HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0701.037 2018-2020 pnowcil
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February 4, 2020
Aaron S.Y. Chung, Chair
County Council
County of Hawaii
25 Aupuni Street
Hilo,Hawaii 96720
Dear Council Chair Chung and Members of the County Council,
On behalf of the members of the Community Action Network, I would like to submit this letter
and testimony in support of gill 131:AMENDS ORDINANCE NO. 19-74,AS AM ENDED, RELATING TO
PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS AND FINANCING THEREOF FOR THE FISCAL YEAR JULY 1, 2€19 TO LUNE 30,
2020
The Community Action Network(CAN) is a steering committee under the Community First non-
profit organization founded by the late Barry Taniguchi to help address the health care crisis in East
Hawaii. The CAN is comprised of various health care service providers, social service providers,and
community members from across the East Hawaii region of our island. Collectively the stakeholders
have identified a number of social determinants of health that are having a significant adverse impact on
the health and wellbeing of many community members, many of whom may be categorized as having
very complex and high coast medical issues. These determinants include but are not limited to, housing
or homelessness, transportation, and nutrition.
As proposed in Still 131,the budget for the Mass Transit Agency's Flub and Spoke project would
be increased to support various elements of the project to include land acquisition,planning, design,
and construction. The establishment of a Flub and Spoke system in the Puna region would have a
significant impact can,and benefit to,the health and wellbeing of many community members. The hub
and.spoke concept and model would provide improved accessibility to essential health care and social
services programs to an area that is underserved and under resourced.
I thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony in support of Rill 131 and strongly
encourage your support and passage of this measure.
Sin rely,
arty iveira, Co-Chair
Community Action Network
Comm. No.
Ref. To: P 1 WunUl
Ref. Date kEE ® 2020