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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPD Recommendation Report (PL-SPP-2023-000040) RWDCProp.AmendSPP53 8.cm.6.27.23 COUNTY OF HAWAI`I PLANNING DEPARTMENT RECOMMENDATION WDC PROPERTIES, LLC AMEND CONDITION NO. 4 OF SPECIAL PERMIT NO. 538 (PL-SPP-2023-000040) Upon careful review of the request against the guidelines under Rule 6 of the Planning Commission Rules of Practice and Procedures for granting an amendment to Special Permits, the Planning Director recommends the amendment request be approved by the Planning Commission. Since this recommendation is made without the benefit of public testimony, the Director reserves the right to modify and/or alter this position. The approval recommendation is based on the following findings: The applicant is requesting an amendment to Condition No. 4 of Special Permit No. 538, which limits the life of the permit until June 30, 2025. The request is to extend the life of the permit for a period of 10 years until June 30, 2035. Condition No. 4 currently states: "This permit shall be effective until June 30, 2025." The applicant WDC Properties, LLC is the fee owner of the subject property and Blue Hawaiian Helicopters is the licensee. Blue Hawaiian Helicopters wishes to make a major investment in the business by constructing a new hangar consisting of approximately 3,500 square feet within the existing Special Permit area. The hangar, which will be less than 25 feet tall, will be located in a natural lava alcove situated approximately 10 feet below the road line of sight. The alcove will provide a natural shelter for the hangar and that together with the existing lava landscape should help minimize its visibility from both Waikoloa Road and Queen Ka`ahumanu Highway. The requested time extension is not for the lack of performance but an extension of the permit life. The applicant intends to maintain the operation of an existing heliport and its related facilities. The current permit limits heliport operations at the property to a maximum of 40 landings per day during daylight hours, excluding emergency landings or emergency helicopter support. The granting of a time extension will help amortize the cost of the proposed 3,500-square feet hangar improvement. The hangar will enable more efficient repair and maintenance of the helicopters. Currently, repair and maintenance -I- work are taking place in Hilo, which requires additional flight time and fuel. The estimated cost for the construction of the proposed hangar is between $3.5 and $4 million. The licensee expects the new hangar to be completed within 5 years. Granting of the amendment request would not be contrary to the General Plan or South Kohala Community Development Plan (SKCDP). The County of Hawaii General Plan is the policy document for the long-range comprehensive development of the island of Hawaii. One of the purposes of the General Plan is to guide the pattern of future development in this County based on long-term goals. The General Plan Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide (LUPAG) Map designates the property as Urban Expansion (ue) and Open (o) Area. This designation has not changed since the original Special Permit was issued in 1983. The South Kohala Community Development Plan was adopted by the Hawaii County Council by Ordinance No. 08-159 on December 1, 2008. The plan does not specifically address the existing heliport. Both the General Plan and SKCDP indicate the importance of maintaining scenic views of Mauna Kea in the Waikoloa area. The proposed hangar has the potential to impact views of Mauna Kea from nearby roadways, thus the Planning Director recommends adding a condition to the permit to have the applicant paint the hangar in a color that blends in with the surrounding landscape to minimize view plane impacts. Based on the above, this time extension amendment request will not be contrary to the goals of the General Plan or the SKCDP. Granting of the amendment request would not be contrary to the original reasons for the granting of the Special Permit. The original reasons for approval of Special Permit No. 538 are still applicable today and the request is not contrary to these reasons. The use would continue to be an unusual and reasonable use of lands situated within the Agricultural District and will not be contrary to the objectives of Chapter 205, HRS, as amended. The land upon which the existing use is sought is unsuited for the uses permitted within the district. It is classified as "E" or "Very Poor" for agricultural productivity by the Land Study Bureau and unclassified by the Agricultural Lands of Importance to the State of Hawaii (ALISH) Map. The use will not adversely affect surrounding properties. Since the approval of the most recent amendment to the Special -2- Permit, the Planning Department has not received any complaints regarding the operation. Lastly, the continued operation will not unreasonably burden public agencies to provide roads, streets, sewers, water, drainage, and police and fire protection. The Police Department commented that they do not anticipate any significant impact to traffic and/or public safety concerns with the approval of request. Access to the project site is provided by Waikoloa Road, a County owned and maintained roadway. Water is provided to the project site by a private water system. According to the Department of Environmental Management there is no County sewer system in the area. The existing facility is serviced by an existing individual wastewater septic system. The applicant will follow all applicable federal, state, and county regulations. According to the Fire Department, Fire Department access and water supply shall comply with Chapter 18 of the 2018 Hawai'i State Fire Code and Chapter 17 of the Hawai'i County Code. Based on the above considerations, the amendment request would not be contrary to the original reasons for granting the permit. The request will not have a significant adverse impact to traditional and customary Hawaiian Rights. In view of the Hawaii State Supreme Court's "PASH" and "Ka Pa`akai O Ka `Aina" decisions, the issue relative to native Hawaiian gathering and fishing rights must be addressed in terms of the cultural, historical, and natural resources and the associated traditional and customary practices of the site: Investigation of valued resources: No archaeological inventory survey or flora/fauna study of the property was conducted due to the significantly developed nature of the property. Furthermore, past ground disturbance activities within the property, which included backfilling, would indicate that the potential for subsurface archaeological resources is unlikely. The valuable cultural, historical, and natural resources found in the permit area: The subject site is not adjacent to or proximate to the shoreline. As such, there should be no impact on fishing and/or coastal access. According to the applicant, there are no known customary or Native Hawaiian cultural rights exercised on the property. Furthermore, there are no known archaeological or historic resources on the property and -3- the flora/fauna found on the property are largely introduced species consistent with that of an urban area, thus not considered to be particularly culturally significant. By letter dated April 11, 2000, the State Historic Preservation Division determined that no historic properties would be affected by continuation of the heliport use. Possible adverse effect or impairment of valued resources: Given the lack of valued resources identified on the property, it is unlikely that such resources will be impaired. Feasible actions to protect native Hawaiian rights and valued resources: To the extent to which traditional and customary native Hawaiian rights are exercised, the proposed action will not affect traditional Hawaiian rights and no action is necessary to protect these rights. Additionally, if historic or cultural resources are inadvertently discovered during construction of the proposed hangar, all development will cease until the applicant has received clearance to continue work from SHPD. Lastly, this approval is made with the understanding that the applicant remains responsible for complying with all other applicable governmental requirements in connection with the approved use. Additional governmental requirements may include the issuance of building permits, compliance with the Fire Code, installation of improvements required by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), among many others. Compliance with all applicable governmental requirements is a condition of this approval; failure to comply with such requirements will be considered a violation that may result in enforcement action by the Planning Department and/or affected agencies. Based on the above findings, the Planning Director recommends approval of the request for the continued use of the heliport for an additional 10 years until June 30, 2035. Approval of the amendment to Special Permit No. 538 is subject to the following amended conditions of approval (material to be deleted is bracketed and struck-through and material to be added is underscored): 1. The petitioner, its successors, or assigns ("Applicant") shall be responsible for complying with all stated conditions of approval. 2. The applicant shall indemnify and hold the County of Hawaii harmless from and against any loss, liability, claim or demand for the property damage, -4- personal injury or death arising out of any act or omission of the Applicant [appnQant, its sAEeessef-S OF aigHS], officers, employees, contractors, and agents under this permit or relating to or connected with the approval of this permit. 3. Final Plan Approval for all uses and structures associated with the heliport, pursuant to Sections 25-2-72 and 25-2-75 of the Hawaii County Code (Zoning Code), shall be secured from the Planning Department. Plans shall identify all existing and proposed structures, helipads, landscaping, fire protection measures, paved parking stalls and paved driveway access associated with the approved use. Plans shall also indicate helicopter ingress and egress routes. Uses of the landing strip shall be limited to heliport operations only. 4. This permit shall be effective until June 30, [2025] 2035. 5. The proposed hangar shall be located in the natural lava alcove as indicated in the application and painted a natural color to blend with the lava landscape to minimize its visibility from Waikoloa Road and the Queen Ka'ahumanu HighmLgy. [-S-.]6. Heliport operations at the project site shall be limited to a maximum of 40 landings per day during daylight hours. Emergency landings or emergency helicopter support are excluded from this condition. [6-.]7. Routine daily maintenance and engine testing to ensure airworthiness is permitted at the heliport. Regular scheduled maintenance of helicopters at the heliport is [prohibited] permitted. Flight testing of helicopters, [with th e*eep6en e€J and flights associated with emergency repairs, is [also Pfehibi ] permitted at the heliport. Other operational procedures, such as refueling, shall comply with applicable governmental regulations. [ ]8. Safety devices and signage as may be required by the State Department of Transportation shall be installed prior to the commencement of helicopter flights from the approved heliport facility. [9-.]9. The [pe64ener]Applicant and all users of the landing strip shall be responsible to take reasonable precautions to avoid the creation of hazardous conditions -5- which may affect traffic in the area of the landing strip. Should it be determined that adequate precautionary measures are not being taken, the Planning Director is authorized to temporarily suspend any further use of the landing strip pending further disposition by the Planning Commission which may then nullify the permit. 10. In the event that surface or subsurface historic resources, including human skeletal remains, structural remains (e.g. rock walls, terraces, platforms, etc. , cultural deposits, marine shell concentrations, sand deposits, or sink holes are identified during the demolition and/or construction work, the Applicant shall cease work in the immediate vicinity of the find,protect the find from additional disturbance and contact the Department of Land and Natural Resources-State Historic Preservation Division (DLNR-SHPD) at 808) 933-7651. Subsequent work shall proceed upon an archaeological clearance from DLNR-SHPD when it finds that sufficient mitigation measures have been taken. , emd i shall be eemplied wit ]The applicant shall comply with all applicable County, State and Federal laws, rules, regulations, and requirements. An annual monitoring report shall be submitted to the Planning Director on or by June 30th of each year this permit is in effect. The report shall include, but not be limited to, a comprehensive listing of all complaints received by the [applie-a-tA]Applicant regarding operations at the heliport and its disposition. This condition shall remain in effect until all of the conditions of approval have been complied with and the Planning Director acknowledges that further reports are not required. [44-.]13. The applicant shall be responsible for operating the heliport facility in a manner as represented to the Planning Commission, including good faith negotiations with qualified helicopter tour companies, and prescribed under the conditions of approval of this permit. Non-compliance with these representations or conditions of this permit shall cause the Planning Director to schedule a public -6- hearing on the matter before the Planning Commission to determine whether a violation has, in fact, occurred. [42-]14. Should the Planning Director determine that any of the conditions have not been met or substantially complied within a timely fashion, the Planning Director shall initiate procedures to revoke the Special Permit. -7-