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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-28-2011 SKCDP AC Minutes - Final SOUTH KOHALA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ACTION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES OF MEETING Held November 28, 2011 A regular meeting of the South Kohala Community Development Plan Action Committee was held on November 28, 2011. The meeting was called to order at 5:00 p.m. at The Lilly Yoshimatsu Senior Center, 67-1199 Mamalahoa Highway, Waimea, Hawaii, pursuant to notice. The following members of the Committee were present when the meeting was called to order: Nancy Carr Smith Loreli Eberhardt Mike Fischer John Hoover Margaret Horwatt Chris Roehrig Achahn Schulze Project Manager Rosalind Newlon also was in attendance. Committee member Robin Inaba was absent. The Chairman called the meeting to order and noted that a quorum of the Committee was present. There were no statements from members of the public concerning items on the meeting agenda. The members of the Committee then considered the draft of the minutes of the meeting held on September 26, 2011. It was noted that the draft included language stating that a decision had been made not to invite a speaker representing an additional view regarding the trails and greenways project in Waimea, but in fact no action had been taken by the Committee regarding the question of inviting an additional speaker on this matter. Subject to the foregoing change, upon motion duly made and seconded, the Committee then approved the minutes of the regular meeting of the Committee held on September 26, 2011, in the form distributed to the members in advance of the meeting. The election of Committee officers was the next item on the Agenda. Mr. Hoover and Mr. Fischer were nominated for the position of Chair, but Mr. Hoover requested that his nomination be withdrawn. Mr. Schulze was nominated for Vice-Chair. There being no other nominees, Mr. Fischer was declared Chair for the 2012 term and Mr. Schulze was declared Vice-Chair for the 2012 term. The Committee then reviewed a proposed schedule for meetings of the Committee during 2012. Following discussion and an agreement to modify the proposal to have the December 2012 meeting on December 17, upon motion duly made and seconded, the members approved the proposed schedule of Committee meetings for 2012. A copy of the schedule as approved is attached to these minutes The members then discussed procedures for canceling meetings. Several members expressed 1 the belief that no meeting should be canceled and that meetings should be held every month even if the only agenda item is Subcommittee reporting. Upon a motion made by Ms. Eberhardt and seconded by Ms. Horwatt, it was agreed that monthly meetings will not be canceled in the future. The Committee then discussed the need to fill vacancies on the Committee in a prompt and efficient manner. Ms. Newlon indicated that there had been only one applicant to fill the vacancy that has existed for several months and that a second vacancy would arise early in 2012 when the term of a present Committee member expires and therefore efforts to fill the vacancies were on hold while seeking additional applicants. The Committee indicated that it preferred to have each vacancy filled as promptly as possible without delaying efforts in anticipation of any additional vacancies and urged that action be taken as quickly as possible to fill the existing vacancy. A presentation by Pua Case and Ku’ulei Keakealani, educators at Waimea Public Middle Conversion Charter School, followed. They discussed “Sense of Place” and emphasized the importance of the role of the land and the culture of South Kohala in the manner in which some persons identify themselves. They urged that the Committee act to ensure and encourage respect for the relationship between these factors and the people of South Kohala. Ms. Case also discussed the issue of water distribution and availability and suggested that the Committee seek input from her father who had served for many years as the expert on that subject for Parker Ranch. The Committee then heard a presentation by Robert A. Fitzgerald, Director, Department of Parks and Recreation, County of Hawai‘i. Mr. Fitzgerald provided information regarding efforts by the County to improve and/or add parks and recreational facilities in the district, including: the opening of the Kamakoa park in Waikoloa, plans for new lighting and additional storage at the park in Waimea, the trails and greenways project in Waimea (for which the County is seeking federal alternate transportation route funds), and the regional park adjacent to Parker Ranch (for which the County has assembled 26 of the desired 30 acres of land). Ms. Newlon then delivered the Land Use Permit Activity Report. She distributed information summarizing land use permit activity during September and October and responded to inquiries from the Committee members. The Committee then heard Subcommittee Reports. Mr. Hoover reported for the Puako Subcommittee and indicated that the Puako Community Association had held its annual meeting and was utilizing the puako.org website for community announcements. Ms. Smith and Ms. Eberhardt reported for the Kawaihae Subcommittee. They advised the members that the Subcommittee was working with the Kawaihae community to identify desirable amendments to the community’s portion of the South Kohala Community Development Plan, and also discussed a conservation workshop dealing with the subject of preservation of the South Kohala coastline and focusing on threats to the coral, the coastline and wildlife. Mr. Schulze reported for the Waikoloa Subcommittee. He indicated that improvements had been made to the emergency escape fire road in Waikoloa and that signs providing directions to the road 2 would be placed in strategic locations in Waikoloa Village. In addition, efforts were underway to make available information sheets on how residents of Waikoloa Village should respond to emergencies. He stated that discussions at the meetings of the Waikoloa Community Leadership Council had led to a general consensus that an emergency evacuation center was needed in Waikoloa Village as the public school presently serves that purpose but is not always available for such use. Mr. Schulze also reported that the crosswalk near the public school in Waikoloa Village which has been the site of several traffic accidents involving children in the crosswalk had been modified by the County at the request of Waikoloa Village residents, and also stated that the planned public bus service for the Village is expected to commence in February, providing service within the Village and between the Village and nearby resorts as well as connecting to other intercommunity bus services. Ms. Horwatt and Mr. Roehrig then reported for the Waimea Subcommittee. They discussed the plans for safety improvements, including crosswalks and flashing lights, on the road near the location for the new Long’s Drugstore in Waimea which is opposite the HPA middle school campus and the need for additional funding to complete the desired improvements. The County is providing labor and Long’s has agreed to contribute funds but HPA has declined to do so. Ms. Horwatt discussed a letter that will be used to encourage contributions from the public and raised the possibility of the Committee formally supporting the solicitation, and a motion was made by Ms. Eberhardt to authorize Ms. Horwatt to sign the solicitation letter as a member of the Committee. The motion was seconded by Mr. Schulze and was tabled after discussion and an indication that the Committee members would like to review a draft of the letter and an explanation of the fundraising plan before acting on the motion. The members also were advised that an addition to the CIP had been made concerning a bus stop and visitor information center in Waimea. Mr. Schulze and Ms. Eberhardt then reported for the District-Wide Subcommittee. Mr. Schulze discussed the water plan proposal raised by Steve Bowles when he addressed the Committee earlier this year which provides for segregating water for agricultural use on an economical basis to assist the farming community. Ms. Eberhardt stressed the need for the monitoring of water supplies and distribution and cited the CDP discussion of water and the Kawaihae community. She indicated that she wanted the Committee to take action to ensure a short term solution for the Kawaihae water situation by encouraging the prompt addition of a new well to supply water to the Kawaihae community and noted that the demand for new homes and increased commercial activity relating to the harbor project will make it imperative that a greater supply of water be available in that community. There also was discussion of the possibility of running a pipeline along the side of the proposed bypass road to improve water distribution to the Kawaihae community. Finally, Ms. Eberhardt discussed the need for a high school in the South Kohala district and concurred with Ms. Case that having a high school in the district is important for establishing and preserving a sense of place. The Committee then moved to new business. Ms. Newlon encouraged the use of work templates and distributed samples. It was the consensus of the members that use of the templates for all Committee and Subcommittee efforts would constitute a good way of tracking progress and organizing projects. The next item under new business was the Paniolo Avenue extension letter. Mr. Schulze indicated that the Waikoloa Community Leadership Council had requested that the Committee send the 3 letter to Hawai’i County Mayor William Kenoi to express support for the immediate opening of the northern end of Paniolo Avenue in Waikoloa to improve access to the new Kamakoa park and to the Kamakoa Nu’i workforce housing project so that traffic would not have to proceed through residential neighborhoods to access those sites. Mr. Hoover made a motion to approve the transmission of the letter from the Committee to the Mayor and Ms. Eberhardt seconded the motion. After a discussion and an agreement to make certain changes to the draft of the letter, the motion to transmit the letter to the Mayor, as modified in accordance with the discussion, was approved unanimously, with a provision that a copy would be provided to the Director of the Planning Department and that the form of letterhead to be utilized would be shared with the full Committee before transmittal. The Chair, as the signatory on the letter, was assigned responsibility for completing the modified draft and sharing it with the Committee members before transmittal, and a copy is to be attached to the minutes of the meeting. Ms. Newlon then distributed a document summarizing progress toward adoption of the Waimea portion of the South Kohala Community Development Plan, a copy of which is attached to these minutes. The document included statistics regarding program progress and was discussed by the members. The Committee then discussed the possibility of sponsoring a community meeting regarding the trails and greenways project in Waimea in light of community concerns about the possibility of large scale destruction of trees in connection with the completion of the project and other issues. The Committee also discussed the possibility of having the developers of the Aina Le’a project develop a well to increase the water availability and distribution capabilities for the district, and consideration was given to suggesting that this be a condition to allowing that project to proceed. The Committee will consider asking representatives of the developer to appear again at a Committee meeting to discuss related matters. The Chair then called for public comments. Margaret Wille then offered commentary urging the Committee to focus on water issues in the coming year. The next meeting of the Committee will be held at 5:00 p.m. on December 19, 2011, at The Lilly Yoshimatsu Senior Center, 67-1199 Mamalahoa Highway, Waimea, Hawai’i. There being no further business to come before the meeting, the meeting was adjourned at 7:25 p.m. ______________________________ Michael B. Fischer Chairman 4