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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-12-03 Hearing Transcript - CCTMO USE 15-057 WINDWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I HEARING TRANSCRIPT DECEMBER 3, 2015 CCTMO, LLC (USE 15-057) A regularly advertised hearing on the requests by was called to order at 9:15 a.m. in the County of Hawai‘i Aupuni Center Conference Room, 101 Pauahi Street, Hilo, Hawai‘i with Chairman Myles Miyasato presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Myles Miyasato, Donn Dela Cruz, Gregory Henkel, Donald Ikeda, and Raylene Moses. ABSENT & EXCUSED: Charles Heaukulani. ALSO PRESENT: Duane Kanuha (Planning Director), Danny Patel (Deputy Corporation Counsel for the Windward Planning Commission), Daryn Arai (Planning Program Manager), Jeff Darrow (Staff Planner) (left at 9:18 a.m.), Lucas Mead (Staff Planner), Maija Jackson (Staff Planner), Christian Kay (Staff Planner), and Sarah Hata-Finley (Commission Secretary). And approximately 6 people from the public in attendance. APPLICANT: CCTMO, LLC (USE 15-057) Application for a Use Permit to allow for the construction of a new telecommunication facility, including a 150-foot tall steel lattice tower with 12 panel antennas with remote radio units and microwave dish antennas and related facilities within a 10,000 square-foot portion of a 2-acre parcel situated in the County’s Agricultural 1-acre (A-1a) zoning district. The affected property is situated at the southeast corner of Palm Parkway and Reef Circle Mauka within the Hawaiian Ocean View Estates Subdivision, Kaʽū, Hawaiʽi, TMK: 9-2-062:054. MIYASATO: Item No. 4, Applicant CCTMO, LLC. KAY: Okay, thank you, Mr. Chair. This next application is for a Use Permit for a telecommunications tower. The subject property, two-acre subject property is located in the Kaʽū District of the, of Hawaiʽi Island; more specifically, it’s in the Hawaiian Ocean View Estates Subdivision. It may be difficult to see but it’s outlined in yellow here. A little bit closer view shows the subject parcel outlined in blue. Just for reference, we’ve got Palm Parkway here running generally east-west through the slide, and then Reef Circle Mauka running generally north-south through the slide. This is at the intersection. County zoning for the subject parcel and surrounding area is Agricultural – 1 acre. The State Land Use Designation map shows the subject parcel and surrounding areas Agricultural, and 1 EXHIBIT B similarly, the General Plan Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide Map indicates the LUPAG designation for the subject parcel as Rural as well as the surrounding area. Here’s an aerial photograph of the subject parcel. Again, for reference, running generally east- west is Reef Parkway \[sic\] and then generally running north-south is—oh, pardon me, Palm Parkway is east-west and Reef Circle Mauka is running generally north-south. This is in yellow outlining the two-acre subject parcel. The actual project area is roughly 10,000 square feet, and it’s shown here kind of in the dashed outline. There is an existing 100-foot tall telecommunications tower, and this application is to replace that. So, to allow for the replacement of this 100-foot tall steel lattice tower with a new 150-foot tall steel lattice tower with 12-panel antennas with remote radio units and microwave dish antennas and related facilities within a 10,000 square foot portion of the subject property. Related facilities include existing radio and battery equipment cabinets, and outdoor emergency generators on crushed lava cinder base all surrounded by a six-foot tall security fence with entry gates from both, from both sides. The purpose of the proposed tower replacement is to allow for both additional height and stronger infrastructure to better serve the community. Additional height will increase the coverage area, improve service quality, support newer antenna technology to provide 4G broadband speeds and allow for a better hand off to existing facilities in Honomalino, Kahuku Ranch, and Ka Lae or South Point. The existing tower is over ten years old, and the new tower will be structurally stronger than the existing tower. This is the applicant’s site plan. On the left here, again, you can see Palm Parkway and Reef Circle Mauka. The existing 100-foot tower is located right about in the center here. It’s showing here that the proposed 150-foot tower to be a little bit off of that, and zoomed in here, again, you can show, see the existing tower footprint and the new tower footprint here. Also showing the entry gates coming from both sides. Here is some site elevations. Again, kind of in the lighter outline, you can see the existing 100- foot tower and the proposed 150-foot tower. Down here, you can see there’s gonna be more strength with, with concrete foundation into the subterranean. Here’s some pictures looking at the subject parcel. Up at the top is Palm Parkway looking east. You can see the existing facility, the existing tower. Same Palm Parkway, looking left, with the subject parcel on the left, you can see again the existing tower and surrounding facility. Reef Circle Mauka looking south—on the left hand side, you’ll see the subject parcel and Reef Circle Mauka looking north. On the right hand side, you’ll see the existing tower. The Planning Director is recommending approval of this application with conditions. That brings an end to the presentation. I’m happy to answer any questions you may have. MIYASATO: Commissioners, any questions for staff? Thank you. 2 EXHIBIT B KAY: Thank you. MIYASATO: Will the applicant or representative please come forward? FOX: Good morning. MIYASATO: Could you raise your right hand? Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth on this matter now before the Hawaiʽi County Planning Commission. FOX: Yes, I do. MIYASATO: Please state your name and residence. FOX: My name’s Keoni Fox with Aliʽi Wireless Specialists. Our office is at 45-955 Kamehameha Highway in Kāneʽohe. MIYASATO: Do you have any comments or anything to add to that presentation? FOX: Just really briefly, I’m here today to represent my client, CCTMO, LLC, which is a business name for Crown Castle. Crown Castle is not a wireless carrier. They’re actually just an infrastructure provider. They actually own the existing tower. They own many communication tower facilities throughout the State, and they acquired this property from T-Mobile back in 2012. T-Mobile built the facility in Ocean View back in 2004, and at that time, there was, there was very limited wireless coverage in Ocean View. There was no T-Mobile service at that time. Since T-Mobile has constructed the facility, several wireless carriers have since co-located their antennas and equipment at the facility. So, since it is actually the only structure to support antennas in the community, all wireless carriers have their antennas on the tower. So, that includes Verizon, AT&T, Mobi PCS, T-Mobile, Sprint Nextel, as well as a local wireless internet provider called Sanders Telecom. And, the reason for this project is basically, the tower was built to, to support T-Mobile and maybe one or two other carriers. Since then, our technology has changed, and now with the new 4G services, the wireless carriers actually new antennas, but the tower cannot structurally support the newer antennas. Also, since we, since wireless carriers have to maintain a ten-foot vertical separation from each other, some of the, the antennas that are on the lower parts of the tower aren’t getting good coverage and signal within the Ocean View community. And, you have to realize that the tower doesn’t only cover Ocean View. It also provides service for Ranchos, which is the community makai of the highway, as well as travelers on Māmalahoa, as well as the Kahuku National Park portion as well. 3 EXHIBIT B So, this, this permit will allow us to do the upgrade and help us to increase the coverage considerably throughout the community and also allow us to use the new 4G technology antennas so that those, those handset users can have that service as well. We’ve reviewed the conditions that were suggested by the Planning Department, and my client doesn’t have any concerns. Thank you. MIYASATO: Commissioners, any questions for the applicant? I just have two things, yeah, well actually just one. You already addressed one, but--I do have two. Is there any hazardous materials that will be handled on the dismantling? FOX: The tower that’s going to be taken apart is all structural steel so there’s no, there’s nothing like—there’s no paints or anything associated with that. MIYASATO: No heavy oils or anything? FOX: It’s my—no, no, it’s my understanding some of that can be, can be recycled. MIYASATO: Okay, and then what is the—what would be, would your customers have down time on the switchover? FOX: Oh, okay, no that’s a really good question. So, this is kind of interesting. It’s something we had to ask of the Planning Department, so what we need to do is actually construct the new tower before we take down the old one so that we don’t lose the coverage, cause it’s gonna take, you know, three to four months to get the new tower built and to make sure the antennas are all connected to the other existing sites, so we’re gonna actually have to build that new tower, put it up, put the new antennas on the tower, get that operational, and then we can start removing the antennas and dismantling the old tower. MIYASATO: Okay. FOX: So, there’s gonna be some overlap there. MIYASATO: Okay, thank you. Commissioners, no questions? Okay, thank you. FOX: Okay, thank you. MIYASATO: Is there anyone wishing to testify on this application? If not, can I have a motion to close public testimony? MOSES: Motion to close. IKEDA: Second. 4 EXHIBIT B MIYASATO: All in favor? COMMISSIONERS: Aye. MIYASATO: Any opposed? I call a close to public testimony for this application. Commissioners, any discussion? If not, I’ll accept a motion. MOSES: I move that the application for a Use Permit Docket No. USE 15-057 be approved based on the Planning Director’s findings, recommendations, and proposed conditions which shall be adopted. IKEDA: Second. MIYASATO: I have a motion by Commissioner Moses, second by Commissioner Ikeda. Any discussion on the motion? You can call the roll. KAY: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Commissioner Moses? MOSES: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Ikeda? IKEDA: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Dela Cruz? DELA CRUZ: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Henkel? HENKEL: Aye. KAY: And Chair Miyasato. MIYASATO: Aye. KAY: Okay, motion carries five, nothing. MIYASATO: You’ll be notified in writing. 5 EXHIBIT B The discussion ended at 9:26 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Sarah Y. Hata-Finley, Secretary Windward Planning Commission 6 EXHIBIT B