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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0554.009 2014-2016 comments on Bill 116 re. agricultural tourism for Hawai'i County Council Planning Committee, 9:30 am Tuesday, January 5, 2016 from Cory Harden, Hilo 959-7747 Thank you for continuing to work on this. I hope the focus will not be on tourism, but on agriculture.We don't always have tourists wanting to visit Hawai'i, but we always have locals wanting to eat. I'm glad some items from my wish list made it into the bill.These items did not: Who needs approval Approval should required for major AND minor ag tourism; and for ag products processing facilities No approval should be needed for roadside stands—but parking, loading, and tum-arounds should be safe Approval process Site inspection should be required to get a permit rn .7.' < If a permit isn't approved ih 30 days, it is automatically denied 8r Size •v Major ag tourism sites should be at least 10 acres--minor, at least 3 acres ; -- Health and safety Operator must clearly designate hazardous and private areas that are off-limits to visitors Operator must document compliance with State Department of Health standards (restrooms, sewage disposal, etc.) Operator must make good faith effort to keep visitors from trespassing on neighbors' land Animals must be kept safely and humanely, and adequately confined Roads - Operator must have County-approved dust control plans for ag site and roads used Permit applications must state if buses, vans, and/or passenger vehicles will be used Parking lots must have clearly marked loading/unloading zones Operator must put up road signs to direct visitors, so they don't drive around lost and disturb neighbors Neighbor impacts Ag tourism should only occur 8 hours a day, with no exceptions Ag tourism should only occur five days a week, and never on Sundays Major operations should not have more than 200 visitors a week Facilities (including tents and canopies) should not exceed 1,000 square feet Property size and number of operations per neighborhood should be limited Operation must be compatible with character of neighborhood (no oversize, elaborate buildings in rustic P P 9 9 areas) S94l e comm. N®. Ref. To In Pei Ref. Date JAN 05 7016 Operator must inform neighbors of proposed ag tourism via letter and a lot sign Ag tourism noise should not go beyond property line. Police have said loud noise is allowed on ag land day or night, even if it's not from ag activity. Enforcement There should be user-friendly ways for neighbors to raise concerns about ongoing operations Permit fees and fines should be sufficient to fund enforcement and put in a separate revenue account Expenditures for inspectors should be a separate line item in the finance director's operations budget Taxes Property values for ag tourism properties should be based on facilities used for ag tourism Property taxes for neighbors should not go up •ice C.