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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-05-10 PCDP AC Minutes County of Hawai‘i PLANNING DEPARTMENT PUNA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ACTION COMMITTEE Aupuni Center • 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 3 • Hilo, Hawai‘i 96720 Phone (808) 961-8288 • Fax (808) 961-8742 Hawai‘i County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer BJ Leithead Todd Director Margaret Masunaga Deputy Director William P. Kenoi Mayor Action Committee: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 Meeting Minutes CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Dan Taylor called the Puna Community Development Plan (PCDP) Action Committee (AC) meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. in the Kea’au Community Center, with the following persons present: Barbara Bell, Madie Greene, Keikialoha Kekipi, Jeffrey Krepps, Wesley Owens, Dan Taylor. Excused: Greg Braun, Frank Commendador, Tim Tunison. Staff: Larry Brown (Planning Department, Project Manager), Elizabeth “Liz” Hultman-Salfen (Planning Department, Community Planning Assistant), Cynthia Lahilahi Verschuur (Planning Department, Recorder). Public servants: Gwen Kupahu (County Councilman Fred Blas’ office, 5th District) Members of the public: 4 ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA None ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Larry announced the Pahoa Transfer Station is finished, and a dedication ceremony is tentatively set for June 15. 2. Jon Olson announced the final draft environmental impact statement for the HWY 130 improvement project will be presented to the public May 23 at Kea‘au Elementary. He reported project features include widened lanes, signalized intersections, a divided highway, possible roundabouts at ‘Āinaloa and Kahakai Blvds., and rerouting Orchidland, Kaloli and Maku‘u Drives to make four-way intersections. PUBLIC TESTIMONY None APPROVAL OF MINUTES Wes moved to approve the minutes of the April 12, 2011 AC meeting; Madie seconded. The motion passed with five votes in favor; Keiki abstained. 2 UNFINISHED BUSINESS 1. Draft Annual Report A. Larry presented his final draft of the annual report, which will go to the county council, the mayor and department heads, and is an overview of implementation actions. B. Barbara moved to approve the draft annual report. Wes seconded. After discussion, motion passed with five votes in favor; Keiki abstained. 2. Action Committee Status Report A. Barbara moved to approve the report drafted by Dan as a separate communication to the planning director. Madie seconded. The AC decided to amend the report as follows: i. Jeffrey moved to eliminate the introduction; Barbara seconded. All voted in favor. ii. Barbara moved to shorten the Amendments Sub-committee paragraph on page 3 to the first sentence through “County Council” and last sentence. Wes seconded, all voted in favor. iii. Madie moved to delete the 2nd bullet in section 6 on page 7; Barbara seconded. All voted in favor. iv. Madie moved to delete the 4th bullet in section 6 on page 7. Jeffrey seconded; all voted in favor. v. Jeffrey moved to add items 1 and 2 at the bottom of page 7 to section 6 and eliminate “for Pāhoa and Volcano” from the section heading. Madie seconded; all voted in favor. vi. Keiki moved to create section 7 “Parks and Recreation” and put items 3, 4, and 5 at the bottom of page 7 under it. Barbara seconded; all voted in favor. vii. Keiki moved to delete item 4, now listed as item 2 under section 7. Barbara seconded. Discussion ensued about access, ownership, and liability of Cape Kumukahi. 3 voted in favor, 2 opposed, 1 abstained; motion did not pass. viii. Barbara moved to delete the 2nd sentence of the new item 2, re-nominating Cape Kumukahi for inclusion in property acquisition list. Wes seconded; all voted in favor. ix. Jeffrey move to delete item 3 on page 8. Madie seconded; all voted in favor. x. Madie moved to modify item 8 to change “Hawaiian Paradise Park” to “Puna Park”. Keiki seconded. All voted in favor. xi. Discussion to be continued after Maku‘u Farmers Association presentation. NEW BUSINESS 1. Larry announced that Yamada withdrew the special use permit application for commercial development at Auli‘i Dr. and HWY 130 due to lack of community support, being inconsistent with the PCDP, and vocal opposition from Orchidland Community Association. 2. Guest speaker Heidi Boteilho from Maku‘u Farmers Association (MFA) presented conceptual development plans for a community village center on HWY 130. 3 A. MFA is a grassroots “go-to” organization and is working in compliance with federal (Federal Aviation Administration), state (Dept. of Hawaiian Homelands) and county regulations. B. MFA is seeking grants to build a $7M community center to service the whole Puna community, and is limited in what materials can be used due to proximity to FAA tower. C. MFA is open to suggestions; their regional plan (updated in 2010) was developed to support a large community planned for the area aroundthe 38 acres of Hawaiian Homelands site. D. Larry discussed connectivity advantages between Hawaiian Homelands farm lots, Hawaiian Paradise Park and any future Puna Makai Alternate Route (PMAR). E. Heidi expressed their desire to have the AC’s endorsement and to reciprocate support. UNFINISHED BUSINESS CONTINUED 2. Action Committee Status Report continued A. Wes moved to strike “Moving forward” section. Madie seconded. i. Dan explained he wanted to document the AC’s frustration and struggles. ii. Larry said the AC could petition the State Attorney General about seeking reconsideration of advisory boards and commissions being held to Sunshine laws. iii. Discussion included keeping the issues on the table for future agenda items. Five voted in favor to delete the section, Dan opposed. Motion passed. B. Discussion returned to section 6 on “initiating town and village center plans”. Barbara moved to delete 3rd bullet in that section (“commercial developments…”) on page 7. Wes seconded; all voted in favor. C. Barbara moved to approve the letter to the planning director as amended. Dan seconded; all voted in favor. NEW BUSINESS CONTINUED 3. Sub-committee reports A. Amendment Sub-committee i. Dan reported on last County Council meeting. ii. Larry gave status update—the three amendments got unanimous approval during 1st reading, the second reading will be in Hilo next week, didn’t think it was necessary for AC member to be there. B. Budget & Finance Sub-committee i. Jeffrey said they would schedule meeting in next month to discuss ways to fund support staff and get different projects on the Capital Improvement Project (CIP) list. C. Public Outreach Sub-committee i. No meeting. 20 members on the online forum including the AC members and staff. ii. Larry suggested the AC members go onto the forum and start discussion threads. D. Mālama I Ka ‘Āina Sub-committee 4 i. Biosphere reserve buffer zone--Dan reported they are moving forward on a resolution. Council Members Blas and Smart are in support. They need to discuss precise delineation. ii. Ground water projects--Jon Olson reported on the discussion of a water system for commercial use, public health, fire suppression, or agriculture-only. iii. Wastewater treatment--Barbara reported that Joy Gannon had a car accident and has to postpone strategic planning for wastewater project in Kapoho. Joy did go through feasibility report and said there is enough data to precipitate forward movement. Barbara said there were 50 people at the last meeting and the mindset is changing. E. Managing Growth Sub-committee i. Park development—No meeting, but Madie reported the 56-acre Pāhoa park is awaiting design funds and Hawaiian Beaches is expanding their top park to have a football field. F. Transportation Sub-committee i. No meeting. Wes reported new bus stops with roofs around Hilo, new bus stop signs in Hilo and Puna, and the move of the Prince Kuhio Mall bus stop to a new structure on the road behind the old Safeway. ii. Larry said Tom Brown has been soliciting community comments on the draft Mass Transit Master Plan. He will try to get him to share it with the AC. iii. PMAR update a. Larry reported the bond allocation request bill was approved by the Council and should be signed by the mayor this week. b. CIP money may not be properly designated for county road; Larry will talk to Rep. Hanohano. May need to get the governor to release the funds. 4. Madie moved to hold the June AC meeting in Pāhoa at the Community Center. Barbara seconded; all voted in favor. 5. Action Committee Workshops A. None requested. Larry said he’d like to drop this item from future agendas. He said if someone has an idea for a workshop, to let him know and he’d put it on the agenda for the next meeting. PUBLIC TESTIMONY None AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING 1. Guest speaker Tom Brown and Mass Transit Master Plan or Faye Hanohano 2. Community outreach calendar (under Public Outreach sub-committee report) 3. Hawai‘i Sustainable Communities Alliance resolution 4. “Moving forward” items: developing effective communications with planning director, department heads and county council (possibly for July meeting) ADJOURNMENT The Chairperson adjourned the meeting at 5:58 p.m.