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Home My WebLink AboutRES 155 Draft 01 2018-2020 J+tYOsk,�•' • COUNTY OF HAWAII STATE OF HAWAII �tE.OPM1� RESOLUTION NO. 55 19 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE DIRECTOR OF FINANCE TO ENTER INTO NEGOTIATIONS FOR THE ACQUISITION OF LAND OR CONSERVATION EASEMENT(S) FOR ALL OR A PORTION OF THE PROPERTIES IDENTIFIED AS TAX MAP KEY NOS. (3) 8-2-013:014; (3) 8-2-013:002; (3) 8-2-013:003; (3) 8-2-014:043; AND (3) 8-2-015:059 SITUATED IN KEALAKEKUA, DISTRICT OF SOUTH KONA, ISLAND AND COUNTY OF HAWAII, ALSO KNOWN AS THE AMY B. H. GREENWELL ETHNOBOTANICAL GARDEN, PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 2, ARTICLE 42, HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 EDITION, AS AMENDED). WHEREAS, Chapter 2, Article 42, Hawai`i County Code 1983 (2016 Edition, as amended) (hereinafter"the Code"), provides for a Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund; and WHEREAS, Section 2-215, of the Code, established the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Commission(hereinafter"Commission"); and WHEREAS, the Hawaii County Charter, Section 10-15, establishes a Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund, which receives a minimum of two percent of certified real property tax revenues, including penalties and interest, each fiscal year to be expended for the purposes as described below; and WHEREAS, the Hawai`i County Charter, Article X, Financial Procedures, Section 10- 15(c) provides as follows: "(c) Monies in this fund shall be used solely to: (1) Purchase or otherwise acquire lands and easements in the County of Hawai`i for public outdoor recreation and education, including: (A) Access to beaches and mountains; (B) Preservation of historic or culturally important land areas and sites; (C) Protection of natural resources, significant habitat or eco-systems, including buffer zones; (D) Preservation of forests, beaches, coastal areas, natural beauty and agricultural lands; and (E) Protection of watershed lands to preserve water quality and water supply."; and WHEREAS, Section 2-217 of the Code provides, in part, that the duties and responsibilities of the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Commission(hereinafter "the Commission") include developing and submitting to the Mayor an initial prioritized list of qualifying lands worthy of preservation and updating the list annually by December 31 of each year; and WHEREAS, the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden located in the ahupua'a of Kealakekua, District of South Kona, Island and County of Hawai`i, is included on the prioritized list of lands to be considered for acquisition in the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Commission's 2018 Annual Report to the Mayor dated December 31, 2018, identified as Tax Map Key Numbers (3) 8-2-013:014; (3) 8-2-013:002; (3) 8-2-013:003; (3) 8-2-014:043; and (3) 8-2-015:059, containing a combined area of approximately 13.6 acres; and WHEREAS, Section 2-218(a) of the Code provides, in pertinent part, that: "The Council shall, by resolution, select the land or lands to be preserved ..." and "[w]here there are multiple lands under consideration at any one time, priority shall be given to ... lands where matching funding is available to leverage the County contribution."; and WHEREAS, the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden was established to preserve native plants of Hawaii; provides a seed bank for critically endangered plant species which were brought to the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden for protective cultivation and storage; contains over 200 species of endemic, indigenous, and Polynesian-introduced plants; and serves as a backstop against extinction; and WHEREAS, the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden consistently attracts over 14,000 visitors and approximately 2,000 students of all ages annually, has been the main venue for annual celebrations and programs such as the Grow Hawaiian Festival, and educational partnerships with Hua 0 Ke Ao (a youth `aina-based gardening program for students K-12) and the Hawai`i Island School Garden Network which connects keiki with real food, healthier eating habits, and the `aina itself); and WHEREAS, the Friends of the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, a local community based 501(c)(3)non-profit Hawaii Corporation(hereinafter"Friends of the Garden") is presently negotiating a purchase of the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden and has secured funding commitments from the State of Hawai'i's Legacy Land Grant Program,the United States Department of Agriculture's Community First Program, and the Atherton Foundation; and WHEREAS, the County of Hawai`i desires to leverage its potential contribution to the acquisition of the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden by joining with the Friends of the Garden to acquire title or conservation easement(s) in all or part of the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden; and WHEREAS, the acquisition of title or conservation easement(s) for the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden would be significantly beneficial to the County of Hawai`i and our island community as a method of preserving history specific to the ahupua`a of Kealakekua, sustaining rare and native plant species critical to perpetuating traditional and customary native Hawaiian practices, safeguarding our valuable cultural resources for future generations, and perpetuating the uniqueness and rich historical and cultural significance, of the ahupua`a of Kealakekua; now, therefore, 2 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII that pursuant to Chapter 2, Article 42 of the Hawai`i County Code, the Director of Finance is hereby authorized to enter into negotiations for the acquisition of title or conservation easement(s) of all or a portion of the Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, identified as Tax Map Key Nos. (3) 8-2-013:014; (3) 8-2-013:002; (3) 8-2-013:003; (3) 8-2-014:043; and (3) 8-2-015:059 situated in Kealakekua, District of South Kona, Island and County of Hawai`i, utilizing the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Director of Finance is hereby authorized to initiate any funding mechanisms required for the acquisition of title or conservation easement(s) of all or a portion of Amy B. H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden in accordance with the terms of this resolution. BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the County Clerk shall transmit a copy of this resolution to the Honorable Harry Kim, Mayor, the Director of Finance, and the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Commission. Dated at Hilo , Hawai`i, this 21st day of May , 20 19. INTRODUCED BY: Agar. °*.I.IP COUN "_Y� •..,!i:ER e • TY OF HAWAII COUNTY COUNCIL ROLL CALL VOTE County of Hawai`i AYES NOES ABS EX Hilo, Hawaii CHUNG X DAVID X I hereby certify that the foregoing RESOLUTION was by EOFF X the vote indicated to the right hereof adopted by the COUNCIL of the KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER X County of Hawaii on May 21, 2019 KIERKIEWICZ X LEE LOY X ATTEST: POINDEXTER X RICHARDS X VILLEGAS X 9 0 0 0 \el- / C-254/FC -35 TY CLERK CHAIRPERSON&PRESIDING ��FFICER Reference: RESOLUTION NO. 155 1.9 ) 3