HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-11-04 Windward Exh D Hawaii Island Community Development Corp SLU 20-054 WINDWARD PLANNING COMMISSION
COUNTY OF HAWAI`I
HEARING TRANSCRIPT
NOVEMBER 4, 2021
A regularly advertised hearing on the application of HAWAI`I ISLAND COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (HICDC) (SLU 20-000054)was called to order at
10:06 a.m. via live-stream online meeting, with Chairman John Replogle presiding.
COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE: Gilbert Aguinaldo, Joseph Clarkson, Michelle
Galimba, Dennis Lin, Thomas Raffipiy and John Replogle
COMMISSIONER EXCUSED: Dean Au
ALSO IN ATTENDANCE: Malia Kekai, Esq. (Counsel for the Commission), Zendo Kern,
(Planning Director), Jean Campbell, Esq. (Counsel for the Planning Department), Tracie Lee
Camero (Planner), Maija Jackson (Program Manager), and Melissa Dacayanan-Salvador
(Windward Planning Commission Secretary)
APPLICANT: HAWAI`I ISLAND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
(HICDC)(SLU 20-000054)
Application for a State Land Use Boundary Amendment from Agricultural to Urban for
approximately 9.09 acres of land. The property is located at 1450 Mohouli Street, directly west
(mauka) of the Mohouli Senior Housing Project and the County of Hawaii Fire Administration
Support Complex, approximately 1,600 feet west of the Mohouli Street and Komohana Street
intersection, Waiakea, South Hilo, Hawaii, TMK: (3) 2-4-001:168.
Secretary's Note: "—" indicates that there were technical and/or internet difficulties, which made
the conversation inaudible.
REPLOGLE: We will move on to Item number two (2)now the Applicant is Hawaii Island
Community Development Corporation (HICDC), SLU 20-000054. Application for a State Land
Use Boundary Amendment from Agricultural to Urban for approximately 9.09 acres of land.
The property is located at 1450 Mohouli Street directly west(mauka) of the Mohouli Senior
Housing Project and the Hawaii County Fire Department Administration Support Complex,
approximately 1,600 feet west of Mohouli Street and Komohana Street intersection, Waiakea,
South Hilo, Hawaii, TMK: (3) 2-4-001:168. The staff presentation will be done by Tracie-Lee
Camero, and she is one our planners. Take it away Tracie.
CAMERO: Thank you so much Chair, let me get my screen up for you. Can you all see my
screen, you can just do a thumbs up. Okay. The applicant is the Hawaii Island Community
Development Corporation, otherwise known as HICDC. This is a State Land Use Boundary
Amendment for their existing parcel. This is a location map, the subject parcel is highlighted in
red. The 9.09-acre subject property is located to the west from the Komohana Street and
Mohouli Street intersection in the Waiakea area of South Hilo. You have the Komohana Street
1
EXHIBIT D
running from the north to south direction on your screen and the Puainako Street moves further
south, which allows you to go on to the Saddle Road.
The applicant is currently requesting a State Land Use Boundary Amendment to develop 90 units
of affordable housing which aims to provide affordable housing and related services on a parcel
in South Hilo, which was made available by the Governor's Executive Order No. 4531. This is
the Hawaii County zoning map shown on your screen. The subject property is outlined in red
and the County's zoning for the subject parcel is agricultural with a minimum lot size of one (1)
acre also known as A-la, which is shown on your screen and indicated with the green color. The
Sunrise Estate Subdivision is immediately north and west of the subject property on land also
zoned agricultural with a minimum lot size of 1 acre. Further to the east, you have the Mohouli
Heights Senior Neighborhood project which is located on the subject property and zoned
Multiple Family Residential with the required land area of 4,000 square feet for each dwelling
unit shown in the dark brown and Multiple Family Residential with the required land area of
3,000 square feet for each dwelling unit shown further east in the lighter brown shade. The
adjacent Single Family Residential district includes the Sunrise Ridge subdivision to the
northeast which is zoned Single Family Residential with a minimum lot size of 10,000 square
feet shown in the yellow. As well as properties to the east across Komohana Street and along
Mohouli Street are zoned RS-10 and consists of single-family dwellings. Undeveloped land
further north was rezoned to the Project District as indicated by the lavender color on your screen
and is also known as the Wailani Project District.
This is the State Land Use Boundary Map the subject property is outlined in red for you. The
State Land Use designation is currently agricultural which is shown in the green color which
includes some of the surrounding areas as well. The pink on your screen indicates the State Land
Use Urban designation. This is the General Plan Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide (LUPAG)
map the subject property is outlined in white on this map and is located within the orange area
that represents the Medium Density Urban. This is where the Planning Department envisions the
land use pattern for Medium Density Urban which are areas of village and neighborhood
commercial and single family and multiple family residential and related function. Surrounding
LUPAG areas include the Rural shown in the goldenrod and University shown in the blue.
This is an aerial photograph of the subject property. This photo was taken fairly recently and as
you can see the earlier phases of the affordable housing Mohouli Senior Housing Project is
located further to the east that HICDC has completed. The current properties is currently
covered by much vegetation, you also have in between this property and the Mohouli Senior
Housing Project, you have the subject property which is also adjacent is the County Fire
Administration Complex which just started construction if I'm not mistaken last week. This is
the applicant site plan that was submitted to the Planning Department with their State Land Use
Boundary Amendment application showing the proposed pocket neighborhood concept that the
applicant is proposing, as well as the access to the subject property coming from Kupuna Place
via an easement over the adjacent TMK: 2-4-001:176. Properties to the immediate north and
abutting the subject property are the Sunrise Estate property.
The applicant is requesting the State Land Use Boundary District Amendment to develop 90
units of affordable housing which aims to provide the affordable housing and related services on
2
EXHIBIT D
the parcel in South Hilo. This is the applicant's site plan that was submitted with applicants'
Environmental Assessment. Please note that the site plan is currently conceptual granted that the
applicant can get the appropriate funding and approval of their 201H application, which is
currently in process with the Office of Housing. Access to the subject property is proposed from
Kupuna Place again by way of easement over the adjacent parcel which you can see is the
Emergency Call Center. The Traffic Impact Analysis Report(TIAR)that was completed by the
applicant recommended the implementation of a right in, right out driveway on Mohouli Street
and reshaping a part of the wide paved shoulder on the westbound Mohouli Street as a right turn
lane only. At this time, the applicant is proposing full-movement access on Kupuna Place as
well as the right in and right-out access on Mohouli Street to accommodate future traffic
generated by the Hale Ola O Mohouli development.
On your screen, you have a photo of the Kupuna Place and Mohouli Street intersection facing
west on Mohouli Street the subject property is located further west and not shown on this photo.
However, this photo is important as this intersection will contain the only full-movement access
into the subject property. Kupuna Place is also the current access point for the Mohouli Senior
Housing Project and the County of Hawaii Fire Administration Support Complex. On your
screen, you have a photo that shows the view of the subject property from Mohouli Street facing
east, as you can see there's a curvature in the Mohouli Street that we wanted to just depict to the
Commissioners, so they have a full view of where the proposed project is going to be, as well as
the current street conditions.
At this time, the Planning Director is recommending a favorable recommendation for the State
Land Use Boundary Amendment to the County Council, that concludes my presentation, and I
can turn the floor back to the Chair, thank you. Chair we can't hear you. I think you have to
unmute.
LIN: Chair you're still muted.
REPLOGLE: Thank you. We have 2 people to speak for the applicant and that's Keith Kato
and Jeremy McComber. Have you received the background and the recommendation from the
Planning Department? Are they here? Okay.
CLARKSON: Excuse me Chair Replogle. Are we given an opportunity to ask questions of staff
before the presentation by the applicant?
REPLOGLE: Yes, I'll give you that opportunity I thought we do them all at once, but—
CLARKSON: Okay, never mind.
REPLOGLE: Excuse me Mr. Kato and Mr. McComber we're going to allow the Commissioners
to ask question of staff first. So, questions for staff?
CLARKSON: Yes. Ms. Camero can you put up the boundary adjustment map again for us
please, I have a question about what a boundary adjustment means.
3
EXHIBIT D
CAMERO: Okay, let me just get that up for you I'm so sorry. So, you wanted to see the State
Land Use Boundary map, correct? The one that shows the green and the—
CLARKSON: Correct.
CAMERO: Okay.
CLARKSON: My question is, is the area enclosed in red the boundary adjustment or is the
boundary going to be moved from its existing position to include both the Emergency Call
Center and the property in question. In other words, is the red area going to move all the way
across Mohouli Street and include the property that's now zoned Ag between the applicant
application properties that we're talking about today and the existing affordable housing
projects?
CAMERO: No. At this time, the current request and I'll get my highlighter for you it's only
going to be the area that's contained in the area that's red. The applicant only has the authority
to apply right now at this moment for the area in the red. This portion that has the Emergency
Call Center they had come in for a Special Permit and they didn't come in to do any rezone at the
moment for that property and then the applicant HICDC had also come in in 2017 and 2018 to do
a State Land Use Boundary Amendment for this whole area which you can see it pink further to
the east on Mohouli Street.
CLARKSON: Okay, I understand now but, I just assumed a boundary adjustment or moving a
boundary was to actually move a boundary not to create a separate parcel with a designation like
that.
KERN: Maybe I'll jump in for a quick minute. The boundary amendment you think about it
from a kind of a logical term of the boundary this way. It's not really so much a boundary and
metes and bounds it's the State Land Use amendment to the State Land Use. They're going to
have Conservation, Agricultural, Rural or Urban. So, it's amending that boundary, which is the
TMK of that parcel to a different State Land Use. So, it's not expanding it or contracting it, it's
actually changing the underlying State Land Use, which the terminology is State Land Use
Boundary Amendment.
CLARKSON: Okay, so boundary amendments are not really just moving a boundary there
TMK by TMK adjustments
KERN: That's right, Commissioner. It's almost the same thing as a rezone in an essence, where
you're not changing those metes and bounds, you're changing the zoning, in this case it's a State
Land Use Boundary. So, it just encompasses the parts, so I hope that didn't complicated further.
LIN: So, Director Kern is just a very confusing terminology that's potentially maybe updating in
the future, defining what boundary means.
4
EXHIBIT D
KERN: The challenge is that's used on the State level from the State Land Use Commission all
the way across the board. So, it may change but sorry for the confusion around that but that's
what it is.
CLARKSON: I'm a lay person at this and when I've seen these State Land Use Boundary maps
before I think, almost every time I've seen one everything was contiguous there weren't any spot
boundary changes but you're saying that's actually the way boundaries are adjusted is by spot
changes.
KERN: It is unless it was done like at a legislature basis that gets into a much deeper
conversation on how that would be done, but it'd be on a parcel-by-parcel basis.
CLARKSON: Okay, so we have no ability to just move the boundary across properties that
haven't asked for the boundary to be moved?
KERN: Yes, that's correct, we would not have that ability.
CLARKSON: Thank you.
REPLOGLE: Any further questions for staff from the Commissioners?
RAFFIPIY: Mr. Chair, I do have a question.
REPLOGLE: Mr. Raffipiy?
RAFFIPIY: Tracie do you have a Power Point or a presentation map that has all the traffic
entries and exits, the ingress and egress to all of them, including the Call Center, the new
proposed project and the one across the street? I just want to see how all the left turns are going
to be all integrated, because they're all kind of in close proximity.
JACKSON: Tracie do you have like an overall aerial photo that might be the best thing to show?
CAMERO: Yes, sorry I was just about to pull that up, let me pull it up because I just have it on
my screen. So, I'm going to share with you guys the same aerial photo that I showed earlier just
because this is the best one to show the existing properties that are currently further east on
Mohouli Street, which include the Hawaii Island Community Development Senior Housing
project and I apologize, I know this doesn't have like an overlay of the access points. But so,
this is Kupuna Street. So, Kupuna Street is going to be the full movement access point into this
specific subject property, as well as the Emergency Call Center property and it is currently being
used for the Hawaii Island Community Developments Mohouli Senior Housing project as well.
Along this TMK there's an easement that's going to provide access rights to HICDC to access
Kupuna Place for the full moment access. Further along Mohouli Street approximately this
portion of the property you're going to have a right in and right out only access point into the
subject property.
5
EXHIBIT D
RAFFIPIY: Okay, all right, thank you. Yeah, that was the one that I was curious about is the
right in and right out I wasn't sure there will be a left turn in that area. So, thank you Tracie.
REPLOGLE: Are there any further questions for staff? Thank you, Commissioners. So, again
Mr. Keith Kato —
LIN: Chair?
REPLOGLE: Oh, yes?
LIN: Mr. Clarkson has a—
CLARKSON: I just have one more question.
REPLOGLE: Please.
CLARKSON: This is State land,public land, I just wanted to ask our legal Counsel and perhaps
the staff, whether there are any public trust implications in our decision today?
KEKAL I think, as this is just a boundary change and you're not actually approving a project, I
would say no, but I'll go check on that. If you just give me five minutes. You guys can move on
with further questions and I'll come back. You can let the applicant speak.
REPLOGLE: Okay, thank you. The third time's a charm, Mr. Kato, and Mr. McComber, have
you received the background and recommendations from the Planning Department?
KATO: Yes.
REPLOGLE: Do you agree with the Planning Director's recommendation, including the
proposed conditions?
KATO: Yes.
REPLOGLE: Okay, go ahead with your presentation.
KATO: Well, thank you, Chairman and Commissioners. We've been working on this project
for a while, and we believe that it's a very interesting project in that it is really a different kind of
project form. Tracie if you could put up the detailed site plan, I think that would help to explain
what we're trying to do here.
CAMERO: Yes, let me get that up for you.
KATO: Sure, so what we're proposing to do is develop this development concept called the
pocket neighborhoods. The idea is to take clusters of small structures, either single family
duplex maybe triplex structures and group them around the central green areas. You can see that
they're kind of arranged in groups of maybe a dozen homes, maybe fourteen (14) and the idea is
6
EXHIBIT D
to create kind of a community. Where you get to know your neighbors, you see your neighbors
walk into their units, you get a chance to interact, and I think it tries to create a congenial
neighborhood. Well, when we started looking at this project, we're trying to determine do we do
it as a senior project or a family project or a mix.
So, what we did the market study. What the market studies showed was that for the Hilo area,
which is basically the City of Hilo there's a need for about 6,000 low-income units or affordable
units and put it that way. Out of the 6,000 units the site won't be able to attract all of them, and
so it kind of came down to maybe something in the range of 700 units would be possible. But
there were 700 households to who may be interested in being on this site and by that mix was
really like about 100 to 600 in terms of seniors to families. In other words, there's a much bigger
need for family units then there are for senior units. Part of that I think is because we developed
182 senior units just down the street.
So, that sort of informed us as to what we should be doing so, we ended up with basically a one-
third senior, two thirds family that's basically the mixture we're proposing. As part of this, we
started out with the intention and sticking with it, this intention of having a 30-foot setback along
the Sunrise Estate side. Now RM-4 zoning I believe calls for 15-foot front yard rear yard
setback and an 8-foot setback on the side for a 1 story structure. But in the light of the fact that
Sunrise Estates has a 30-foot setback by code, we've decided we're going to do the same on our
side. The community requested that we do a fence along there, they're concerned about security
and typically, we do put fences around our projects for security of our tenants. So, we're
proposing to do that, and we plan to utilize this 30-foot setback area as landscape buffer area as
an area where we have walking paths, recreation area and if we can put a dog park in there.
Basically, so that the residents can have use of the property and you'll have a variety of
recreational outlets.
We did look at the traffic, we had a terrific study done in November of last year. It was an odd
time because of the Covid situation, but they took some historic traffic counts, and I think the
key thing in terms of traffic impact is what traffic is being generated by the project. So, the
calculations of the traffic engineers, is that in the morning peak which I believe is something like
seven to eight o'clock in the morning, there'll be thirty-eight(38) cars or vehicles leaving our
site being generated by our site and of those they expect seven (7) to be turning mauka. The
overwhelming traffic flow is coming out of Kupuna Place and "—" makai. In the afternoon, it's
a little lower count it's like twenty-four (24) vehicles will be coming out of the project and their
projection is only two (2) will be turning mauka. So, we don't believe that there will be a
significant traffic impact on Kukuau Street and the traffic study did show that all intersections
will be at acceptable levels of service.
One of the things with this traffic is when we were developing the lower projects Mohouli Senior
projects, as well as the Adult Day Center we felt that there may be a need at some point to have a
traffic signal put on Kupuna Place. We talked to the traffic engineer and chief engineer about
that and Ron Thiel who was the Head of Traffic Division at that time. We just asked him what it
would take, and he said well, it'll cost him about a half a million dollars to buy the equipment
and the County at that time was able to install the equipment themselves if it came to that. So,
we provided five-hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) which Public Works should still have
7
EXHIBIT D
in the caucus today. We believe that's a significant contribution to dealing with this issue now,
we kind of campaigned to get the traffic signal installed earlier. Unfortunately, it didn't meet
what they call the warrants for a traffic signal installation at that time. Maybe in the future it will
but, we agree that something needs to be done at that intersection and we just like to point out
that we have we have made a contribution toward that end.
So, we believe that this will be a project that is much needed for the community that it'll be an
attractive project and we're doing what we can to minimize the impact, while also doing creating
a situation that meets the broader needs of the community. Commissioners have any questions;
we'll glad to entertain them.
REPLOGLE: Thank you, Mr. Kato. Mr. McComber do you have something to add?
LIN: Mr. McComber we can't hear you.
REPLOGLE: He's frozen. Oh.
MCCOMBER: Can you hear me? Okay, I would just add to Keith's conversation about the
traffic aspect that on the attempts to approaching signalizing Kupuna Place. Keith had that
conversation early on in the Mohouli Senior Development close to the completion of Phase One
and also close to when we're completing both the Adult Day Center and the last days there, so
there have been multiple attempts by our organization to recognize the potential concern. Thank
you.
REPLOGLE: Thank you. Okay. Commissioners, do you have any questions for the applicants?
LIN: I have a question Mr. Chair.
REPLOGLE: Yes, Mr. Lin?
LIN: Mr. Kato or Mr. McComber, could you maybe explain the term "affordable housing" and
maybe provide the area median income for this project? Because I think the term affordable
housing has a negative connotation when it comes to development. So, if you could explain how
that area income compares to maybe some of the other projects out there, or maybe what type of
people income would be going into these projects.
KATO: Let me look it up, so I can give you the exact dollar figures that we're talking about.
So, the basic financing that we would be using is low-income housing tax credits. Now we've
used this program before and all of our other projects and it is oriented towards households with
income at sixty percent(60%) of the area median income and below. Sorry, my link to Hawaii
Housing Finance & Development Corporation (HHFDC) is not being cooperative here. There
we go. Okay, so let's see County of Hawaii area median income is $78,800, 60% of the area
median income this is for again for a family of four (4) would be fifty-one thousand three
hundred sixty ($51,360.00). So that's really the range that you're looking at. I think that fifty-
one thousand ($51,000.00)really catches a big segment of our population in terms of what the
household incomes are.
8
EXHIBIT D
LIN: Right because $51,000 you could be talking about an elementary school teacher, a high
school teacher, maybe a county worker right I think that falls into that category. So, I think
when we talk about low income and affordable right. I just think that there's a lot of
misunderstanding on what—
REPLOGLE: Excuse me, Mr. Lin, somebody has their mic on and they're talking story. Thank
you.
KERN: Mr. Chair, I believe it's the background of Mr. Lin.
LIN: Yeah, that might be in my background, I apologize yeah. I have some visitors in my
office.
REPLOGLE: Okay, carry on Mr. Lin.
LIN: So, I just think there's some misconceptions on what low-income, I think that's a term
that's used a lot, but it may not necessarily mean low income.
MCCOMBER: Yeah, I can help kind of paint the picture a little bit I think Mr. Lin definitely
clarified it a little bit in terms of the demographic we're talking about entry level county workers.
Starting professions of like teachers, law enforcement, people that work in the food service
industry, hospitality industries. So. we're not, though we could take in sort of a lower income
spectrum because they would qualify that the demographic that we're talking about in terms of
the families, which is sort of entry starting level occupations with 1 to 2 children.
KATO: Perhaps I can give you a little bit more specifics. This will be our first family project,
so we don't really have a lot of data on who's in there, but we've been doing the self-help
housing project for several years. That one the incomes can go higher up to eighty percent
(80%) of the median income but based forty percent(40%) of the people in those projects are at
fifty percent(50%) of the median income. The kind of people we end up recruiting really are
cafeteria workers, policemen, basic working people.
CLARKSON: So, I have a question, Mr. Replogle.
REPLOGLE: Mr. Clarkson, please.
CLARKSON: Is it foreseen that these families will be renting or will these be long-term leases
equivalent to purchases or will they be purchases with conditions for prohibiting resale for a
number of years. What will be the tenure for these residences?
KATO: This program is scheduled to be all rentals.
CLARKSON: Thank you.
REPLOGLE: Sorry, all what?
9
EXHIBIT D
KATO: All Rentals.
REPLOGLE: Okay.
CLARKSON: I'd just like to ask whether it's just a thought that occurred tome that projects like
this which I think are perfectly fine. But is there any danger that they're going to facilitate the
conversion of existing rental properties into short term vacation rentals or in other words, is the
reason that people need this housing the fact that they can't find rentals and what is the reason
they can't find rentals elsewhere? I'm just curious what the dynamics of the market are.
KATO: Well, typically I think you find studies that show that those family's households in the
lower incomes are actually paying a high percentage of their income for rent and I think the
target really is thirty percent(30%) of your income. For a lot of low-income families, they're
paying like 50% of their income for rent and so that I would imagine that people are going to
want to move into our project because it's a nice project but it's also more affordable for them.
That's what we find with a lot of our seniors. In terms of any other kind of tenure, but to point
out that this is State property and the State at this point is not letting the state property be
converted to fee. So, if you want to use it at all for residential, we have to use it as a rental.
CLARKSON: Thank you.
KERN: If I may add to Commissioner's Clarkson's question. As far as the short-term vacation
rentals for the non-conforming use certificates on the East side, which is basically all Hamakua
through Hilo through Ka`u there's around four-hundred (400) of those in total. If you look at the
housing numbers that are needed projected over the next 5 years, they're in the close to 13,000
for affordable housing so it's just huge and I think what we've seen is a lack of units, a lack of
starts, a lack of housing really being built at any type of level, but the demands still there. So, I
think they're really separated from each other on there's obviously a small component with
anything related to the use of a home, so the short-term vacation rentals while effects the market.
I believe based on the current law that's in place and the fact that we're not doing more of those
it's a very, very small percentage and generally those are located in a more different type of
location closer to the coast, closer to different more vacation type uses versus kind of that urban
core where we can get families living.
I also want to underscore Commissioner Lin's point of affordable homes, affordable rentals they
affect people that are really close that we know that are serving us that are close friends it's not
what we often think of is this kind of outside I see driving by and you've got a bunch of mess in
your carport. These are people that serve us, that work with us, that are friends, that are families
that we work with. It's a big deal, so I hope that helps a little bit Commissioner Clarkson as far
as that nexus of those areas.
CLARKSON: No, it does. Just excuse me for my intense interest in this, I was involved in self-
helped housing projects in Keaukaha and Pana`ewa back in the late 80's Miloli`i and recently
Keaukaha for example, at that time was strictly local family housing. Mostly rental housing and
that area I've been told is now very high percentage short-term vacation rental which is forcing
10
EXHIBIT D
the rental market higher and higher and forcing low-income families out of houses that they
might easily have rented. So, anyway, I won't go on and on, thank you.
REPLOGLE: Thank you, Commissioner Clarkson. Is, there any other questions? Or are there
any other? Okay.
LIN: Chair, Mr. Aguinaldo has a question.
REPLOGLE: Oh, I can't see him, Mr. Aguinaldo?
KERN: Unmute.
REPLOGLE: Mr. Aguinaldo, donde estas? Unmute, there he is .
AGUINALDO: Good morning. Alright. So, I totally agree with what Dennis indicated, and as
far as that there is a need, but there's the conception of what's affordable or low-income.
Especially when you look at the surrounding areas in your backyard. You're averaging over half
a million to almost 2 million dollars, and I do see their concerns of what my property value and
everybody's entitled to their concern and you going to get this project in my backyard. Now
with that respectfully we got to make pono with your neighbors, especially with that kind of
hard-working people invest that kind of money in their property. Yes, it is a need for the
community when you were talking about rental. Are we talking like apartments or are we
talking like something similar down the old Mohouli, near the Police Station are we talking
about that kind of housing? What kind of enforcement is HICDC going do? Sometimes it gets
out of hand and investing a lot of money with this, and tenants just abuse the place.
As far as the buffer 30 feet, that is great. Now within that buffer what are you going to mitigate
with possibly noise or whatnot. There's a lot of people like what was discussed with Dennis is, I
do have friends as well, it that kind of median. Are we going to help that kind of people, like
schoolteachers, for example, we have a hard time finding schoolteachers and finding nurses to
even come to our island? Are we going to be able to cater to that, designate a section for that
kind of working force or is it just going to be just first come, first serve? That is my question for
Keith and Jeremy, and I know you guys know that we short with nurses as well in our hospital.
KEKAL Sorry, Commissioner Aguinaldo, point of order. If you could just ask one question at a
time, let the applicant answer and then ask another question that would be helpful.
AGUINALDO: Okay, so as far as that this goes for Keith and Jeremy. Like what Dennis had
indicated as far as people that serving the community. Is there going to be a section for that kind
of income?
KATO: Well, in terms of trying to set aside units for certain classes of people, a certain category
of people, one of the things that comes up with using the State funding is they require us to have
a lottery. It's basically, it's not exactly first come, first serve but it's like you put your name on
the list at the time that the rent up starts. Then we are required to conduct a lottery and that's the
order in which we process. In terms of monitoring the project I think if you go into our rental
11
EXHIBIT D
projects, you'll find that they're very neat, things are quite orderly. We are going to be having
resident maintenance people there and we have pretty firm house rules that they enforce because
people once they get in the project, they want to stay in the project, so they really comply with
the rules. That's something that we feel is important for the benefit of all the other tenants that
we have much as well as for the neighbors. I'm not sure what else you had in your list your
questions there but if I missed something let me know.
AGUINALDO: I think we're good. Yeah, we're good.
REPLOGLE: Okay, thank you Mr. Kato and Mr. Aguinaldo. Are there any other questions?
CLARKSON: Yes, I just have a quick question for staff?
REPLOGLE: We passed that already.
CLARKSON: Well, I'm going to go back.
REPLOGLE: Just kidding, carry on.
CLARKSON: So, is there going to be, this is a Land Use Boundary Amendment for
adjustments. Will there be a later application for rezone or is that incorporated in this procedure
today?
CAMERO: No, so there won't be a later application for a rezone. The applicant actually
currently submitted a 201H application in which they're going to ask relief from the County
zoning requirements within that 201H and that will happen through the Office of Housing, by
way of resolution.
KERN: So—
KEKAL That also goes in front of the Council. So, it's a different way to get to Council
basically.
KERN: Yeah, the 201H is a different path to get a zoning done it's through a State HRS a 201H
process and basically in essence it expedites the zoning, and it goes through the Office of
Housing. Granted the State Land Use has to match up with that so that's what you are seeing
here is that State Land Use Boundary Amendment to get it so it's Urban. And then they go
forward with their 201H process that gets approved by Council and within that they're able to get
certain relief from say building permits and sometimes right-a-away widths and things of that
nature to make it more affordable. It has to hit a minimum threshold of at least fifty one percent
(51%) affordability for that to even be a process. It's a process that's used quite frequently these
days. So, that's kind of where you'll see this coming through and then you'll see the 201H or
what you'd look at as a rezoning coming through the Office of Housing and Community
Development(OHCD).
12
EXHIBIT D
CLARKSON: So, as a Commission we have absolutely no input on any of these setbacks. We
have no input or concern really with anything other than the boundary amendment and all of the
conditions of the project development are going to be handled by the Council without going
through us?
KERN: That's correct, with the exception of the couple of conditions that are on there with the
with the farming etcetera that you've seen the Right to Farm next door.
CLARKSON: Thank you.
REPLOGLE: Are there any other questions or statements? Yes.
KEKAL Hi Chair, I'm going to answer the question from Commissioner Clarkson from prior
about the public trust doctrine. I was incorrect when I first stated that it doesn't apply. It does
apply for a State Land Use Boundary Amendment. This project, I believe has done an
Environmental Review and has received a finding of no significant impact. Therefore, the
Commission could conclude that the impacts to the land have been considered, but I will leave
that to you guys to discuss if you would like to the public trust doctrine.
REPLOGLE: Thank you. Mr. Clarkson anything? Anybody else have questions? No, okay I
would like to yes, Mr. Aguinaldo?
AGUINALDO: I said no.
REPLOGLE: Oh, okay.
RAFFIPIY: Mr. Chair, I'm ready to make a motion.
REPLOGLE: Okay, may I say something first.
RAFFIPIY: Go ahead.
REPLOGLE: Briefly, it's not a question, but at$750,000 for a median price home in Hawaii
now most of us could probably qualify for this housing project and people need help and they
need a place. Are we going to send them somewhere else, say you can't live in Hilo, there's no
room because we don't want you next door? Anyway, with that said. Would somebody make a
motion, Mr. Raffipiy?
RAFFIPIY: Yes Mr. Chair I'm ready to make a motion. I move that a favorable
recommendation be forwarded to the County Council on the application for a State Land Use
Boundary Amendment Docket No. SLU 20-000054 based on the Planning Director's
recommendations, which shall be adopted.
AGUINALDO: I second.
13
EXHIBIT D
REPLOGLE: It's been moved by Mr. Raffipiy and seconded by Mr. Aguinaldo, all those in, oh
I'm sorry. Ms. Camero would you do the roll call,please?
CAMERO: Commissioner Raffipiy?
JACKSON: Tracie, hold on just a second, Chair, could you take up discussion first?
REPLOGLE: Okay, thank you. Any discussion on the motion? There is none. Ms. Camero
you may proceed.
CAMERO: Thank you. Commissioner Raffipiy?
RAFFIPIY: Aye.
CAMERO: Vice Chair Aguinaldo?
AGUINALDO: Aye.
CAMERO: Commissioner Clarkson?
CLARKSON: Aye.
CAMERO: Commissioner Galimba?
GALIMBA: Aye.
CAMERO: Commissioner Lin?
REPLOGLE: I think it was aye.
LIN: Aye.
REPLOGLE: You're muted.
CAMERO: Perfect, thank you and Chair Replogle?
REPLOGLE: Aye.
CAMERO: Thank you.
REPLOGLE: So, the motion is— go ahead, go ahead.
CAMERO: Sorry, sorry, the motion carries six (6)to zero (0). Thank you.
KATO: Thank you.
14
EXHIBIT D
The item ended at 10:58 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Melissa Dacayanan-Salvador
Secretary Windward Planning Commission
15
EXHIBIT D