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Home My WebLink About2020-02-20 Leeward Exh C (SPP 19-204) LEEWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAII HEARING TRANSCRIPT FEBRUARY 20, 2020 A regularly advertised hearing on the application of DANA KERN (SPP 19-000204) was called to order at 10:11 a.m. in the West Hawaii Civic Center, Community Center, Building G, 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, with Chairperson Nancy Carr Smith presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Nancy Carr Smith, Perry Kealoha, Max Newberg, Keith F. Unger, Mark Van Pernis and Michael Vitousek ABSENT AND EXCUSED: Faith "Faye" Yates ALSO PRESENT: Malia Hall, Esq. (Counsel for the Commission), Michael Yee (Planning Director), Jeff Darrow (Planning Program Manager), Jessica Andrews (Planner), Alex Roy (Planner), Christian Kay (Planner) and Noriko Sauer (Commission Secretary) And approximately 23 people from the public in attendance. APPLICANT: DANA KERN (SPP 19-000204) Application for a Special Permit to legitimize the conversion of an existing garden store to be used as a K-8 private school for up to 49 students on 3.281 acres of land situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District. The subject property is located at 74-4820 Mamalahoa Highway, at the intersection with Palani Road, Honok6hau 1st, North Kona, Hawaii, TMK: (3) 7-4-006:012. CARR SMITH: All right, we'd like to move on to Agenda Item No. 3. Applicant is Dana Kern, SPP 19-000204. This is an application for a Special Permit to legitimize the conversion of an existing garden store to be used as a K-8 private school for up to 49 students on 3.281 acres of land situated within the Land Use Agricultural District. The subject property is located at 74-4820 Mamalahoa Highway, at the intersection with Palani Road, Honok6hau 1 st, North Kona, Hawaii. TMK is (3) 7-4-006: Parcel 012. Staff? ANDREWS: Good morning. I'm here to present a Special Permit for Dana Kern. This is the location map, and you can see the subject property here in red. It's in the North Kona District. The applicants are requesting a Special Permit to legitimize the conversion of an existing garden store to be used as a K-through-8 private school for up to 49 students and five staff members; to change the use of two existing buildings and make all necessary modifications to obtain permits. The school is operated by Kuleana Education, Inc., a domestic non-profit corporation. Weekday 1 EXHIBIT C hours are from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with occasional school events taking place in evenings and weekends. The zoning map shows that the property is zoned A-1 a, and neighboring properties are A-20a, A-5a and A-3a, and there is one RA-5a. The State Land Use Boundary, it's Agricultural, and there is a nearby Urban property, State Land Use Urban and State Land Use Rural. On the General Plan map, the property is designated Urban Expansion, with nearby Important Agricultural Lands mauka and Low Density Urban to the north and south. The applicant's proposed site plan here shows the property boundary shaded, the property is shaded, and the existing two buildings are Existing Building A and Existing Building B. And an aerial photograph here, you can see the general layout of the area, with the property outlined in blue here. The site photographs here show views from the Mamalahoa Highway access drive on the left, and a view of the subject property from the access drive off of Mamalahoa Highway. And this is a view of the highway looking north. Both views are actually looking north. One is just further up the road, as you can see, to show you that access, the access road to the access drive. The Planning Director's recommendation is approval with conditions. And I can take any questions, if there are any. CARR SMITH: Thank you. Commissioners, do you have any questions for staff? [None.] All right,thank you very much. Could the applicant come forward, please? Good morning. Please raise your right hand. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth on this matter before the Leeward Planning Commission? APPLICANT/REPRESENTATIVES: Yes. CARR SMITH: Thank you. One at a time, talk into the microphone, please, and tell us your name and where you are from. KERN: I'm Dana Kern. I'm from Kona, and I'm the named applicant. I'd like to ask that Pete speak on my behalf. CARR SMITH: Sure, go ahead. PIPER: Okay. Good morning, Commissioners. I'm Pete Piper. I'm the design consultant for the project, and Dana asked me to come and speak for her, if there is any questions, since I'm more familiar with it than she is. CARR SMITH: Very good. 2 EXHIBIT C JOHNSON: I'm Felicity Johnson, and I'm the principal of the school, supporter, and general dogsbody, and I'm here to support Dana. CARR SMITH: Very good,thank you. Go ahead and tell us about your project, if you'd like. PIPER: Okay. I think Jessica explained it pretty well. We feel that it's a good community benefit to have another educational option. And, you know, we feel that it's not going to create much traffic impact; it's a fairly lightly traveled highway, Mamalahoa Highway. There is a number of conditions that the different departments have asked us to satisfy, and we've agreed to those conditions. So, I guess that's all I can really say unless there is any questions. CARR SMITH: Okay, so you do agree to all the conditions that the Planning Director recommended. PIPER: We do agree, yes. CARR SMITH: Okay, very good. Questions from Commissioners? No? Very good. I think that's all for now, you may be seated, thank you. All right, then I have one public testifier. If there are any others in the room that are interested in testifying on this agenda item, please let staff know. Otherwise, Faith Stone can come forward, please? STONE: Hi. CARR SMITH: Could you raise your right hand, please? Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth before the Leeward Planning Commission? STONE: I do. CARR SMITH: Okay. STONE: I just wanted to say CARR SMITH: Please state your name and where STONE: My name is CARR SMITH: —you are from. STONE: —Faith Stone and Kailua-Kona. I wanted to just say something in favor, as I'm an art teacher, I work for Felicity at Hualalai, for a number of years. She is a fantastic principal. They have an amazing program. It really serves a community, especially kids that don't fit into maybe a more traditional school. So it's, they are fantastic people. I've volunteered at that school as well, as a volunteer art teacher. So I'm just,to say support. 3 EXHIBIT C CARR SMITH: Very good,thank you. No other public testimony on this? [None.] All right, can I have a motion to close public testimony, please? VITOUSEK: I move to close public testimony. UNGER: Second. CARR SMITH: All right, moved by Mr. Vitousek, seconded by Mr. Unger. All in favor? COMMISSIONERS: Aye. CARR SMITH: Any opposed? [None.] All right, public testimony is now closed. Looking for a motion for action on this, Commissioners? VITOUSEK: I move that the application for Special Permit, Docket No. 19-204, be approved based on the Planning Director's recommendation, which shall be adopted. KEALOHA: I'll second. CARR SMITH: All right, moved by Mr. Vitousek and seconded by Mr. Kealoha. Do we have any discussion on this? Seeing none, can we take a roll call vote,please? ANDREWS: Yes. Commissioner Vitousek? VITOUSEK: Aye. ANDREWS: Commissioner Kealoha? KEALOHA: Aye. ANDREWS: Commissioner Unger? UNGER: Aye. ANDREWS: Commissioner Newberg? NEWBERG: Aye. ANDREWS: Commissioner Van Pernis? VAN PERNIS: Aye. ANDREWS: And Chair Carr Smith? CARR SMITH: Aye. 4 EXHIBIT C ANDREWS: The motion passes, six-zero. CARR SMITH: Very good. Thank you. You will be notified of the Commission's decision in writing. And good luck to your school. The discussion ended at 10:20 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Noriko Sauer, Secretary Leeward Planning Commission 5 EXHIBIT C