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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-02-06HEARINGTRANSCRIPT-WATERFALLENTERTAINMENTREZ98-006 WINDWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I HEARING TRANSCRIPT FEBRUARY 6, 2014 Waterfall Entertainment, Inc. A regularly advertised hearing on the application of (REZ 98-006) was called to order at 10:02 a.m. in the County of Hawai‘i, Aupuni Center Conference Room, 101 Pauahi Street, Hilo, Hawai‘i with Chairman Wallace A. Ishibashi, Jr. presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Wallace A. Ishibashi, Jr., Ronald Gonzales, Charles Heaukulani, Gregory Henkel, Myles Miyasato, and Raylene Moses. ABSENT AND EXCUSED: Stephen Ono. ALSO PRESENT: Bobby Command (Deputy Planning Director), Molly Stebbins (Deputy Corporation Counsel for the Windward Planning Commission), William Brilhante (from 10:09 a.m. to 10:28 a.m. and from 10:58 a.m. to 12:01 p.m., Deputy Corporation Counsel for the Planning Director), Kelly Gomes (from 10:02 a.m. to 11:20 a.m., Department of Public Works Engineering Division), Daryn Arai (Planning Program Manager), Jeff Darrow (Staff Planner), Maija Cottle (Staff Planner), and Sarah Hata-Finley (Secretary). And approximately 16 people from the public in attendance. APPLICANT: WATERFALL ENTERTAINMENT, INC. (REZ 98-006) Requests for time extensions to Condition B (water commitment payment) and Condition C (completion of construction) of Ordinance No. 06 144, which amended Ordinance No. 98 98, which rezoned 21,050 square feet of land from a Single-Family Residential-10,000 square feet (RS-10) to an Industrial-Commercial-Mixed–20,000 square feet (MCX-20) zoning district. The property is located along the west side of Kanoelehua Avenue, approximately 190 feet from the Kanoelehua Avenue – Lanikāula Street intersection, Waiākea, South Hilo, Hawai‘i, TMK: 2-2- 037:029. ISHIBASHI: I’ll call the meeting back to order. Thank you for the time. Moving on to Item No. 5 on our agenda. Waterfall Entertainment, Inc., REZ 98-006. Jeff. DARROW: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Again, if I can direct your attention towards our presentation. Our next applicant is Waterfall Entertainment, Inc. formerly Seawind Holding, Inc. They’re requesting an amendment to their existing Change of Zone. The area of this application is within the South Hilo district, more specifically we’re looking at the urban core of Hilo. The subject property is right along the boundary of Kanoelehua Avenue. You will notice that it’s a little light, but we have a black outline around the subject property. This is a little closer view. For reference, again, we have Kanoelehua on the left, right side of the map, East Lanikāula Street as well as Leilani Street in the partic—in the immediate area. The subject property is currently zoned Commercial Industrial – 20,000 square feet. Originally, it was RS-10, and has been 1 EXHIBIT D changed to allow for commercial-industrial uses. Just for reference, the other colors on the map, the lighter gray and the darker gray represent industrial zoning. The purple represents similar zoning as the applicant in commercial industrial. The yellow is residential, and the pink color represents commercial zoning. This is the General Plan Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide Map for the area. The orange color represents commercial type uses, medium density urban, and the gray represents industrial type uses. So the applicant’s request from going, from residential to, a commercial industrial mix is consistent with the General Plan. This is—oh, just for reference, the entire area is State Land Use Urban. Again, for reference, we have an aerial. You have Kanoelehua, Volcano Highway as they call it. East Lanikāula Street, just above the area is Leilani Street. The subject property is identified with the red outline and is currently undeveloped. Magoo’s Auto Shop would be a reference that you might be familiar with as well as the office building that’s on the corner of Lanikāula and Volcano Highway that has a tobacco shop and Japanese restaurant and other types of uses in there. The applicant is requesting time extensions for Condition B which is the water commitment payment condition and Condition C which is the timeline condition to complete construction of Change of Zone Ordinance No. 06-144. This originally rezoned 21,050 square feet of land from Single Family Residential – 10,000 square feet to Commercial Industrial Mixed – 20,000 square feet. The reason for the request. The subject property is owed by the trust of George Murata and Masuko Murata. The property was leased to Wayne Okutsu of Seawind Holding for 67 years. Recently, Mr. Maurice Akami, Akamine, I’m sorry, of Waterfall Entertainment, Inc. acquired the lease in 2009, and based on the global recession has not been able to complete the project. The applicant has the required financing and wishes to proceed with the project at this time. This is the submitted site plan. On your left side of the map, you have Kanoelehua Avenue. Access will be directly from Kanoelehua. You have the parking area identified as well as a commercial retail type office building that will be constructed. This is a site photo. This is looking makai on Kanoelehua with the subject property on the left. This is, again, on Kanoelehua with the subject property on the right looking towards Volcano. And this is the subject property again. It’s currently vacant of uses and structures. The Planning Director is recommending that the Planning Commission send a favorable recommendation for the applicant’s request for time extension as well as the revised conditions. The Planning Department would like to make one change to the conditions, and we have spoken with the applicant’s representative, and they are okay with the change. It’s a minor change, and that would be instead of deleting Condition L which is our standard time extension condition, we’d like to leave that in. And so, Condition L would remain L and Condition M would be reclassified. With that, that concludes our presentation. Thank you. ISHIBASHI: Thank you, Mr. Darrow. Any questions Commissioners of staff? Seeing none, we’d like to invite the applicant up or his representative. 2 EXHIBIT D FUKE: I still affirm as in the— ISHIBASHI: Thank you so much. FUKE: --previous applications. Mr. Chairman and members of the Commission, I really don’t relish coming before the Commission, let alone multiple times, but I’m kind of reminded about what my wife was, you know--I’m just sharing a story—but um reminded of a story that my wife told me that, you know, she’s retired and she’s now taking Tai Chi lessons at Kamana, and then she was saying that you know that this one woman who recently moved here was just commenting about how nice to live in Hawai‘i, especially like in Hilo because everybody knows everybody else, you know, that kind of stuff. And that’s the reason why I was telling her yeah, it’s a plus and minus, but like for me some times it can be a minus because that’s the reason why this is my third time up over here. Oh you know, the first time, sometimes you do things for Portuguese sausage, other times you do for pro bono work and now with this guy, is the, he’s the younger brother of my classmate, you know, and so, cannot help. I mean, so that’s the reason why I’m over here. But this guy, Maurice Akamine, he was, he sold Magoo’s Auto Parts, and he retired and he thought he--he thought he was not going to do anything else, but then he got kind of restless and so he was successfully able to get the lease on this property which is about two stories, two stores away you know from, two properties away from where he had his auto parts show--a shop-- and so because the former lessee had, had defaulted on the payment, then you know he assumed the lease, and so it’s now a 60-year lease. So what he wants to do is basically follow through with the plan, put in a restaurant and add some commercial retail operations in the area. But, when he was ready to apply for the Building Permit, like a, the latter part of last year, then he realized that the zoning change had time concerns, time conditions relative to when you gotta secure your water commitment and when you have to finish the building, and so obviously you know he couldn’t so that’s the reason why you know he’s requesting for the extension. The staff mentioned about the, you know, the last amended condition, you know the retention of the, in case there’s a need for further extension, that he or the property owner would have to apply for extension before the County Council which means the same process and you know that’s not a problem cause his intention is to really get started already, so—thank you. ISHIBASHI: Any concerns with the conditions set forth, the addition or keeping in the— FUKE: The staff’s recommendation and the proposed conditions as amended are acceptable, you know by the staff, I mean by the applicant. ISHIBASHI: Okay. Yeah, the church was probably the better deal you’re in. I mean, get front row seat for go up so, yeah, good. Any questions of our applicant--representative? Okay, seeing none, thank you. FUKE: Thank you. ISHIBASHI: Public testimony, we have any public willing to testify? We have no one signed up on this, over this matter. Okay, Commissioners, a motion is in order. 3 EXHIBIT D MOSES: I move that a favorable recommendation be forwarded to the County Council on the application for a Change of Zone, REZ 898, based on the Planning Director’s recommendation and amended proposed conditions. ISHIBASHI: Okay, thank you. Motion by Commissioner Moses and seconded— GONZALES: I’ll second. ISHIBASHI: And seconded by Commissioner Gonzales. Open for discussion, comments. Seeing none, Mr. Darrow. DARROW: Just to clarify that, that was with the amended condition? Correct? MOSES: Correct. DARROW: Okay, thank you. So, the motion before us is to send a favorable recommendation with the amended conditions. With that, we’ll take the roll call. Commissioner Moses? MOSES: Aye. DARROW: Commissioner Gonzales? GONZALES: Aye. DARROW: Commissioner Heaukulani? HEAUKULANI: Aye. DARROW: Commissioner Henkel? HENKEL: Aye. DARROW: Commissioner Miyasato? MIYASATO: Aye. DARROW: And Mr. Chairman. ISHIBASHI: Aye. DARROW: The motion passes six to zero. ISHIBASHI: Okay, thank you so much, Mr. Fuke. We’ll notify your client in writing. Thank you. 4 EXHIBIT D FUKE: And I’m done. The discussion ended at 10:13 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Sarah Y. Hata-Finley, Secretary Windward Planning Commission 5 EXHIBIT D