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<br /> Jul, 18 06 12:55p Rocky Mountain Institute 808-329-4370 p.2 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> Mot~y ~ <br /> T <br /> r <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> ~TITV~ <br /> <br /> ROCKY MOUNTAIN INST'ITUT'E TESTIMONY SUPPORTING <br /> RESOLUTION 383-06 <br /> Planning Committee <br /> Hawaii Council <br /> July 18, 2006 <br /> 1:30 p.m. <br /> <br /> Chair Pilago and members of the Committees: <br /> <br /> The Rocky Mountain Institute is an independent, entrepreneurial, nonprofit applied research <br /> center working with the private and public sector to foster advanced resource productivity. RMI <br /> supports Resolution 383-06, amending Hawai'i County's general plan to allow an Open, Resort, <br /> and Urban Expansion designation for the Kona Kai Ola Project on DHHL and DLNR lands, in a <br /> manner consist with the DLNR lease agreement. <br /> <br /> RMI is the advocate of smart growth and supports the concurrency approach to ensuring <br /> adequate infrastructure necessary to support new developments is available as the developments <br /> are built. RMI believes that the correct approach is to make new developments as resource <br /> efficient as possible, minimize new infrastructure demand, and apply sustainable development <br /> principles to land use, waste, and transportation to minimize impact on the environment and <br /> community. <br /> Our community has been seeking developers that embrace this approach, and Jacoby <br /> Development has risen to this challenge. Jacoby Development seeks to make the Kona Kai Ola <br /> project a model of sustainable development for our county, and indeed, the state. Jacoby <br /> Development has set the sustainable design goal to go beyond minimizing impact, to a "good <br /> neighbor" approach of improving the surround infrastructure for energy, water, and waste. This <br /> is the type of leadership from developers that RMI believes the Council should support, <br /> <br /> Jacoby Development has engaged RMI to be its consultants for sustainability, and we have <br /> drafted broad sustainability goals for the project and are in the process of incorporating those <br /> goals into the design effort. Once adopted, these goals would place the Kona Kai Ola project on <br /> track to become a LEED certified development. <br /> <br /> The sustainability approach can lead to Hawaii's first resort powered 100% by renewables, the <br /> creation of a constructed wetlands for wildlife habitat that cleanses and recycles wastewater, <br /> large scale composting, purchase of local food, fish, and dry goods to maximize local economic <br /> benefits while minimizing carbon intensity, development of alternative transportation approaches 1 <br /> <br /> Comm. No. 7 <br /> 1 Ref. To:Pr0$**" <br /> Ref. irate <br />