Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-11-24 TPD-USE SCHOOLS LEEWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I HEARING TRANSCRIPT NOVEMBER 24, 2010 PLANNING DIRECTOR INITIATED AMENDMENT A regularly advertised hearing on the TO CHAPTER 25, RELATING TO USE PERMITS FOR SCHOOLS was called to order at 11:20 a.m. in the King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel, Ballroom I, 75-5660 Palani Road, Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i, with Chairman Frederic Housel presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Frederic Housel, Brandi Beaudet, Lani Bowman, Thomas Hickcox and Richard Nelson ABSENT AND EXCUSED: Geraldine Giffin and Wayne Iokepa STAFF PRESENT: Brandon Gonzalez (Deputy Corporation Counsel), BJ Leithead Todd (Planning Director), Daryn Arai (Planning Program Manager), Jeff Darrow (Staff Planner) and Maija Cottle (Staff Planner) And one person from the public in attendance. INITIATOR: PLANNING DIRECTOR Amendment to Chapter 25 (Zoning Code), Article 2 and Article 5 of the Hawai‘i County Code, 1983 (2005 Edition, as amended), relating to Use Permits for Schools within the Hotel-Resort (V), General Industrial (MG), Limited Industrial (ML) and Industrial-Commercial Mixed (MCX) zoned Districts. HOUSEL: The next item on our agenda is Item No. 7. The initiator is the Planning Director, and this is an amendment to Chapter 25, Zoning Code, Article 2 and Article 5 of the Hawai‘i County Code 1983, relating to the use permits for schools within the Hotel-Resort, General Industrial, Limited Industrial and Industrial-Commercial Mixed zoned districts. Daryn, would you like to give us a little more information? ARAI: Sure. Good morning, Mr. Chairman and Commissioners. The purpose of the bill before you is basically to provide an option to landowners and applicants to apply for a use permit to allow the establishment of schools within the Hotel-Resort and various Industrial zone districts. Presently, the Zoning Code does permit schools outright as a permitted use within various Commercial designated districts. It also allows by a use permit granted by the Planning Commission the opportunity to allow schools within Residential and Agricultural zoned districts. Unfortunately, the Zoning Code currently prohibits the opportunity to apply for a use permit within certain Industrial zoned districts, as well as the Resort Hotel zoned districts. Again, this proposed bill simply provides that opportunity for one to apply; the Commission must still act on it before granting the proposed use. And the background and recommendation report that you have before you, if you were to refer to Page 2, in the second to last paragraph, about the middle of the paragraph, there is a sentence that starts off, “A vocational school that teaches welding is not permitted in the Industrial-zoned district”; that is not a correct statement. Upon looking further we realized that a vocational school 1 EXHIBIT D is a permitted use within the Limited Industrial zoned district. So I would like to clarify that sentence, if I may, and that sentence should read, “A school is not permitted in certain Industrial zoned districts and again, there is no opportunity to apply for a Use Permit. Both of these schools, certain circumstances,” and then complete the sentence as currently worded. So with that, I hope you consider a favorable action on this proposed bill. LEITHEAD TODD: I would like to comment. The reason this bill originated is we were approached by charter schools who have had difficulty finding specific properties that are suitable. And a couple of the properties in the Hilo area that they were interested in were zoned Resort, but we couldn’t allow them to use the properties for school purposes because there was no process to do so. The other one is NELHA, which is zoned Industrial, and has had West Hawai‘i Explorations Academy there. And what we were finding is that with the changes in the way schools approach teaching with the creation of charter schools and also the future of what we think might be a little niche schools, you know, that address a particular type of schooling, that we needed to have more flexibility. The reason we went with use permit as opposed to permitted use is is that because of the specific issues related to traffic or what else is going on in the area, there may need to be specific conditions, times that we need to address specific concerns that may arise, if you place something in an industrial area – you know, like, an industrial area like NELHA is very different from an industrial area which is warehouses and storage and things like that. But we think that this will give us some flexibility to meet the changing needs of educational community. HOUSEL: Thank you. BOWMAN: So, I have a question, just because my concern was in industrial areas, but I assume then with the use permit they would be scrutinized as far as the safety -. LEITHEAD TODD: Yes. And then the conditions, we would recommend conditions and the Commission would have the ability to put conditions on the schools. I’m thinking like, it may be that there are specific uses that you might like; like if you did a mixed industrial-commercial, somebody might want to do a culinary school or something, you know, like that. And it’s just that what we found is that educational community has changed and adapted more quickly than our Code has. So we are trying to catch up. ARAI: Mr. Chairman? HOUSEL: Sure. ARAI: Just for the Commissioners’ information, I failed to mention that we do have letters in support of this proposed bill from the University of Hawai‘i, the Department of Education and Ka‘u Meke Ka‘eo, and those letters have been distributed to you. HOUSEL: And there are no letters of opposition, is that correct? ARAI: None. HOUSEL: Okay, thank you. Any other questions of staff? Would someone like to make a motion? 2 EXHIBIT D NELSON: I move the Planning Director’s amendment to Chapter 25, Zoning Code, Article 2 and Article 5 of the Hawai‘i County Code, relating to use permits be approved. HOUSEL: Motion from Commissioner Nelson for approval. Second? BEAUDET: I second. HOUSEL: Seconded by Commissioner Beaudet. Daryn, would you like to take the roll call? ARAI: Yes, Mr. Chairman. Commissioner Nelson? NELSON: Yes. ARAI: Commissioner Beaudet? BEAUDET: Aye. ARAI: Commissioner Bowman? BOWMAN: Aye. ARAI: Commissioner Hickcox? HICKCOX: Aye. ARAI: Mr. Chairman? HOUSEL: Aye. ARAI: Mr. Chairman, motion to approve carries with five aye votes. HOUSEL: Thank you, Daryn. The discussion ended at 11:27 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Noriko Sauer, Secretary Leeward Planning Commission 3 EXHIBIT D