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Home My WebLink About2015-07-16 Leeward Exh A (SPP 15-180) LEEWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I HEARING TRANSCRIPT JULY 16, 2015 CLEMENS CLASSEN (SPP 15-180) A regularly advertised hearing on the application of was called to order at 9:33 a.m. in the West Hawai‘i Civic Center, Community Center, Building G, 74-5044 Ane Keohokālole Highway, Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i, with Chairman Brandi Beaudet presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Brandi Beaudet, Scott Church, Collin Kaholo, Barbara Nobriga, Sonny Shimaoka and Thomas Whittemore RECUSED: Keith Unger ALSO PRESENT: Danny Patel (Counsel to the Commission), Duane Kanuha (Planning Director), Daryn Arai (Planning Program Manager), Jeff Darrow (Planner), Maija Jackson (Planner) and Noriko Sauer (Commission Secretary) And approximately eleven people from the public in attendance. APPLICANT: CLEMENS CLASSEN (SPP 15-180) Application for a Special Permit to establish a 3-bedroom bed and breakfast operation within an existing 5-bedroom dwelling on approximately 20.97 acres of land situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District. The property is located east (mauka) of Hawai‘i Belt Road at the 100 mile marker approximately 1.1 miles south of the intersection of Ho‘okena Beach Road and Hawai‘i Belt Road in Waiea ahupua‘a, South Kona, Hawai‘i, TMK: 8-6-001:013. BEAUDET: This morning’s first agenda item is Clemens Classen, Special Permit 15-180. Staff, presentation, please. UNGER: Mr. Chairman? BEAUDET: Yes. UNGER: I would like to recuse myself. I am, my wife is part owner of McCandless Land & Cattle Company, and they are the lessor in this case. BEAUDET: Thank you, Commissioner. \[Secretary’s note: Commissioner Unger left the panel and took a seat in the audience.\] JACKSON: Good morning, everyone. Our first item on the agenda is a Special Permit request from Clemens Classen. The subject property is located in the South Kona District. On the slide the property is outlined in red. It’s a little hard to see, but it’s right here in the middle. And you have 1 EXHIBIT A the Hawai‘i Belt Road running in a north-south direction. The subject property is just mauka of Hawai‘i Belt Road. Just to orient the Commission this is the Ho‘okena Beach Park area here and Ho‘okena Beach Access Road up to the highway here. The property is currently zoned Agricultural-20 acres, which is shown in the dark green, and most of the properties mauka of the highway are also zoned Agricultural-20 acres. This is the General Plan LUPAG Map for the area, and again you can see the subject property outlined in red in the middle of the slide. The General Plan designation for the property is Extensive Agriculture, which generally is used for pasture uses. The applicant is requesting a Special Permit to allow a three-bedroom bed and breakfast operation within an existing five-bedroom dwelling situated on about 20 acres of land. Originally, the applicant intended to use four bedrooms; you’ll notice on the cover page of your application, the request was for four bedrooms. But in this process over the last month and a half working with the applicant, after receiving agency comments he has requested to downsize the request to three bedrooms because the Department of Health has rules, which require a food establishment permit and a certified kitchen for B&Bs accommodating over six guests. So the request now is for a three-bedroom B&B. This is a site plan of the applicant’s, and you can see the Hawai‘i Belt Road on the left side of the slide. There is an access driveway easement coming off of the highway that crosses the two properties to the north and then leads up to the subject property and the bed and breakfast operation. And this is an aerial photo of the area. Again, you can see the access easement coming off of the highway and curving around towards a storage building and then up to the B&B, which is located here. So the closest dwelling, as you can see, is located quite ways away across the highway in the makai direction. The properties surrounding this are used for orchard use, for pasture use, and then there is forest to the east. This is a better aerial photo of the property. This is the storage building that’s on the property, and then the driveway comes up from here, it’s a paved driveway, and leads up to the existing dwelling. The main wing of the house is located here and there are four rooms in this wing. The applicant is requesting to use three of the bedrooms in this wing. The Planning Director is recommending approving the permit with conditions. And that concludes my presentation. I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have. BEAUDET: Commissioners, any questions or comments for staff? CHURCH: The only question I had was the Land Use Commission, I saw that, it says the applicant also says that granting this request would promote the effectiveness and objectives blah, blah, blah. The proposed use is therefore contrary to Chapter 205, HRS. I didn’t understand how that weighed in. Could you explain that? JACKSON: Yes. The Land Use Commission believes that overnight accommodations on Agricultural land is not permitted, except for on Maui, the way they interpret the law. The Planning Department takes a little bit different view of that; we view that any use can be permitted through a Special Permit on Ag land. The county Planning Commission has jurisdiction to make those decisions on any lands under 15 acres; the State Land Use Commission makes those decisions for lands over 15 acres in Agricultural Districts. So the way we are applying, or interpreting, 205 is 2 EXHIBIT A that a B&B for overnight accommodations can be requested through a Special Permit, particularly since a B&B use is considered accessory to a dwelling; all of the activities occur within the existing dwelling. BEAUDET: Any further comments or questions, Commissioners? If not, I would like the applicant or its representative to please come forward. Would you please raise your right hand? Do you swear and affirm now and before the Leeward Planning Commission to tell the truth on this matter? CLASSEN: I do. BEAUDET: If you could speak into the mike and introduce yourself, and then proceed. CLASSEN: I do. BEAUDET: It’s on. CLASSEN: Clemens Classen. BEAUDET: Thank you, sir. Have you had an opportunity to review the recommendations provided by the Planning Director? CLASSEN: I have. BEAUDET: Are you in agreement with them? CLASSEN: I am. BEAUDET: Is there, this will be your opportunity to share your thoughts or your, behind the application. CLASSEN: No, I don’t have any comments other than what’s been stated in the application. BEAUDET: Okay, thank you. Commissioners, any questions or comments of the applicant? Okay. I have just a small question not that it provides any direction; but, is there designation of the specific parts of the house? I mean, they are all interconnected, right? So, or do we need to specify what parts of the house is allowed for the B&B operation? And if so, how is that managed? JACKSON: We are generally taking the approach we’d like to give the applicant the flexibility to select which bedrooms he is going to use for the operation so long as it’s three bedrooms, which is what was represented in the application. And then there is a Condition No. 3 that limits the number of guests staying at the B&B operation to six at any one time. BEAUDET: Thank you. Commissioners, any discussion? Okay. Thank you, sir. For the record there has been no members of the audience who have signed up to testify on this applicant. So with no further discussion, Commissioners, I’d like to ask for a motion for action. 3 EXHIBIT A NOBRIGA: I move that the application for a Special Permit, Docket Number SPP 15-180, be approved on the Planning Director’s recommendation and findings. WHITTEMORE: Second. BEAUDET: It has been moved by Commissioner Nobriga for a favorable recommendation, seconded by Commissioner Whittemore. Staff, roll call. JACKSON: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Commissioner Nobriga? NOBRIGA: Yes, ma’am. JACKSON: Aye? NOBRIGA: Aye. JACKSON: Commissioner Whittemore? WHITTEMORE: Aye. JACKSON: Commissioner Church? CHURCH: Aye. JACKSON: Commissioner Kaholo? KAHOLO: Aye. JACKSON: Commissioner Shimaoka? SHIMAOKA: Aye. JACKSON: And Chair Beaudet? BEAUDET: Aye. JACKSON: Okay, the motion to approve passes, six-zero. The discussion ended at 9:43 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Noriko Sauer, Secretary Leeward Planning Commission 4 EXHIBIT A