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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-07-01 Windward Exh B (Public Testimony re SPP 20-220) WINDWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAII TESTIMONY TRANSCRIPT JULY 1, 2021 Public testimony regarding the application of KIRPAL MEDITATION AND ECOLOGICAL CENTER, LLC (SPP 20-000220)was called to order at 9:22 a.m. via live stream online meeting, with Chairman John Replogle presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Dean Au, Joseph Clarkson, Dennis Lin, Thomas Raffipiy, John Replogle ABSENT AND EXCUSED: Gilbert Aguinaldo, Michelle Galimba ALSO IN ATTENDANCE: Malia Hall, Esq. (Counsel for the Commission), Jean Campbell, Esq. (Counsel for the Planning Department), Zendo Kern (Planning Director), Eric Cook(Planner), Maija Jackson (Planning Program Manager), and Melissa Dacayanan- Salvador (Windward Planning Commission Secretary) APPLICANT: KIRPAL MEDITATION AND ECOLOGICAL CENTER, LLC (SPP 20-000220) Application for a Special Permit to legitimize the operation of a meditation and ecological center and retreat on 10 acres of land situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District. The subject property is located at 13-260 Pohoiki Road, approximately 0.5 miles west, or mauka, of the intersection with Kalapana-Kapoho Beach Road, Pohoiki, Puna, Hawaii, TMK: (3) 1-3- 008:005. Secretary's Note: "—" indicates indiscernible speech due to internet/technical difficulties or simultaneous talk. REPLOGLE: Okay, next up we will have the Kirpal Meditation, SPP 20-220 testifiers and first is Keri Dickie-Clark, you may begin when you are ready Ms. Clark. DICKIE-CLARK: Thank you, good morning Chair John and fellow Committee members and the rest of you folks. My name is Keri Dickie-Clark, and my statement relates to item number 2 on the agenda. I live on my property on Pohoiki Road and Leonard Sussman who resides in Oregon and whose business is Kirpal Meditation and Ecological Center is my immediate downhill neighbor. I'm a farmer and I've farmed on land in both water fresh and salt in the United Kingdom, Tanzania, Canada, and Hawaii. I'm an organic permaculture farmer engaged in regenerative agriculture as part of the growing number of farmers dedicated to ensuring food safety and food security for the islands of Hawaii. Over my 23 plus years of living here, I've been involved in numerous activities to incubate and nurture a thriving agricultural base here in Puna and island wide. I'm passionate about sustainability and living in true with nature. 1 EXHIBIT B We live in changing times, changes in climate, environmental degradation, and rising cost of living. All of which threaten our island lifestyle. I'm sure you've all noticed our ever-increasing food cost. Food that is estimated to be 85 to 90 percent imported. This makes us vulnerable. In order to be resilient and self-sufficient we need food security. The government of Hawaii has stated a strategy to increase food self-sufficiency since 2012. Perhaps you're familiar with its slogan "Buy Local, It Matters". However, all the attempts to decrease the cost of imported food will go nowhere if we don't have adequate farmland. Land zoned for agricultural use is essential, the very roots of our being self-sufficient. In March of this year Mayor Mitch Roth hosted the Sustainability Summit, excuse me (had a drink of water), for Hawaii. Thousands of people attended Topics range from climate action through energy, affordable housing, and sustainable agriculture. I was pleased to see our new Planning Director Zendo Kern in attendance. So, know that he knows how important maintaining and expanding our agriculture land is. How essential a healthy well-supported agriculture base is for all of us here especially in Puna. Puna which use to be the breadbasket for the whole island and Puna where we lost an estimated almost 2,000 acres of farmland during the 2018 lava flow which has had a devastating impact on so many of us. Let's protect and grow more agricultural land to ensure our food safety while we grow more farms and farmers to grow our economy bringing back jobs and enthusiasm for regenerative and self-sufficient agriculture. We have the know-how, regenerative ag is a reality. It's being practice on decimated lands all over the planet where food deserts are being greened. Let's be more farsighted and choose to invest in our future by protecting and expanding our essential ag lands. Let's remake Puna the breadbasket of Hawaii again. And finally, I understand from folk in the Planning Department that they are under budgeted and understaffed especially in regard to inspection and enforcement of their rules and regulations. As a tax-paying active community member, I'm wondering if we change this. Perhaps, we can use incentives rather than punishment for the transgressors. I'd be happy to offer my services to exploring solutions and positive change in this arena. Thank you for your time. REPLOGLE: Thank you. Next, we have Mr. Tim Lloyd. Tim? Tim are you there? LLOYD: I'm here now, can you hear me? REPLOGLE: Yes. LLOYD: Okay. I'm figuring this out this is all new to me. I don't know REPLOGLE: You can turn your camera on if you wished to be seen. LLOYD: Can you show me how to do that. I'm working on that. DICKIE-CLARK: Right here, more, more, and more. LLOYD: Yeah. 2 EXHIBIT B DICKIE-CLARK: Oopsie, sorry. Did you get it. LLOYD: All right, well. DICKIE-CLARK: Let me figure it out okay. Okay, let's start video, we got it. LLOYD: All right. REPLOGLE: There you are. LLOYD: There I am. Aloha my name is Timothy D. Lloyd, I live on Pohoiki Road, Puna District and I'm contesting on agenda number 2 KMEC's Special Use Permit. The reason I'm contesting this is around 2005 Mr. Sussman had brought a home down from Waimea as his residence and started building since then fully aware of the building requirements on having to get this building set up and just bring it there and also the cesspools requirements. Since then, he's been building repeatedly for last 10 to 15 years to create what KMEC is now. Fully aware of the regulations requirements in doing some of the expansions. It has gone to various different communities and in the environment um' oasis down at Kalani "—"to try to get his operations to model theirs and building the structures around that so that he can get by what are required by building permits and what not. Which leads us to this point in time now is that he has 17 structures that people are living in and working his farm which is a very beautiful property I've helped input on that. We haven't contested myself or anything till now when he finally had to come with some compliance. Some of his buildings are within the 20-foot setback which he was aware of before built the structures. My concern is that by him getting the Special Use permit it sets a precedent that anybody can start building any kind of ecological assists or yoga retreat or a resort without coming in compliance of the land use requirements whare are ag land. So, build it and they will come and then we'll go get approval for it um' is setting a precedence. Once things are written in law or approved as the laws are set up then they based everything out based off of that. Just so nothing to stop anyone in our entire subdivision or area of ag land or anywhere else on this island to do the same and they have the justification to use Kirpal as an example of doing that. I'm all for what KMEC is trying to model but I don't approve the processes of how it's gone about or the evolution of it and I don't think this should be set as a precedence that the building permit, the Planning Commission say okay, well we are going to approve this on special use because it's nice and pretty and it serves some kind of function for economical gain for the individual. I'm not happy to contest this but I also think that it's like I said again should not be set as a precedence to be able to build something and get by with it later on. So, with that I think I conclude on that so I'm definitely in contest for the Special Use permit. Mahalo for your time. REPLOGLE: Thank you Mr. Lloyd. Mr. Richard Griffiths? Okay. GRIFFITHS: Oh yeah, this is Dr. Rich Griffiths, I'm a resident of Kehena in Lower Puna. I'm a semi-retired Professor of Astronomy at the University here in Hilo, also a Professor in Emeritus 3 EXHIBIT B at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. When I bought my home here in Kehena in 2007, I've been living here full-time since 2013. But when I bought my home, I was made well aware of the rules and requirements on home buying I was handed the brochure on setback requirements for Residential and Agricultural districts. As you all know within that pamphlet there's a statement"It's my property and I can do anything I want with it"! And the pamphlet then goes on to explain what if people did whatever they like with their property and so there are extensive rules and regulations about what you can and cannot do. Pohoiki is an agriculturally zoned area. An area where people are trying to live sustainably as pointed out by Keri Dickie-Clark Now KMEC has openly advertised on the web since 2010. A website that was copyrighted by them in 2008. So, the public has been able to book lodging and board that is accommodations for vacation or retreat purposes since 2010. This operation continued with many buildings being added without permits until the pandemic last year. Late last year or sometime last year and an incoming visitor was questioned at the airport as to where they were staying, their response that they had was "KMEC"which was not registered as a quarantine site. Without the pandemic KMEC would have continued unpermitted presumably indefinitely. So, the question I have is: Why would the County reward Mr. Sussman for 13 years of operations which flagrantly ignore the regulations? If the permit is approved, then it's a clear indication to the whole community and Big Island residents that they can ignore the rules and develop land and buildings as they see fit mainly because the County doesn't have enough people to enforce the regulations. Question arises just because there aren't police officers around does that mean that we should disobey the law. Surely not. Thank you for your time. REPLOGLE: Thank you Mr. Griffiths. The public testimony ended at 9:33 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Melissa Dacayanan-Salvador Secretary to Boards and Commissions 4 EXHIBIT B