Zoning Code. Discussion regarding the provision of water service to the proposed rezone area and concurrency requirements. In 2007, the Hawaii County Council adopted Ordinance 07 99 to add concurrency requirements to the Zoning Code, setting standard expectations for water supply for change of zone actions. Section 25-2-46(m) of the Zoning Code states, "A zoning amendment application shall not be granted unless: (1) the department of water Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii April 09, 2025 Page 3 supply has determined that it can meet the water requirements of the project and issue water commitments using its existing system; or (2) speck improvements to the existing public water system, or a private water system equivalent to the requirements of the department of water supply will be provided to meet the water needs of the project and conditions of zoning delay occupancy until the necessary improvements are actually constructed. " Although the applicant has no current plans for construction on the rezone area, should the change of zone request to CV-10 be granted, the applicant would be able to establish any use permitted in CV-10 zoning, including a variety of commercial uses such as restaurants and automobile service stations, 5 double -family residential units or 5 multiple -family residential units. Concurrency requirements established by the County Council mandate that adequate water is available to service the potential of higher density development. According to the Department of Water Supply (DWS), an existing 8-inch waterline within. Mamalahoa Highway, fronting the recently consolidated parcel, supplies water to two (2) existing 5/8-inch meters, with each meter limited to one unit of water with an average daily usage of 400 gallons. DWS states that the existing water system cannot support the proposed change of zone and cannot provide additional water beyond the existing services. Further, DWS notes that in order to make water available, extensive improvements and additions would be required to the DWS system including storage, booster pumps and distribution facilities, for which sufficient County funding is not available. Lastly, the existing 8-inch waterline is inadequate to provide the required fire flow of 2,000 gallons per minute for fire protection, as required by DWS Water System Standards for commercial zoning. Additionally, DWS's existing storage facilities that serve the area are inadequate to provide the requisite volume of water needed for fire protection as required per DWS Water System Standards. Although the applicant has proposed using the existing 8-inch water line to supply water to the rezone area for any new development, comments from DWS clarify that additional water is not available. Furthermore, the applicant has not proposed another method of providing water that would comply with concurrency requirements, such as a private water system equivalent to DWS standards. Section 25-2-46(n) of the Zoning Code states, "To facilitate the development of village centers in rural areas that are not currently served by a public water system, the council may waive the water supply requirements.for zoning amendments for commercial or light industrial uses in areas that do not currently have a public water system, and where the department of water supply has no plans to build a public water system, and Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii April 09, 2025 Page 4 which are (1) designated as an "urban and rural center" or "industrial area" on table 14-5 of the general plan and (2) designated for urban use on the land use pattern allocation guide map of the general plan; provided that conditions of zoning shall require water supply consistent with public health and safety needs such as sanitation and fire -fighting. However, this section of code does not apply to the subject application because the rezone area is in Na`alehu, which is served by a public water system. The public water system simply does not have the ability to provide additional water beyond the existing services and the existing waterline does not have the ability to provide the fire flow needed for commercial zoning. The surrounding area of Na`alehu consists primarily of lots that have maintained their original zoning since the adoption of the Zoning Code in 1967..There are three instances of nearby parcels that were rezoned to CV-7.5 zoning, however these change of zone actions were approved prior to the establishment of concurrency requirements. As discussed above, the proposed request for a change of zone does not meet the minimum concurrency requirements for water, as set forth in Hawaii County Code, Section 25-2-46. Please note that pursuant to Ordinance No. 24-87 and Section 25-2-42(c)(4) of HCC, a report on surrounding properties within 1,000 feet of the subject property can be found in the Planning Department Background report as Exhibit 3. Based on the above discussion, the Planning Director is recommending that the Windward Planning Commission forward an unfavorable recommendation for the proposed change of zone request to the Hawaii County Council. We are enclosing a draft bill to amend Section 25-8-30 (Na`alehu Zone Map), Article 8, Chapter 25 (Zoning), of the Hawaii County Code. Please note that because of this unfavorable recommendation, there are no proposed conditions attached to the draft bill. The Planning Department's background report, recommendation report, and PowerPoint presentation are available for review at the following Laserfiche Weblink address: https•//records hawaiicounty.gov/weblinkBrowse.aspx?dbid=l&startid=146832 The Commission meeting minutes of April 3, 2025, can be found at the following link once it is available: https://records.hawaiicounty.gov/weblink/Browse.aspx?dbid=l &startid=147999 Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii April 09, 2025 Page 5 Should there be any questions, please feel free to contact Planning Program Manager, Maija Jackson at (808) 961-8159. Sincerely, Z-oar's Zpaaeiete -/// Louis Danie[e III (Apr 9, 2025 11:08 HST) Louis Daniele 111, Chairman Windward Planning Commission P\wp60\PC\PCC2025-2\LLAServicesPL-REZ-2024-069wpc Enclosure: Draft Bill cc w/enclosure via email: Benjamin Alonzo Sr., L. A. Services Inc. Aric Koerte, Mana Land Consultant LLC Windward Planning Commission Jeffrey W. Darrow, Planning Director Jean Campbell, Esq., Deputy Corporation Counsel Suzanna Tiapula, Esq., Deputy Corporation Counsel