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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0508.000 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 ;—, L ^� � ✓ September 9, 2025 -` The Honorable Chairman Holeka Goro Inaba -- K and Members of the County Council County of Hawaii 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, HI 96720 Dear Chairman Inaba and Members of the County Council: SUBJECT: Change of Zone Amendment Application (PL-REZ-2025-000080) Amendment to Change of Zone Ordinance No. 24-37 (PL-REZ-2023-000054) Request: Amendment to Condition K (Affordable Housing) and Condition I (Fair Share Contribution) Applicant: Hawaii Island Community Development Corporation (HICDC) Tax Map Key: (3) 5-5-019:025 (por.) and 027 (por.), North Kohala, Hawaii 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 Leeward Planning Commission letter regarding the above -referenced request. Sincerely, WILLIAM V. BRILHANTE, JR. Managing Director TCouncilHawaiiIslandCommunityDevelopmentCorporationPL-REZ-2025-080 �� Enclosures Comm. No. Ref. To: Rpl� cc: Planning Department Ref. Date SEP 15 2025 w County of Hawai i is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer �t�l �� C. Kimo Alameda, Ph.D. Mayor William V. Brilhante Jr. Managing Director September 03, 2025 J�SV OF County of Hawaii Dean Au, Chair Donna "Kinuko" Noborikawa, Vice Chair Alexandria "Lexie" Ayers Michael Dela Cruz Rebecca "Kawehi" Inaba Clement "CJ" Kanuha III Armando Rodriguez LEEWARD PLANNING COMMISSION Aupuni Center • 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 3 • Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Phone (808) 961-8288 • Fax (808) 961-8742 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: SUBJECT: Change of Zone Amendment Application (PL-REZ-2025-000080) Amendment to Change of Zone Ordinance No. 24-37 (PL-REZ-2023-000054) Request: Amendment to Condition K (Affordable Housing) and Condition I (Fair Share Contribution) Applicant: Hawaii Island Community Development Corporation (HICDC) Tag Man Key: (3) 5-5-019:025 (nor.) and 027 (nor.), North Kohala, Hawaii The Leeward Planning Commission (Commission), at its duly held public hearing on August 21,. 2025, considered the above referenced application for an amendment to Conditions K (Affordable Housing) and Condition I (Fair Share Contribution) of Change of Zone Ordinance No. 24-37, which amended Ordinance No. 10-101, which reclassified approximately 18.38 acres of land from an Agricultural 20-acre (A-20a) to a Single Family Residential-15,000 square foot (RS-15), Single Family Residential-10,000 square foot (RS-10), Single Family Residential-7,500 square foot (RS-7.5) and Open zoning districts. The property is situated along the north (makai) side of the Akoni Pule Highway approximately 600 feet west of the Kohala High and Elementary School complex, Pahoa, Hawi, North Kohala, Hawaii. The Commission voted to forward a favorable recommendation to the County Council based on the Planning Director's recommendation. The Commission concurred with the Planning Director's following reasons for a favorable consideration of the request. www.planning.hawaiicounty.gov Hawaii County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer planning(@,hawaiicounty.gov Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council September 03, 2025 Page 2 The applicant is requesting to amend two conditions of the subject Change of Zone ordinance to facilitate their ability to utilize funds from the County's Affordable Housing Production (AHP) program to develop the final phases of the `Kumakua Self Help Housing' project. In their application for their last amendment, the applicant committed to dedicating 32 of the 33 planned lots for affordable housing. As had been the Planning Department's practice at the time, the applicant's commitment was memorialized in the affordable housing condition (Condition K). Additionally, to help defray the cost of developing these affordable lots, the Planning Director added language to the fair share condition (Condition I) to provide relief from the requirement to pay fair share on the affordable lots. At the time of the original amendment, neither the applicant nor the Planning Department were aware that this condition language conflicts with the AHP's funding rules, specifically around the prohibition of AHP funding use for affordable housing units/lots that are required by law. Because Condition K treats the 32 affordable units as a zoning requirement, AHP funding cannot be applied to them under Section 3-5(6)(b) of the program rules. To resolve this conflict, the Planning Department collaborated with OHCD to develop new standard affordable housing condition language for change of zone ordinances that aligns with AHP rules and encourages the development of additional affordable housing lots/units by offering incentives, such as relief from Fair Share requirements, in return for voluntarily provided affordable units well beyond the 20% required by housing code. The applicants' proposed amendments to Conditions I and K are generally consistent with the department's updated standard condition language and continue to support the original intent of promoting the development of a substantial number of affordable residential lots. The Planning Director recommends one modification: removal of the applicants' proposed introductory clause to Condition I, which states, "Should the Applicant develop residential lots on the subject property, the [The]... ". This conditional phrasing is more appropriate in the context of commercial zoning, where residential development is permitted but not required. However, because the subject property is zoned Single -Family Residential (RS-7.5 and RS-10), the creation of residential lots is an expected outcome. As such, the inclusion of this qualifying language is unnecessary. Additionally, there have been no changes to the subject property, proposed development, or associated land use entitlements since the most recent amendment in 2024, which granted a time extension for subdividing the final phases of the `Kumakua Self -Help Housing' project. Therefore, the justification provided for that amendment remains valid. These include consistency with the General Plan, the North Kohala Community Development Plan, and the Zoning Code; the availability of necessary infrastructure; and continued compliance with Coastal Zone Management (CZM) requirements, including the protection of historic, cultural, and natural resources. r_ a Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council September 03, 2025 Page 3 The proposed revisions to Conditions I and K remain consistent with these overarching policy objectives and will further facilitate the applicant's efforts to provide critically needed affordable housing in the North Kohala region. Lastly, this recommendation is made with the understanding that the applicant remains responsible for complying with all other applicable governmental requirements in connection with the proposed use, prior to its commencement or establishment upon the subject properties. Additional governmental requirements may include the issuance of building permits, compliance with the Fire Code, installation of improvements required by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), among many others. Compliance with all applicable governmental requirements is a condition of this approval; failure to comply with such requirements will be considered a violation that may result in enforcement action by the Planning Department and/or the affected agencies. Based on the findings presented, the Planning Director recommends a favorable recommendation to the applicant's proposed amendment to Condition I (Fair Share) as modified by the Director and Condition K (Affordable Housing) be forwarded to the County Council. The accompanying draft bill to amend Ordinance No. 24-37 is provided for your consideration. Please note the proposed conditions of approval attached to the draft bill, including updates to conditions to reflect current standard condition language, including adding tolling language, updating fair share amounts, and adding ordinance nullification/reversion language as required by the Zoning Code. Material to be deleted is bracketed and struck through; new material is underscored. The Planning Department's background report, recommendation report, PowerPoint presentation, and public testimony are available for review at the following Laserfiche WebLink address: https://records.hawaiicoupty.gov/weblinkBrowse.aspx?dbid=l&startid=150115. The Commission hearing minutes will be available for review, once a draft is completed, at the following Laserfiche Weblink address: https://records.hawaiicougly.gov/weblinkBrowse.aspx?dbid=l &startid=148816. Should you have any questions, please contact Maija Jackson of this department at (808) 961- 8159 or by email at Maiia.Jackson@hawaiicounty.gov. Sincerely, &M ai Dean Au(Sep 3, 2025 09:42:58 HST) Dean Au, Chairperson Leeward Planning Commission V, t- Dr. Holeka Goro Inaba, Council Chair and Members of the County Council September 03, 2025 Page 4 Enclosure: Draft Bill HawaiiIslandCommunityDevelopmentCorpPL-REZ-2025-0000801pe cc via email w/enclosure: Leeward Planning Commission Jeffrey W. Darrow, Planning Director Deputy Corporation Counsel for Planning Department Deputy Corporation Counsel for Planning Commission Keith Kato Jeremy McComber Chantelle Webster