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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-05-05 TMochida PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAII HEARING TRANSCRIPT MAY 5, 2006 A regularly advertised hearing on the application filed by IVAN MOCHIDA AND LES was called to order at 1:46 p.m. in the County Building, ABURAMEN (REZ 06-000035) Councilroom - Room 201, 25 Aupuni Street, Hilo, Hawaii with Chairman C. Kimo Alameda presiding. PRESENT:C. Kimo AlamedaABSENT & EXCUSED: Jeffrey McCall Bill Graham Rodney Watanabe Fred Galdones AndrewIwashita Allen Salavea Rene€ Siracusa (Left at 2:10 p.m.) Ivan Torigoe, Deputy Corporation Counsel Christopher J. Yuen, Planning Director Norman Hayashi, Planning Program Manager Phyllis Fujimoto, Staff Planner Jeff Darrow, Staff Planner And approximately 25 people from the public in attendance APPLICANTS: IVAN MOCHIDA AND LES ABURAMEN (REZ 06-000035) Change of Zone from a Single-Family Residential 10,000 square feet (RS-10) to a Multiple- Family Residential 2,500 square feet (RM-2.5) district for approximately 90,400 square feet of land. The properties are located on both sides of Laukapu Street between Lanikaula Street and Leilani Street, Waiakea House Lots, Waiakea, South Hilo, Hawaii, TMK: 2-2-36: 60, 102 and 103. ALAMEDA:ApplicationNo.6,this is a Ivan Mochida and Les Aburamen, this is a rezoning (REZ 06-000035This is aChange of Zone from a Single-Family Residential 10,000 ). square feet (RS-10) to a Multiple-Family Residential 2,500 square feet (RM-2.5) district for approximately 90,400 square feet of land. Staff? HAYASHI:Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Referring to the overall location map, the subject property is indicated by this red dot. It is situated on the west side of Laukapu Street. ThisparticularroadwayisLanikaulaStreetgoingtowardsKanoelehuaAvenue;andthisis Kilauea Avenue. There are three properties involved. There are two properties on the west side ofLaukapuStreet;andthosetwopropertiesareownedbyIvanMochida.Itconsistsof approximately 60,000 square feet. And across the street there is a 23,000 square-foot property whichisownedbyLesAburamenortheAburamenfamily.Andtheapplicantsinitiallycamein together to do a project consisting of 34 townhouse units. Now I€ll go back to the proposal later. Howeverjusttogiveyouanindicationastowhatthezoningfortheareais,alloftheyellow- shaded areas are the Single Family Residential 10,000 square foot zoned district. The gray areas 1EXHIBIT C are Industrial zoned lands. We also have Neighborhood Commercial zoning which is this pink- shaded areas. And, again, we have other Commercial areas like the Big Island Candies which is the brownshaded areas. Apartment zoned lands are closer towards the Hilo Shopping Center area; and those are indicated by these brown-shaded colors. Now we received a letter from the applicant€s representative indicating that they would like to defer the processing of the Aburamen property; and that would be the property that is on the east side of Laukapu Street. And the reason for that is that particular property, the General Plan designation is still Industrial. However there is a pending General Plan Amendment as part of the Planning Director€s initiation that would change the General Plan designation for the areas along the east side of Laukapu Street from Industrial to Medium Density Urban; and that includes the Aburamen property. They€re requesting that the rezoning for that portion of the property be deferred until the General Plan for that has been approved or adopted by the County Council. So basically I€ll discuss the total project. We will be recommending that the Mochida property, which is General Planned for Medium Density Urban development, be recommended for approval with conditions andthattheAburamenpropertybedeferreduntilalaterdateuntilsuchtimethattheGeneral Plan for that area is changed. Okay, going to the overall site map, and there are two site maps. Basically the lower map shows the various apartment units and the type of, how the apartment units would be laid out. This basically gives you an overview as to what the structures would look like from the top. Now, again, as a matter of orientation, this is Laukapu Street. It bisects both the Aburamen property, and that€s particular property, and the Mochida property. The intent is to develop a townhouse project on all of these three lots. Currently on the Mochida property there is an existing single-family dwelling which was vacated. There is also a large storage shed on the property. And on the Aburamen€s property there is an existing single-family dwelling that is being rented on a monthly basis, based on what was submitted by the applicant. On the Aburamen€s property, the proposal is to construct a two-story 25-foot high building that would accommodate 9 units. The Mochida property would have four buildings that would be either one or two stories in height. And the proposal would be to have 25 units with a breakdown of 8 two-bedroom units, 21 three-bedroom units, and 5 four-bedroom units. As I indicated the height of the building would not exceed, according to their proposal, 25 feet. The height under the current zoning of Single-Family Residential 10,000 square feet is 35 feet. Under the proposed zoning, which is Multiple-Residential, the height limit of the building would be 45 feet. According to the applicant, excuse me, 20 percent of the units would be affordable units with the remainder of the units to be sold at market price. The proposal is also to provide two parking stalls per unit and 10 additional parking stalls. The Zoning Code requirement for an apartment unit would be 1  parking stall per unit. So they will be exceeding the minimum parking requirement as required by the Zoning Code. There will be a single access to the project site. For the mauka property which is, again, the Mochida property or the property on the west side, there will be a single access here. There will also be a single access on the Aburamen side of the property. The estimated construction timetable would be to commence construction in early 2007. And the cost of development would be approximately $8,000,000. As I indicated earlier, the General Plan designation for the Mochida property is, excuse me, Medium Density Urban 2EXHIBIT C development which may allow Multiple-Family Residential uses. And the Aburamen property is designated for Industrial, although it€s proposed to be reclassified or redesignated to Medium Density Urban development under the Planning Director€s proposal, which we€ll discuss later this afternoon. The Hilo CDP which was, again, adoptedback in 1975, the CDP designation for this area is Single-Family Residential 10,000 square feet. Surrounding land uses include basically residential structures along both sides of Laukapu Street. There is a doctor€s office that was granted at the corner of Laukapu Street and Lanikaula Street at this particular location. That€s Dr. Lee Ching€s medical facility. There is also this particular area, diagonally across from Dr. Lee Ching€s office, which was rezoned to Limited Industrial, and that also houses some Commercial as well as Limited Industrial uses. As I indicated access would be from Laukapu Street which currently has a right-of-way width of 40feetwithan18-to20-footpavementwithgrassshoulders.LaukapuStreetisproposedtobe widened to a 50-foot right-of-way; therefore, that would affect 5 feet along both sides of the property. Water is available and sewer disposal would be to hook up into the County€s sewage treatment system. The Department of Public Works did comment regarding the improvements to the roadway frontage; and basically they indicated that they would like to see drainage improvements as well as curb, gutter, sidewalks and pavement improvement in accordance with their requirements. DPW also stated that runoff shall be disposed of on site and not directed toward adjacent properties. We received several letters that were made part of your packet earlier. And these letters were from Pat Grossman, adjoining property owner; Lloyd and Patricia Nekoba also on an adjoining property on the north side of the Aburamen property; and a letter that was signed by Victoria and Clyde Abe, Miriam Hamakawa, Patricia Toyama, Lillian Oak. These individuals are related to the Saito family; and they own properties adjacent and to the south of the Aburamen property. We also received today letters from Thomas Hirano supporting the request and also written testimony from Patricia Saito-Toyama, a Clyde Abe expressing their concerns regarding the change of zone request. We also received a petition that was handed to me by Lloyd Nekoba, and I believe all of you have a copy. Unfortunately, there were only five copies that were with colored pictures so you may have to share those. The ones we reproduced are black and white. The Planning Director is recommending approval of the request with conditions. Condition D, and I€ll highlight some of the conditions. Condition D states that the height limit shall be no more than 35 feet; and this is based on what the current Single-Family Residential zoned district states. The Condition E states there will be a minimum of two parking stalls per unit. Condition I, full improvements to Laukapu Street including but not limited to pavement widening with curbs, gutters and sidewalks; and drainage improvements shall be provided meeting with the approval of Department of Public Works. They also need to hook up to the County sewer system, that is Condition J. Condition L, as recommended by the Department of Public Works relating to drainage, would have to be conformed to. Condition Q we have our standard affordable housing condition. Condition R, that is a standard fair share housing condition that we include for rezonings such as this. 3EXHIBIT C We are making one change; and I€ll go back to Condition D. The condition states that the maximum height limit shall be 35 feet. However, since the height limitation in the Multiple- Residential zoned district is -. Excuse me, I€m getting crossed signalshere so I need to call for a one-minute recess, if possible. ALAMEDA:Any objections to a recess from the Commissioners so they can get back on track? Seeing none, let€s take a two-minute recess. RECESSEDThe Chair called a short recess at 2:00 p.m. RECONVENEDThe meeting reconvened at 2:02 p.m. ALAMEDA:Hawaii County Planning Commission now back in order. Mr. Hayashi? HAYASHI:Okay, thank you, Mr. Chair. As far as Condition D as proposed, initially recommended, there€s no change to it. So the height limit would be 35 feet as we had initially proposed. Are there any questions? ALAMEDA:Fellow Commissioners, any questions for Mr. Hayashi? SALAVEA:Yes. ALAMEDA:Mr. Salavea? SALAVEA:Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just for clarification, no revisions to any of the conditions as stated in the recommendation? HAYASHI:That is correct, there are no changes. SALAVEA:Thank you, Mr. Hayashi. ALAMEDA:Other questions? Will the applicant or its representative please come forward. FUKE:Good afternoon. ALAMEDA:Good afternoon. I know you€ve already been sworn in but, I guess, for the record could you please state your name and address. FUKE:Sure. Sidney Fuke, planning consultant. With me today are the applicants, actually applicant, Ivan Mochida. Mr. Aburamen is also in the audience. But if there are any questions, you know, directed to the subject application which is confined to Mr. Mochida€s property, then he€s prepared to answer them. Specifically,justtoamplifyonsomeofthestaff€sbackgroundreportandyourwritten presentation, I€d just kind of like wanted to put things a little bit more into a little bit different focus.Imayberepeatingmyselfbecausealotoftheinformationthatweresharedrelativetothe 4EXHIBIT C Hirayama application generally, you know, would be applicable here. So I€ll try to be very brief relative to that. Specifically, you know, the property now, what the Commissioners are considering is a 1.54 acre property, roughly 67,400 square foot area. The thought by the applicant, Mr. Mochida who€s a contractor, was to do a townhouse type of project specifically designed to help address the housing needs, you know, not necessarily only in Hilo but for the whole island, but in this particular instance for the Hilo area. And it€s not intended to be like a rental project or a low- and moderate-income housing project. There is obviously going to be, if the project is approved, it€s going to be saddled with a 20 percent affordable housing requirement which he€s prepared to honor and fulfill. But his initial plan was, you know, the quick and dirty way out of this, you know, from a contractor€s standpoint is that you€ve got 67,000 square feet of land and just using existing zoning, you know, create a 6-lot subdivision and put up two homes on each of them, you know, like on ohana. But what that does not do, of course, is that it does not foster a sense of homeownershipwhichiswhathewantedtocreatelike,youknow,whichatownhousewould provide that kind of opportunity, a sense of home ownership. And I think that€s kind of very critical because when you have a sense of home ownership as opposed to straight-on rental, you know, you create a greater sense of cohesiveness within the community as opposed to having a lot of transients living within that area. And a lot of it is motivated by his discussions with Mr. Aburamen who grew up and lived in a home for a good number of his years and which, you know, he felt that based on like how this area has gradually been transitioned out from long-term residents to rentals to a variety of different type of commercial and industrial uses. And that€s kind of like the genesis behind this whole program. The project if it gets approved and gets developed, tentatively, you know, is expected to be marketed at about $325,000 to $400,000 per unit, so you€re not really looking at a very low-end type. It€s a relatively moderate to moderately high end, you know, something comparable, maybe a little bit better than the Pacific townhouse project off of Kukuau Street. Specifically, the original plan called for a 34-unit project. But now because the Aburamen€s property is not included, basically you€re looking at a, the proposal is like a 25-unit project. The Planning Director has recommended, and which we think it only makes good sense his recommendation is to require a minimum of two parking stalls per unit as opposed to the conventional requirement which is 1.25. What has been proposed right now, however, is like basically each unit would have access to four stalls. Cause, you know, you would have two covered parking stalls and in the back of the parking area, I mean, the parking stalls of course obviously you would have that theater style parking right in the back of that for guests. In addition to that like there€s like ample room at both ends of the proposed cul-de-sacs within the project to provide for additional guest parking if it€s needed. Your staff pointed out some of the infrastructure issues. Like water is available. They€re going to hook up to the County sewer system; and the Public Works has recommended and the Planning Director also recommended that they set aside additional right-of-way within their property and construct curb, gutter and sidewalk. And I think that, you know, as I responded to the other application regarding the drainage system as part of the permit approval process the applicant is going to have to develop two separate sets of drainage plans, one, specifically as it relates to the project itself, they have to, as required by the County Public Works Department€s requirements, they have to develop a drainage plan that contains all of the project-generated water on the site. And, likewise, they have to develop a construction plan for the sidewalk 5EXHIBIT C improvement which would then basically channel the water all into one particular area and have it drained fronting the property. You willnote in your background report that the Fire Department and the Police Department both commented on the application; and I don€t believe that they had raised any significant concerns or issues relative to the project. In short, I think that as it relates to the other application, you know, relating to the Houselots area, I think there was some comments made by some of the Commissioners relating to the need for housing. And I think this represents one classic example where you could have added density and provide responsible infrastructure associated with that project and, you know, meet a very definite need within the City of Hilo. If Mr. Mochida were to proceed just based on the existing zoning and do a 6ƒlot subdivision and do an ohana unit on each, you not only would foreclose the opportunity of home ownership, but what I think would happen is that, you know, you foreclose the opportunity for affordable housingrequirement,youforecloseanopportunityalsoforoff-siteinfrastructureimprovements. And I know there are some concerns raised by neighboring property owners. So rather than get into that, I think if the Commission would indulge me I would just assume step back, hear the concerns, and would like an opportunity at the end to respond. ALAMEDA:Very well. But, first, any questions, Commissioners? Commissioner Siracusa. SIRACUSA:Just before I run off here -. ALAMEDA:Sure. SIRACUSA:I see throughout the background report, it refers to the fact that you€re going to be selling these units; and yet in the regulatory analysis under General Plan policies you say increase rental opportunities and choices. And that started confusing me. Are you going to rent these units or are you going to sell them? Page 16, near the bottom -. FUKE:Oh, okay. That€s a very good point. That section basically is a recitation of the General Plan. It€s not something that I had -. SIRACUSA:Yeah but you were pulling out, Specifically, the more pertinent ones follow,‚ and then you chose that particular one to put in; and it has to do with rentals. FUKE:Well, that wasn€t the intent. Because I think the pertinent provision comes under beginning page 17 when there was a discussion of the overall General Plan policies relating to the land use component and how they try to interface with the policies. SIRACUSA:Oh, so, but to be perfectly clear we are talking about selling these units? FUKE:That is correct. SIRACUSA:These are not rental units? FUKE:That is correct. 6EXHIBIT C SIRACUSA:Okay, thank you. ALAMEDA:Thank you, Commissioner Siracusa. I know you have an engagement to attend or to go to. SIRACUSA:Well, I would love to stay and vote but I can€t do it. So -. ALAMEDA:Okay, well, thank you for your time. I appreciate it. We still have a quorum, which means we€ll continue. Other questions, fellow Commissioners? All right, seeing none, you may be seated. We do have testimony. Will Mr. Clyde Abe, Patricia Toyama, Lloyd Nekoba, please come forward. (Commissioner Siracusa left the meeting at this time, 2:10 p.m.) TOYAMA:Good afternoon. I€m here to speak on behalf of my husband who was here thismorningbuthadanothercommitment.IsthatokayifIreadoffwhathehadmeanttosay? ALAMEDA:Sure.Letmeswearyouinfirst.Andthenletmeaskstaff,doessheneed to sign up officially with you or -? ABE:Victoria Abe. DARROW:It€s okay. ALAMEDA:Okay. How about you raise your right hand, all of you. ABE:Oh. ALAMEDA:One time, first. I€ll swear you guys in. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth now before the Hawaii County Planning Commission? TESTIFIERS:Yes. ALAMEDA:All right. Okay, very good. Maybe we can start off -. ABE:Can I speak first? ALAMEDA:Do you want to start off first? ABE:Yes. ALAMEDA:Can you state your name and address for the record? ABE:Victoria Abe. ALAMEDA:Okay, address. 7EXHIBIT C ABE:It€s 747 Laukapu Street -. ALAMEDA:Okay, go ahead, you may proceed. ABE:And 1829 Kualono Street, Honolulu. ALAMEDA:All right, Ms. Abe. ABE:Okay. My husband and I are the property owners of 747 Laukapu Street. My question is how will this rezoning affect us? Tremendously, since our property is not only directly across this 34 unit proposal but also targeted to be right next to it. We purchased the property in 1980 with the knowledge and understanding that it was zoned as a Single Family Dwelling but would, in the future, transition to Light Industrial. We, for most of the26yearsexperiencedafinanciallossonthispropertybutneverwaveredintotryingtorezone it just for the profits. In fact the price we purchased it forreflected Single Family Dwelling with zoning to change to Light Industrial in the future. Although we do not live on the Laukapu property, we have always felt a deep sense of respect for not only the history of the Houselots Community but also for the residents who live in the neighborhood. This is why although spot zoning would have certainly benefited us financially we knew it would have been detrimental to the residents and other owners in the area. We have been willing to allow our property to remain as it was originally intended to be which is Single Family Dwelling and possibly develop in the future when the proper infrastructure allowed it to be zoned Light Industrial. We are very much against this proposal for rezoning to Medium Density and Multi-Family dwelling which will allow 34 units to be built in the middle of the block on a very narrow road. This is also clearly counter to the original zoning intent of Single Family Dwelling to Light Industrial. We were shocked that these changes could possibly occur without any input, communication, nor regard for the majority of the homeowners and residents. This spot zoning will result in a hodgepodge type of neighborhood which possesses infrastructure that can only support the Single Family Dwelling zoning. Allowing this spot zoning change which will result in a 34-unit development in this Houselots area will adversely affect the living quarters and conditions of the people who presently live in the community. First and foremost we ask you, the Hawaii Planning Commission to guide and ensure us that deliberate planning takes place in terms of infrastructure such as wider roads, sidewalks, storm drainage and traffic lights, and any other health and safety issues that will allow the present residents and owners some order and, most of all, safety in our day to day lives. Any kind of premature spot zoning in our Houselots neighborhood to anything other than single family dwelling must be preceded by the installation of the proper infrastructure. Also of great concern is the fact that the Master or General Plan was never communicated nor shared with those of us who are most affected by any kind of zoning changes such as, in this case, could be Industrial to Medium Density Multi-Family dwelling. We look to a Master Plan as the conduit that coordinates and guides the area so everything works for all and not piecemeal 8EXHIBIT C ƒ everyone, especially the people, should have input and basically agree to the intent of this development plan. We are against this rezoning from Single Family dwelling to Medium Density Multi-Family dwelling and ask you to support us. We are hopeful that you the Planning Commission will give consideration and priority to the residents and owners who have invested their homes and livelihood in remaining in this neighborhood. The proposed change will cause extreme hardship, emotional distress, and result in adverse and irrevocable changes if the proposed development goes through. Thank you. ALAMEDA:Thank you, Ms. Abe. Any questions for our testifier? Seeing none, you may be seated. ABE:Oh, may I stay here? ALAMEDA:You can. TOYAMA:She€s part of mine. ALAMEDA:Okay. State your name and address. TOYAMA:Okay, Patricia Toyama, 757 Laukapu Street (Hilo), and 7251 Alakoko Street (Honolulu). ALAMEDA:Okay, you may proceed. TOYAMA:My sisters and I own the property and house at 757 Laukapu Street which has been in our family for over 75 years. Our house is directly across the proposed rezoning for a Medium Density housing project being discussed today. We were raised in the Houselots community and still consider it home. The Houselots area was a quiet tranquil place of Single Family dwellings when we were growing up, and we feel it should remain an area of Single Family dwellings. We are extremely disappointed with this proposal to rezone the property across the street, from Single Family dwelling (RS-10) to Medium Density Multiple Family dwelling (RM-2.5). We are not against urbanization and progress and are aware of the housing shortage on the island, but we are against this type of development in the Waiakea Houselots neighborhood, and have several concerns. Contrary to the Environmental Impact Statement, flooding is a very real and major concern because we are presently and have been since the late 1990€s experiencing flooding on our property at 757 Laukapu Street. This flooding problem began only after the development at the corner of Lanikaula and Laukapu Street, compounded by the increase in height of the asphalt/concrete of Laukapu Street. Surface water runoff originating from the corner of Lanikaula and Laukapu Streets, flows down Laukapu Street and then into our driveway which is the lowest point along the way. In times of heavy rainfall this water then accumulates on the side of our house and rises to a level dangerously close to the steps leading to the basement where we have living quarters which are 3 feet below grade. We€ve communicated our concern 9EXHIBIT C about this problem with officials from the County Public Works Department beginning April 1999, and are extremely fearful that this problem will escalate if the proposed development is allowed to occur, resulting again in more concrete and sidewalks with less natural vegetation and ground to absorb water runoff. We feel that Houselots, and Laukapu Street in particular, lacks the proper infrastructure to support a project of the size proposed. The roads are narrow, with one lane in each direction. The proposed land density will result in a drastic increase in people and cars, leading to street parking problems and traffic congestion on the 700 block of Laukapu Street which is already a heavily used thoroughfare to and from the industrial area. This will undoubtedly be compounded by construction of 8.5 units per ž acre. Now two parking stalls are provided for each of the 35 units, according to the plan, but there is a potential for an increase of 102 cars or more, with no parking available for 34 additional cars exceptonthestreet.Thiswouldhaveanadverseeffectnotonlyonthe700blockofLaukapu Street, but the surrounding blocks. Today 3 to 4 bedroom single family dwellings frequently have 3 to 4 cars, which can be parked on their property with 2 cars in the 2-car garage and 2 cars tandem in their driveway. When there are multiple family dwellings that provide parking for 2 cars/unit, the extra cars end up parked in the street, causing massive parking problems, as we€ve seen in the Salt Lake area in Honolulu. Now Paragraph 3 page 2 of the Environmental Impact Statement states Adequate space for 2 more stalls behind the garaged stalls could be used for guest parking‚. Now while I realize that Figure 4 of the proposal may not be drawn to scale, the drawing shows 2 cars passing each other comfortably on the property. However, there is not adequate space for 2 more stalls behind the garaged stalls. If the drawing is drawn to correct scale, then the statement is wrong. The so-called transitional area at the makai end of Houselots, which has apartments and commercial developments, exhibits parking problems and congestion, with cars parked on the street. We don€t want this to spread to the rest of Houselots. Houselots is a convenient area to live, and with the proper infrastructure, such as wider roads, sidewalks, traffic lights to control traffic congestion, it provides a safer environment for all who live and/or visit the area, and storm drains to control flooding, I envision a rejuvenated Houselots area of mostly single family dwellings occupied by families who would prefer the convenience of living 5 minutes to town versus a 30-minute commute. The present single family dwellings of ž acre lots, such as ours, may have to give way to a denser configuration, but 34 units on 2 acres or 8.5 units per ž acre is a density which would irrevocably change the character of the neighborhood, increasing air and noise pollution and major safety issues for the residents. Figure 7 of the Impact Statement exhibits piecemeal zoning designations in the Waiakea Houselots area, and shows the need for an integrated larger plan for the area. Spot zoning will only serve the interest of the developers, commercial and light industrial enterprises, with complete disregard for the neighborhood. Please consider the impact of these drastic changes on the lives and property of what is presently there. We are against this rezoning and look to you to support our position. 10EXHIBIT C In support of our flooding problem, I have some pictures that I€d like to share with you that shows the water. ALAMEDA:Let me ask our Corp. Counsel, let me check first. She would like to show that to the Fellow Commissioners. So for the record we€re going to pass this around. TOYAMA:Can I explain that though? Is that ƒ do you have an idea? ALAMEDA:Actually once you give testimony you cannot backtrack. So unless -. L. NEKOBA:Just give them, give them all the pictures so they can see. TOYAMA:Can I just give this to you? Oh, okay, we don€t want to interrupt. ALAMEDA:Okay,letmesee.Letmecheckwithmycounsel,that€swhywehavea counsel. Corp. Counsel, can this be integrated into public record? TORIGOE:Well, basically, you have an obligation to allow people to provide data and testimony in written form. You know, it doesn€t really require you to receive pictures, but I don€t think you€re precluded from doing so. If it€s part of the testimony I don€t see any problem with it. ALAMEDA:Fellow Commissioners, do you have any objections to including this as part of the public record? Okay, seeing none, we will include it as part of the public record. Does it come with an explanation, each of these, or can we just look at it and you kind of just maybe summarize what we€re seeing, because there are a lot of pictures. TOYAMA:Okay, I can summarize it. Well, there are five pictures. Okay, one of them, the first one, Figure A -. ALAMEDA:Why don€t you show it to us as you present. TOYAMA:Okay. ALAMEDA:And also could you kind of highlight briefly what each one does in a succinct manner so that we can move forward with the testimony. TOYAMA:Okay, this is Figure A which shows ƒ this corner is actually across the street, this shows part of the Mochida property. And this shows our driveway which is flooded with water. Actually it looks like a lake. ALAMEDA:Okay. TOYAMA:That€s the water runoff from the street. Now this shows the side of, the front side of our house where the water has accumulated covering the sidewalk. 11EXHIBIT C This is another shot of that same area, except that you can see it goes further back into the property. ALAMEDA:Okay. TOYAMA:This again is further back into the property where you can see the water has accumulated. ALAMEDA:All right. TOYAMA:This particular shot shows the back of our property with the water going up the sidewalk in the back. And you can see that these windows are part of our living quarters. Now the stairs that lead down into our sub-basement are right here. So that if the water keeps accumulating and going up further, we€re afraid that that water will go into our basement eventually. ALAMEDA:Okay.Allright.Seeingthosepictures,anyquestions,Fellow Commissioners, for Mrs. Toyama? SALAVEA:Yeah. ALAMEDA:Commissioner Salavea. SALAVEA:Thank you, Mr. Chair. In reference to the pictures, how often does your house flood like that? TOYAMA:Whenever there€s a heavy rainfall. It used to be that, you know, it used to drain quite quickly. Now it doesn€t drain very quickly. Any time you have a heavy rainfall it accumulates. SALAVEA:Two times a year, three times, any estimate? TOYAMA:Well, you live in Hilo, how many times does it rain heavily? SALAVEA:Quite often. TOYAMA:Right. SALAVEA:Thank you. ALAMEDA:Any other questions? Commissioner Graham? GRAHAM:I€d like to ask Norman a question relative to what the testimony was about. The concern was about a high density, one of your concerns was about a high density maybe in terms of in one spot in this more open single family area. Norman, do we have other multi-family townhouse-like projects situated, you know, within a few blocks of this, or is this going to really be the first one in this whole area? 12EXHIBIT C HAYASHI:For this section of Waiakea Houselots, this would be the first one. However, there are apartment buildings, for instance, like, that would be in this particular area, in close proximity to where Don€s Grill is. There are some apartment complexes there. And there are a few also along the mauka portion or the east side of the Waiakea Houselots Subdivision. ALAMEDA:Other questions for the two testifiers? Go ahead, Commissioner Iwashita. IWASHITA:Thank you. It rained today. Do you think your driveway is flooded today? TOYAMA:Probably. IWASHITA:So like today, okay. Let€s see, this area was, I believe, was part of the area that was upgraded from Low Density Urban to Medium Density Urban in last year€s GeneralPlanAmendment.Okay,myquestiontoyouis,actuallytobothofyouladies,dideither of you, were either of you aware that that upgrade in the General Plan designation was made? TOYAMA:We were not. IWASHITA:If you were aware, if you had been aware and had also been aware that because of that change that this kind of development could occur, would you have made some input? TOYAMA:We would have voiced our opinion. You know, Mr. Fuke went over the history of what had occurred. Well, a number of years ago in the early 1990€s my mother was one who testified for single family dwellings. IWASHITA:That€s when it was downzoned to the Low Density Urban. TOYAMA:Right. IWASHITA:Okay, thank you. ALAMEDA:Other questions? Seeing none, you both may be seated. Mr. Nekoba, could you please state your name and address for the record. NEKOBA:Yes. My name is Lloyd Nekoba. I live part-time at 729 Laukapu. ALAMEDA:Okay. You can proceed with your testimony. NEKOBA:Yes, thank you. First of all before I forget, I wanted to be sure that, and I saw Councilman Jacobson outside, the first time I€ve met him, but I really appreciate his, I don€t know, he passed the ordinance I think about putting those signs up. Because believe me when you come home one day and see 34 units coming next to you, you know, it€s a shock. So, anyway, I want to thank him because I think that€s a good law; and now people will know a development is coming. At least you can do something about it, anyway. ALAMEDA:Okay. 13EXHIBIT C NEKOBA:I don€t have any written testimony. I€m from Pepeekeo and they€re from Hilo, Waiakea. I grew up in Pepeekeo. ALAMEDA:Okay. NEKOBA:Anyway, I have this handout. I didn€t have enough, so hopefully you guys can share it. If you go to, I€m going to the petitions. We have petitions here; and I had it divided up by people who live in the area. And if you go down you can see where it Hinano Street and Laukapu Street is. So that€s why there€s a lot of space. If you look at it, there are people who, we left the space because these are only people living in the area. And there are other people on the list that are just Hilo residents that we had sign. But at this point it was no need in trying to get, you know, as many signatures. We just wanted to concentrate on the area where the project is coming. ALAMEDA:Okay. All right NEKOBA:Okay, and if you turn -. I have a friend of mine Earl Anzai who€s, we foreseeifwehavetofightthisthing,he€llgetprobonoattorneyforus.Thenifwegoto1-A,I have an index, 1-A, you folks have the 1-A? Okay, the house on the right is, states it€s Janis Higa. The next house over is Esther Kunia; and also John Kahiapo; and they were here. I don€t know if you folks saw them, but they had to leave. She has something else so she was going to testify. So for the record, I€d like, because this is like we were supposed to be at 10, yeah? It€s what, 2:30, so -. Okay? ALAMEDA:Yeah. All right. NEKOBA:And the idea behind these pictures is to show you what the neighborhood looks like. Okay? I€m sorry I don€t have for the audience, but -. ALAMEDA:No problem. Where are we at now? What picture are we on now? NEKOBA:A-2. Okay, that€s, again, the Kekuna€s residence. Then A-3 if you€re looking down from Leilani Street, if you look down Laukapu Street you can see how narrow that street is. It€s not a wide street at all, with telephone poles right on the edge. The next picture A-4 is the project site. That warehouse has been taken down. And the next picture A-5 is the empty lot right next to the Kekunas. And the next one again is a picture of the lot. The next one again is too; and then you can see a house on the left side. That€s Mrs. Yabe€s house; and she has been there for, oh, I don€t know how many years, but she has been there for a long time. And she signed the petition. The next picture is just to show you again how narrow Laukapu Street is. I mean it€s just a narrow street. 14EXHIBIT C The next picture is right in front of the site where you can see the water ponding right in front there. And a lot of the water, you know, it goes down. But with cement there and houses there, it€s going to create a different situation. The next one again is the same thing. The next picture, A-11, is my wife€s house, not mine, my wife€s house. But the next lot was where the 9 units were going to be, but they took that out. So -. Then the next picture, A-13, I used to be a school teacher so I€m trying to do it so people can follow. I cannot follow it, but maybe you guys can. Anyway, the A-13 is the Abe€s house; and you can see there€s ponding way at the bottom. And the next house is the same, except from a different shot. A-15 is in front of the Abe€s residence where you can see there€s water there. And, I, you know, everytimeIlookatthisthing,Iguesspeoplejustparkonthere.Butifyoulookatit,almosta quarter of your car would be on the street if you parked there. The next one again is the Abe€s house; and I€m just trying to show the water and the situation where the wall is there, too. The next is another house that I missed taking the picture of but the house after that is the Hirayama€s house and the Abe€s house below, another Abe. They€re not related. And that€s Lanikaula Street already. That€s A-17. Then A-18 is, again, another shot of the Hirayama€s and the Lance Abe€s house. A-19 is, you can see Dr. Lee Ching€s house on the right. And, again, you can see how narrow the street is. The next is a shot of Dr. Lee Ching€s office. The next is the water pooling right in front of the house, as you can see. This is the same, I think what happens is it pools here and then it goes to the Abe€s residence. A-22 is looking across from Dr. Lee Ching€s. A-23 is looking from the Hirayama€s looking at the project. The project is where you see that house. And the next one is a similar shot. Then the B series, what I did was I took Laukapu Street coming from Puna, just to show if you look down the street how narrow the street is. 15EXHIBIT C And the next shot, B-2, is the same thing. B-3, again, you can see the water but -. B-4, again, is the narrow street. B-5 is now from Leilani Street. So the street doesn€t widen. It just stays the same. B-6 just shows, well, I guess it€s the mailman. I couldn€t figure what happened there, but I think it€s the mailman that goes in and delivers mails. And B-7 is pretty obvious when you see that bus coming down. You can€t pass the bus unless you€re off the side of the road. Okay? ThenC-1isLeilaniStreet,whichisthedumproad;andsoalotofpeoplecometothatarea because they can go straight through to the dump. And you can see there€s water ponding there. Again, there€s another shot on the right-hand of the street. And the top -. C-3 is the same thing. I don€t know why I keep taking it, but anyway, I -. C-4 is again Laukapu now looking mauka, from Laukapu Street. Again, you can see how narrow that road is. And C-5 is the same thing going the opposite way. D-1 I just tried to show you Lanikaula Street and Kalanikoa. And Kalanikoa as you can see is a little wider than Laukapu. I mean there€s a difference, I think it€s two feet wider. Then E-1 is an example of, I was told that what they were going to do, they were going to pave the front of the project. And this is how ridiculous it looks like. But this is on Mohouli Street. I don€t know if you folks were the ones that passed it or whatever, but there€s a curbing just in front of the project. The rest of the houses don€t have any curbing. And E-2 you can see the same thing. E-3 again, it€s the same, you know, area. But the curbing is just that. Nothing else has been done to the area. And E-4 is the same thing. Then F-1 in the write-up there was a comparison, the Kukuau townhouse. Well, this is Kumukoa Street as part of the project, the project is on the right. Look how wide that street is. F-2, again, looking down; and you can see the townhouses are on the left. You can see how wide that street is. G-1 is the front part of the project. 16EXHIBIT C And G-2 again is the same shot looking up. G-3 is going down. And G-4 is again going down. And when I went up there, there was a lady working in the yard and I asked her, you know, when they built this thing in front of you, what did you guys do? And she said it was a dairy farm. So, you know, there€s nothing, it€s good she said because somebody built something, you know. But there was a dairy farm. Well, we€re not dealing with a dairy farm. We€re dealing with people living in the area. I€ve got to catch my breath. I€m talking too much. ALAMEDA:Oh, you came prepared. All right. NEKOBA:Ijustdon€twanttomissthepoint,youknow. ALAMEDA:Yeah,we€veneverseenabout50picturesintwominutes.That€spretty good. NEKOBA:Well, you know, I was going to do a powerpoint but it€s a little too high class. So I figured I€d come and do pictures. ALAMEDA:Okay. NEKOBA:Anyway, I don€t know, maybe I can just answer questions. But, as you know, we€re against it, we have petitions here and we intend to be here to fight this project. And, you know, that€s America, you know. This is what it€s about. You come to a hearing, you talk to people. People are not comfortable coming to talk to a body like you folks. Even I€m not comfortable. But, you know, when you€ve got to do it, you€ve got to do it. My, as closing, I put T Tilo (phonetic), Hilo because I think that€s what it€s all about. If you guys let the thing just keep going that€s what€s going to happen. It€s going to be Honolulu. And you can go Honolulu if you want to live in Honolulu. Okay? Anyway, I€ll entertain questions. ALAMEDA:Thank you, Mr. Nekoba. I appreciate your future-like presentation. It was very good. Any questions? Commissioner Iwashita. IWASHITA:Thank you. Mr. Nekoba, I want to ask you a similar question as I did the ladies. Were you aware about the proposal to change the zoning of this general area from Low Density Urban to Medium Density Urban last year? NEKOBA:No. And I don€t think we got -. IWASHITA:And if you had known at the time that the effect of changing it from Low Density Urban to Medium Density Urban would be to allow this kind of project to go forward, would you have come forward at that time to express any concerns? 17EXHIBIT C NEKOBA:Yes, I would. The unfortunate thing is, first, I can understand, it€s not easy to inform people. You know, because people don€t read the mail, whatever it is. But the other part is, you know, the public themselves have to be educated. Cause when you€re talking about multi density, you know, who knows what these things are? I mean, I have no idea what it is. But when I look at Hilo and I see like Puueo and I see, you know, I mean, places that already had that, well, let€s keep it there or do something over there; but don€t go in a residential area. And not because I live there, believe me. It€s just that, you know, it€s not Hilo. That€s as simple as I can make it. But, yes, I would have; and if it comes up now again, I will. In fact, I will try to push our Councilman who lives across the street from me to do this development thing. They should. I mean, it will make it easier for you folks, it€ll make it easy for the Director. ALAMEDA:Other questions? Commissioner Graham. GRAHAM:I just have a couple of quick things. First, I don€t know how effective it is buttherulesoftherezoningisthataprojectlikethis,whateverextrafloodingissuesresultfrom it, they€re supposed to handle it on the project site. So presumably if the rules all follow the practice and it works, it shouldn€t get any worse flooding than what you get right now as a result of the project. I don€t know in practice whether it works the way it€s supposed to; but that€s the rules and what€s what they have to design to follow. NEKOBA:Yeah, I can understand that. But, you know, just looking at the amount of water that comes in that area now you€re going to cement the whole area practically, I mean, I presume there will be some grass, and the roofline, all those buildings, I mean, where is the water going to go? And they said, well, they€re going to dig those whatever, French drains or whatever, but, you know, there€s water not too far down. We€re at sea level there. So I don€t know. GRAHAM:Okay, thanks. And the other thing I was going to bring up is referring th more to the letter of March 15, we have from Lloyd and Patricia Abe from like a land use thing. The one thing that you signaled out in your letter is what is the master plan for Waiakea House Lots. And I think what you€re saying is, at least the way I€m reading it, is that this is intended to be a mixed use area so that we might have apartments, we might have townhouses, we might have some Commercial. But I€m going to kind of ask the Planning Director this one, is there any plan or is it just the issue of like whoever comes in first for the townhouse, wherever they happen to have a piece of property that they want to do it, that€s where it goes. And if somebody comes in for something else and that€s what they want to do, that€s where it goes. And it does seem a little,Imean,itdoesseemtomelikethat€scertainlynotthebestwaybecauseyou€rejustkindof following the dog kind of, you know what I mean, as opposed to having any plan that it would be nicetomixsomeinthiskindofawayandhavetheselocatedhereorsomething.Wedon€thave any plan like that, right? We€re just going to take what happens in the density, and the zoning, andtheGeneralPlanthatwehavesetforthisarea?We€rejustgoingtotakewhatgetspresented to us, where it gets presented? YUEN:There€s nothing more specific than the General Plan though. And so the individualdecisionsaboutthelotswouldbemadeatarezoninglevellikethis.There€sno overall plan that would say one lot becomes this and the next lot becomes that. GRAHAM:Thank you. 18EXHIBIT C NEKOBA:Mr. Iwashita, you asked about the Community Development Plan, that€s the first time I heard about it, you know, in this hearing; and it seems like that is what should be happening. Now if there€s a way to do that, I think the public can be made aware of it so that, you know -. I mean, you want me to write a letter, I don€t write letters, my wife writes the letters. But, anyway, we can get this thing, you know, moving, because I think it will be for everybody, including the developer. I€m not against the developers, you know. ALAMEDA:Commissioner Iwashita, question for our testifier? IWASHITA:Like I said earlier, everybody contact your counsel person and tell them this needs to be done; and, you know, I mean, that is what needs to be done. You know, the Department has very limited resources and what they have is being used on the West side right now, because that€s where the perception of the problems, you know, the more critical problems are.ButcontactyourCouncilperson.Andtheyhavemoneynowsotheycannottellyoudon€t have money. NEKOBA:Can I just have a clarification on those ƒ they had some stipulations before the project; and one was the curbing. Was it to be the whole street? YUEN:No, just the frontage, just the frontage of these three lots. NEKOBA:Just the frontage. Well, yeah, that€s why I showed the picture. But I thought maybe, you know, they changed it. So, okay. ALAMEDA:I appreciate your testimony. Thank you very much. You may be seated. All right we have two additional testifiers. Let€s call up Thomas Hirano and Tim Young. Please come forward. All right. Please raise your right hand. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth now before the Hawaii County Planning Commission? TESTIFIERS:I do. ALAMEDA:All right, thank you. We can start off on my far left. Could you please state your name and address for the record. HIRANO:Thomas Hirano. ALAMEDA:Address? HIRANO:It€s 708 Kanoelehua Avenue. ALAMEDA:Okay, Mr. Hirano, you can proceed with your testimony. HIRANO:Mr. Chairman, Commissioners, my family and I own properties in the Waiakea Houselots area. One of these is along Kalanikoa and Leilani Streets, less than 2 blocks from Mr. Mochida€s and Mr. Aburamen€s proposed townhouse project. Given its proximity to our properties and as active members of our community, we do have an understandable interest in the outcome of this project. 19EXHIBIT C There is an extreme shortage of affordable homes. Projects like this help provide alternative forms of housing. Many can no longer live in the traditional American dream of a single-family residence on a large lot; but we can still help them fulfill the dream of a home through the creation of smaller lots, condos, and townhouses. These types of homes all provide needed housing alternatives and help strengthen the social fabric of our overall community. The Waiakea Houselots area is a good location for such a mixture of homes. At one point in time, this used to be a vibrant community. However, as families grew older, many have moved out of this area and chose to either sell or rent their homes. Today, while there are still homeowners, there are many rentals and increasing commercial and industrial uses. These changes, if planned well, should help make the Houselots area more of a cohesive community where people can work and live. OneofthethingsIwouldliketoseeismorehomeownershipinthisarea.Projectslikethishelp achieve that vision. Home ownership creates a greater sense of belonging and breeds a sense of caring. This is what we need to help make this area function more as a community. At the same time, certain basic infrastructure should be addressed. In this case, the applicants will be required to construct sidewalks fronting the property. This is good as it will make walking a bit safer. Others may say, well, the entire street should have sidewalks. Yes, it should, but it isn€t fair to make that the sole responsibility of these applicants. Even we, as lot owners, don€t want to pay for that cost fronting our properties for the community good. I think they are doing their share and more. And maybe we should step up and do our part, too, for with or without this project the conditions will still remain the same. There have been concerns over drainage. However, it is my understanding that any additional drainage created by this project will have to be contained on the property. With the sidewalk and drywells they will have to construct fronting their properties, there should not be any water ponding on the road fronting their properties. Yes, I am supportive of this project. It is needed for the overall community; it is needed to help make Waiakea Houselots a more vibrant, stable, and caring community. Thank you. ALAMEDA:Thank you, Mr. Hirano. Questions? Seeing none, you may be seated. Can you please state your name and address for the record. YOUNG:Good afternoon, My name is Tim Young, PO Box 1473, Hilo. I have an interest in property at 500 Lanikaula Street. This has been passed on through our family from my grandparents to currently my brother and sisters and myself. And we have interest in other properties. I€m the one that€s basically consolidating the interest so I can move to develop, because my sisters and my brothers have no interest in moving home because there€s no opportunities for the occupations that they currently are involved in in Hilo. And in my hana butta days when we grew up in the summer months, children for jobs they went to Lanai and Molokai to pick pineapples. The girls worked in a cannery in Honolulu. When I was in high school Harry Kim was a counselor. And as we moved towards graduation, we had to realize we€re going to be packing our bags. And either we go to Viet Nam with the draft or we€re going to college. And our group of friends said, okay, guys, we go to college because we€d like to see, 20EXHIBIT C and we made a pact that we€re going to come home and we€re going to try to provide more opportunities for youth that grew up in Hilo than existed for us in our days. There were no Walmarts, no McDonalds, no Burger Kings, no Star Bucks, no Borders. I remember when the Prince Kuhio Plaza was proposed. Hilo was in an uproar. People said it was going to be the death of Downtown; and we had a family business that was Downtown at that time. And, nevertheless, Prince Kuhio Plaza came, Downtown survived. And I think Hilo is better for Prince Kuhio Plaza being here. And then all of a sudden the evil monster Walmart was coming to Hilo. And then everybody again was in an uproar, oh, no, it€s going to be the death of small businesses in Hilo. But businesses transitioned, Walmart came, and I think Hilo is better for Walmart being here. I think together as a community we have met the challenge and we succeeded in providing more opportunitiesforthepeoplethatarelivingheretoday.Butwestillneedmoreandthere€smore that needs to be done. I think we have met the challenge of opportunities but we have fallen back on the mission as a community to provide adequate housing for this community. There are businesses in Hilo. And in order for our community to grow and in order for businesses to prosper, you€ve got to be able to provide housing for the employees. The University is growing, the Hilo Medical Center is growing, the John A. Burns School of Medicine is interested in a program of internship in Hilo. One of their concerns is housing. And I think it€s beholding upon us that we address these issues. The last nuclear facility built in the United States was about 25 years ago. The last oil refinery constructed in the United States was over a decade ago. The last townhouse project in Hilo was somewhere between 10 and 25 years ago in Hilo. And look at that today. It€s a very desirable project and it€s at a very desirable location to reside. I have seen Hilo changed and I realize change is inevitable. And there are more opportunities that still need to be made way for so our classmates, so our friends, so our bothers and sisters can come home and enjoy opportunities and find housing opportunities. Housing and jobs go hand in hand. There are a few things that are certain in life; and among them death and taxes; and now a shortage of housing in Hilo. And I urge you to positively support this proposal and others like it that should be put forth before you. Thank you. ALAMEDA:Thank you. Any questions for Mr. Young? Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it. Will the applicant or its representative please come forward. Mr. Fuke? There were five testifiers and you heard the various opinions. You care to comment? FUKE:Sure. Mr. Chairman, this is like one of the, from a personal standpoint, a little bit more the tougher applications that I€ve had to handle for a number of reasons. Like one is that I think that when you, you know, we always try to, like anyway from my perspective, when you look at applications you always try to put myself in the other person€s shoes, especially if there are complaints; and then hopefully you try to arrive at a win-win kind of situation. 21EXHIBIT C In this particular situation, the nature of the project is such that you don€t have the supporters, the usual supporters that would come out for like an affordable housing or housing project,‚ because they€re not here. Unlike, you know, if you have a request for like a Charter School or a church or whatever, you have the members like coming up and you have a lot of supporters in that regards as opposed to like a housing project. But you do have neighbors who express concerns and you try to arrive at hopefully like a win-win situation; but you€re kind of like, it€s very difficult. The other one is that, you know, I just noted that of the two testifiers I€m somewhat indirectly related to them. Mr. Hirano is my wife€s cousin and he spoke for it. Vicky Abe is my wife€s, it€s all on my wife€s side, my wife€s sister€s in-law. And so I know them personally; and I€ve got a job to do. But having said that, I think that in listening to the substantive type of comments, you know, like there€stheissueabouttheGeneralPlan,Imean,youknow,itwasinMediumDensity,itwent down back to Low Density, and then back again up to Medium Density. But make no mistake about it, this property is on the Medium Density side. It€s the Abe-Saito side that€s in the Industrial area. But not withstanding that, you know, from the General Plan standpoint, it€s Medium Density. And as I was indicating earlier, you know, it€s like calling for like a mixed type of use. You know, the question, however, is like as what Mr. Nekoba was pointing out, like maybe apartments should be or multiple family units should all be confined in one area; and he mentioned like that, you know, to Puueo. But when you think about it, like, well, is this where you want, like have all the apartments all confined to one area like in Puueo, or for that matter on the Hoolulu Park side of the Houselots area, or do you want to have more like a mixture of use? And, you know, I€ve traveled, I have been fortunate enough to travel; and I€ve gone to Japan like a number of times. And I find it so interesting that community because you have a mixture of uses, and they all get along. You have high rises, you have single family homes, and you have multiple family homes, you have commercial, you have industrial; and they all function as a community. And I think that€s what I think is the intent behind the mixed zoning kind of concept; and you have a Medium Density that provides you with that kind of an opportunity to, you know, to capitalize on that kind of an opportunity. True, you know, there are some substantive issues. As I mentioned earlier, like from the density perspective Mr. Mochida could do a 6-lot subdivision, and do 12 units on the property, and not paying an impact fee, not doing an affordable housing, you know that kind of stuff. But it doesn€t foster a true sense of community within that area. I mean that€s kind of like from his perspective which I also share too. There are some environmental or infrastructure kind of questions like, you know, on the traffic. And, true, there are discussions about like, you know, if you look at the parking situation and apartments down at the Hoolulu Park end and most of those apartments were constructed prior to the current Zoning Code that we have, so everybody was just kind of doing the minimum, one stall for each apartment unit. What the Planning Department is suggesting here, which we agree, you know, given the car culture that we are in right now, a minimum of two parking stalls, and plus the two back-up areas. I realize what one of the, Ricky€s sister was talking about, about like the plan may be not being really reflective of, you know, if you do it by scale what could happen in that area. But, in fact, we do have scaled plans that show that if the plans are approved as being proposed, you not only have two covered stalls, but in the back of that you have a minimum of 18 to 20 feet to allow for tandem parking in that area. 22EXHIBIT C It€s kind of ironic to, like when you talk about, you know, like the Commission has dealt with a lot of applications in the Kona area. And they talk about connectivities, and people don€t want connectivities in Kona especially, they talk about trying to introduce traffic calming, you know, whether it€s the roundabout or putting speed humps and all that kind of stuff. And, you know, ironically this is more of a residential than it is not a residential area. And perhaps some of the traffic issues associated in the area may be not so much locally generated traffic as much as having a lot of these cross streets serve as a through streets by people traveling from Lanikaula going to Kekuanaoa or whatever have you. And I think it€s typical. But I think to some extent what limits a person from possibly utilizing this as opposed to going on Manono Street, for example, is that if you€re crossing town and, you know, Kekuanaoa Street is your problem, so you know, you try to hit the traffic limits, and that€s at Manono Street; and so Manono is probably a little bit more heavily traveled. Ontheissueoftheflooding,it€sregrettable,IcanappreciateandunderstandwhattheSaitosand Abes were talking about. And I think that Mr. Nekoba was pointing out to some pictures about the flooding at the corner of Lanikaula and Laukapu Streets. But if memory serves me correctly, and perhaps the staff can correct me on that, but when the use permit was issued for that particular medical facility, there was a requirement for curb, gutter and sidewalk in that area. And whether it was deferred or for some reason deleted, I€m not really aware; or if it€s not true then I would stand corrected. But, you know, in conjunction with all developments as the Commissioners know, there are usually like the attendant responsibility to take care of the basic necessities especially fronting your property. Mr. Nekoba talked about the Pacific Townhouse Project; and that is true. If you look at Kukuau Street and you go on that Kumukoa Street, yeah, it€s wide street and all that stuff. But when RSM came to do that development, that was their entire property that they had to do curb, gutter, sidewalk and for the full improvements. But if you get beyond that point, and you€re heading makai, you€ll find that Kukuau Street begins to narrow. So what we€re saying over here is that like, and to some extent what Mr. Hirano indicated, is that yes, if government is not going to do it and developers are going to do it, and the individual homeowners do not want to make some improvements, that through development you allow for piecemeal type of infrastructure improvements. And, hopefully, at some point in time there will be a full level of improvements done. I do recall also that photo shown by Mr. Nekoba on Mohouli Street. It may look funny right now. But at some point in time when Mr. Ahuna€s property begins to develop at the far end and those intervening parcels develop, then you will find curb, gutter and sidewalk stretching from Dr. Camacho€s building all the way down to Kinoole Street. ALAMEDA:Fellow Commissioners, there€s a lot in front of us at this time. We€ve heard testimony from five individuals. We also heard a response from Mr. Fuke regarding some of the concerns. What are your guys€ thoughts? Discussion? Or any questions first for our applicant before he sits? All right seeing none, you can be seated. All right, Commissioner Graham. GRAHAM:This is kind of hard for me. Basically I have been supporting the sort of mixed use concept here in Waiakea and all. And I think with the Planning Director€s particular restrictions as far as the height limitation and as far as the extra parking spaces, he has really 23EXHIBIT C mitigated some of what could be problematic around a townhouse project. But I€m still left with the feeling that this is kind of, you know, the first in that area; and it has kind of parachuted in at that one place. And the neighbors are not happy with it. So, I don€t know, I don€t feel like I have any precedent I need to follow on it; and I€m just uncomfortable with just accepting it because it conforms. But if it€s at a particular location that it€s not well received, I guess, I€m not so inclined to support it as I would be on the general concept of something that is well planned like this in that area. ALAMEDA:All right, Commissioner Graham. Commissioner Salavea? SALAVEA:I appreciate the public testimony and everyone who came forward today to provide us information about your community and the history. It€s very valuable for the Commission to receive that information. And I want to encourage everything to continue to do that because it does help us in forming our opinions albeit it may differ from Commissioner to Commissioner.Butitstilldoeshelptheindividualcomeupwithormakeadecision,especially in these applications where there seems to be a recurring issue between growth and maintaining status quo. I myself I want to say that I want to support local contractors and developers in providing housing options to local people in Hilo. And I want to qualify that with, as a first-time home buyer, the options in Hilo, Keaau areas are, the Hilo-Puna area are very limited at the moment. And the more options we can provide to first time home buyers looking to locate near the Hilo area where they work, they play, their family members live, I think is of value and great importance. Because we don€t want to be caught up in maintaining our urban areas or urban core at the status quo and forcing people to move out into the rural areas, 30 minutes, one hour, hour and a half out of town because that€s the only affordable area to live in. I think developments such as this kind of present us with a different option than from what€s traditional -- buying a lot in Hilo, getting together $300,000 to $400,000 and then building your home and having a $3500 mortgage per month. I think something like this is, although it does clash with the history and the overall look of the surrounding community, we still need to look at how we can provide our young families or local families, professionals coming up trying to live and work in Hilo with options. And that€s my, you know, this is a tough issue; and that€s where my gut feeling is taking me, and I feel strongly that we need to support a project like this. ALAMEDA:Commissioner Iwashita? IWASHITA:Thank you. I agree with all the sentiments and feelings Commissioner Salavea expressed about the need to really address our housing shortage, you know, throughout the spectrum of all our housing needs. I really think that it€s a significant enough problem for our community that there is no way that this body or the Council is going to be able to deal with it in an effective manner that will result in a solution or any where near a solution if we try go about it in a, I hate to use the word spot zoning, but, you know, basically in this opportunistic kind of way that these kind of proposals come to this body and to the County Council. What€s really needed is a broadbased community effort to address the housing and all the other needs that we have in our community in a comprehensive manner, which is a Community Development Plan. And that really needs to be done; and that€s about the only effective way, frankly I can see that our housing crisis can be addressed. Otherwise, it€s really on a helter skelter, well, maybe this will work or not kind of basis. And we will never, I€ll say the word, we€ll never resolve it if we keep doing it this way. And so in my mind that€s, the housing shortage is not really the moving factor to me in addressing whether we should approve this project. And, you know, I 24EXHIBIT C know both applicants relatively at different levels and I really support the intent of what they€re doing or trying to do. But the process as I see it is one with, you know, I would hope that they would continue on beyond the boundaries of their project and look at the entire Houselots neighborhood, the entire Hilo community, and also help support the Community Development Plan process. And in the end, in my mind, by doing so, when we have a real clear picture of where the development is going to go, then the development dollars will be there. You know, I€m told and I agree that developers want as clear a line as possible with as minimal number of approval processes to go through. And if we do a clear enough, specific enough Community Development Plan that says this is where the development is going to occur, then it will happen. The way we have it now, it€s just helter skelter; and we will end up with nothing better than LA, Honolulu, Kihei, if we keep going down this road. I€m part of the process and trying to be a voice to try and change it; and so as the rest of the body knows here, to be consistent, I will be voting against this project. ALAMEDA:OtherCommissionerswouldliketovoicetheirthoughtsonthisparticular agenda item? Well, we have five Commission Members, that makes a quorum. We could entertain a motion at this time either way. Commissioner Salavea? SALAVEA:Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move that a favorable recommendation be forwarded to the County Council on the planning application for Change of Zone Docket No. REZ 06-000035 based on the Planning Director€s recommendation and proposed conditions. ALAMEDA:Do I hear a second? Seeing none, motion dies. Is there another motion? Commissioner Iwashita? IWASHITA:Yes, I€ll make one. I move that an unfavorable recommendation be forwarded to the County Council on the application for change of zone Docket No. REZ 06- 000035 based on the following reasons and conditions: Basically those which I stated in the record previously heretofore. And if counsel tells me I need to restate them, I will. Thank you. GALDONES:Second that motion. ALAMEDA:Okay, motion made by Commissioner Iwashita, seconded by Commissioner Galdones, to forward an unfavorable recommendation regarding this application. Discussion? GALDONES:Mr. Chair? ALAMEDA:Sure. Commissioner Galdones. GALDONES:In viewing this application, as a Commissioner I just do not want to exercise my right of authority and not give any consideration to the public. I€m looking for a win-win situation. Unfortunately in this particular case I do not see a win-win situation. And it was easy for me to just say that I can go along with the recommendation because I€m not going to live in the community, the community that has to deal with this situation. And voicing the concerns that they had, I do not see that being mitigated. I had some difficulty in supporting a favorable recommendation. And as I stated earlier a lack of a Community Development Plan, I€m guided by the voice of the community; and in this particular case they have voiced some 25EXHIBIT C opposition to it. And because that is, I would encourage the rest of my colleagues to vote in support of the motion. ALAMEDA:Okay, other discussion? I€d like to share something, too, regarding the Community Development Plan. You know, I think there€s a, I agree along those lines that the Community should be more involved in planning for their own development. However, I think there might be a misconception that a Community Development Process will ensure win-win all the way around. I as a facilitator in many different places with different types of people from different types of efforts and initiatives realize that even a Community Development Plan Process will not ensure community consensus. It is very difficult in any community to reach consensus regarding these issues. I think Commissioner Salavea brings up a real good point that would probably split this community. And I think Commissioner Galdones and Commissioner Iwashita brings up another good point that would probably split this community. But the notion of, you know, we need a community plan kind of, with the perception that, oh, that will in itself bringcommunityconsensusisanillusionfrommyownfacilitationofsuchprocesses. Nonetheless,tryingtomakethateffortIthinkis,itisaworthyconcept.Buttojuststateitasifit will be the solution is not accurate in my own experience. Commissioner Iwashita. IWASHITA:Thank you, Mr. Chair. I don€t have any experience, okay? My strong feelings about it, in part, arise from my moving around this state and having seen how things have gone and seeing really a need for doing something different. I mean if we keep doing what we€re doing, we€re going to deserve what we get. All right? And so my state of mind is such that anything is better than what is out there right now, absolutely. You€ve got to try something else. Right? Otherwise, you fit the definition of insanity. We keep doing the same thing over and over again, and we€re going to expect something different from Kihei, something different from Kapolei, something different from LA; and that is insanity. That€s like my golf game. I keep going out there and doing the same thing, expecting the scores to get better. It ain€t happening. So I appreciate the Chair€s point that, you know, there ain€t no guarantees. I agree. There ain€t no guarantees. But I would like to share one example, I guess. About a year ago or so, plus or minus, I was present at a meeting at Kalanianaole School cafeteria by the Rural South Hilo something, I forget exactly what it was called, but they brought down a fella by the name of Mr. Aimes, I don€t remember his first name, a consultant kind of person apparently something like what you described, who facilitated together with a bunch of other professionals, I guess, up in Flagstaff, Arizona, what I would call a Community Development Plan Process which took a couple of years. In the end they essentially had an agreement in the community, the entire Flagstaff community. I don€t know how many people live there. I€ve driven through there couple of times. But basically they agreed this is where the development is going to take place, this is where development is not going to take place, this is where the housing is going to be, where the commercial development is going to be, where the college is going to be, how big the college is going to be. They drew all the lines on the map; and when they went to their Council to get it approved, there was not one ounce of opposition. As far as housing, the housing community from those that service the homeless all the way up to the high end developers, they all agreed this is how we€re going to do it, this is where the housing is going to be, and this is how the housing will get done. I don€t know if it has actually been done, but they agreed. And, you know, that€s one example. 26EXHIBIT C And, to me, you know, every month Houselots, right? Now that the General Plan has been changed to Medium Density, every month we get one of these. And, you know, I just, to me the writing is on the wall, right? We just keep going down this road, and what we€re doing is called entitlements. Once the entitlement is granted, you€re locked in. And we do this for another two, three, four, five years, there it goes, we just got a strip mall. Look at these plans. These plans for the commercial development on Manono Street was mostly a parking lot. And the community wants a parking lot, fine, they can have it. Right? We can have it. But we have choices. We don€t have to do it that way; and that€s what a Community Development Plan process allows us to do, a chance anyway. We might not agree. ALAMEDA:All right. Other thoughts? Okay, motion is on the floor to send an unfavorable recommendation. Seeing no further discussion, staff? HAYASHI:Thankyou,Mr.Chair.Thisisamotiontosendanunfavorable recommendation to the County Council for the reasons previously stated on the record and, additionally, some of the reasons that Mr. Galdones has stated. With that, I€ll call the roll call vote. HAYASHI:Commissioner Iwashita? IWASHITA:Yes. HAYASHI:Commissioner Galdones? GALDONES:Aye. HAYASHI:Commissioner Graham? GRAHAM:Aye. HAYASHI:Commissioner Salavea? SALAVEA:Nay. HAYASHI:Chair Alameda? ALAMEDA:Aye. HAYASHI:Mr. Chair, motion does not carry. ALAMEDA:All right, you€ll be informed in writing. Oh, does this come back? HAYASHI:That goes back on your agenda. ALAMEDA:All right. So on the next Hilo meeting or -? HAYASHI:Yes, it will be on the next Hilo meeting. 27EXHIBIT C ALAMEDA:Okay. So you will be notified. Thank you for your patience. The discussion ended at 3:24 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sharon M. Nomura, Secretary 28EXHIBIT C