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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-05-19 Leeward Exh E (Amend SPP 77-20 & SPP 378) LEEWARD PLANNING COMMISSION COUNTY OF HAWAI‘I HEARING TRANSCRIPT MAY 19, 2016 LALAMILO FARM PARTNERS, LP A regularly advertised hearing on the application of (Amend SPP 77-20/SPP 378) was called to order at 11:49 a.m. in the West Hawai‘i Civic Center, Community Center, Building G, 74-5044 Ane Keohokālole Highway, Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i, with Chairman Keith F. Unger presiding. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Keith F. Unger, Nancy Carr Smith, Collin Kaholo, Scott Church, Barbara Nobriga and Sonny Shimaoka ALSO PRESENT: Danny Patel (Counsel for the Commission), Duane Kanuha (Planning Director), Daryn Arai (Planning Program Manager), Jeff Darrow (Planner), Maija Jackson (Planner), Christian Kay (Planner) and Noriko Sauer (Commission Secretary) And five people from the public in attendance. APPLICANT: LALAMILO FARM PARTNERS, LP (Amend SPP 77-20/SPP 378) Continued hearing on a request to Amend Special Permit No. 378 to allow the establishment of a fitness center; refrigerated box truck parking area; bakery; honey storage and distribution facility; butter processing, storage and distribution facility; limited retail sales area and related improvements on approximately 0.5 acre of land situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District. The subject property is located on the north side of Lalamilo Farm Road approximately 900 feet west of its intersection with the Māmalahoa Highway and within the Lalamilo Farm Lots Subdivision at Lalamilo, South Kohala, Hawai‘i, TMK: 6-6-005:032 (portion). UNGER: At this time I would like to move directly into the final agenda item. Number 6, Applicant Lalamilo Farm Partners, LP, Amend SPP 77-20/SPP 378, continued hearing on a request to amend Special Permit No. 378 to allow the establishment of a fitness center, refrigerated box truck parking area, bakery, honey storage and distribution facility, butter processing, storage and distribution facility, limited retail sales area and related improvements on approximately 0.5 acre of land situated within the State Land Use Agricultural District. The subject property is located on the north side of Lalamilo Farm Road approximately 900 feet west of its intersection with the Māmalahoa Highway and within the Lalamilo Farm Lots Subdivision at Lalamilo, South Kohala, Hawai‘i, TMK: 6-6-005: Parcel 32. At this time I would like to ask the Planning Director, the petitioner, and the applicant to please come forward. Before we get started, staff wants to make a quick presentation and a summary of the agenda item. Staff? KAY: Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair. Since most all of you were part of the meeting last time and the new Commissioner got the prior presentation before, I’m just going to dispense with going 1 EXHIBIT E through all of the information, but I just wanted to talk about the permit history again, give you some context, and then what has changed since the last time we met. Special Permit No. 378 was originally approved on February 1, 1978, by the State Land Use Commission to allow the establishment of a vegetable processing facility. On January 20, 2006, the Planning Commission approved an amendment to Special Permit 378 to allow the processing of ice cream products within a portion of the original 7,875-square foot structure. Over time, the uses requested in the Special Permit amendment were established in the remainder of the original structure as well as the unpermitted additions to the surrounding areas for the refrigerated box truck and the fitness center parking use. The Planning Department issued warning letters on st August 1 and August 21, 2014, requiring the applicant to cease unpermitted uses or submit an amendment to Special Permit 378 to cover the unpermitted uses as corrective action. On March 19, 2015, the Leeward Planning Commission held a hearing on the subject Special Permit amendment. At that meeting the Commission grated contested case standing to eight intervenors. The Commission also voted to hire a hearings officer for the contested case. On thth November 19 and 20 the contested case proceedings were undertaken in Honoka‘a before rd Hearings Officer Sherry Broder. On March 23 the applicant, intervenors, and the Planning Department reached a settlement agreement, which suspended the contested case hearing pending the approval of the Special Permit amendment with stipulated conditions by the Leeward Planning Commission. On April 21, 2016, the LPC \[Leeward Planning Commission\] voted to continue the hearing to this hearing today in order to provide the Director time to update his recommendation based on representations made by the applicant and the intervenors at the st April 21 meeting. So based on all of that information and the testimony that I heard last month, there are some considerations for this revised recommendation. Meadow Gold has ceased its refrigerated box truck parking and distribution hub activities on the subject property; therefore, it was not considered as part of this Special Permit amendment. The Director determined that the honey production and distribution use is permitted in the State Land Use Agricultural District and permitted under County Zoning Code under definitions for Agricultural products processing, minor; therefore, it was not considered as part of this Special Permit amendment. And finally, the Director is recommending that a provision to allow an administrative time extension to the six-month deadline to move all bakery operations indoors not be permitted. So all that said, the applicant’s request, as modified, is an amendment to Special Permit No. 378, as revised, to legitimize and retain the following uses on approximately .5 acre of a larger five-acre parcel, and those are: A fitness center and associated parking area; a bakery; a butter processing, storage and distribution facility; and finally, a limited retail sales area. The Planning Director is recommending approval with conditions based on all of these changes in his revised recommendation that you’ve received. With that, I’m happy to answer any questions the Commission may have. UNGER: Thank you. Commissioners, are there any questions of staff at this time? We will go ahead and hear from the applicant and the petitioners and the Planning Department. Please raise your right hand. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth before the Planning Commission? 2 EXHIBIT E PARTIES: Yes. I do. UNGER: We can proceed. Why don’t we start with the applicant? Please state your name and where you reside, and you can begin your presentation. VITOUSEK: Yeah, hi, Randy Vitousek. I reside in Waimea and I represent Lalamilo Farm Partners, LP. Mr. John Edney from Lalamilo Farm Partners is present. Basically, you know, the applicant has been through a lot of process on this, and doesn’t want to go through any more process. You know, we are a little unhappy with the idea that we reached a settlement agreement that identified the conditions that would be attached to the permit, and then the applicant \[sic\] came in at our last meeting and asked for an additional condition, which the Director is now recommending. We think that’s really kind of unfortunate, because what’s the point of reaching a settlement agreement presenting it to the Commission, if you are just going to come back later and ask for an additional condition? So we are not happy with that, but, you know, we are going to live with the conditions because, you know, part of the deal here is, you know, basically Lalamilo Farm Partners is trying to conduct agriculture related activities on the property, and the point of the Land Use Law both in the Chapter 205 and the County Zoning is to allow farmers to conduct agriculture related activities in a broadened set of agriculture related activities without having to go through a lot of process. Unfortunately, that hasn’t worked and we are going through a lot of process and, you know, we don’t want to go through it any more. So, basically, Mr. Edney has read the conditions as currently proposed, he is willing to live with the conditions as proposed, and we just want to, you know, get this behind us. Aloha. UNGER: Thank you. YEH: Yes, Mr. Chair and Members of the Commission, good morning. My name is Thomas Yeh, representing the intervenors. I reside in Hilo, Hawai‘i. I could, we could go back and forth on our discussion, but given that the applicant seems to be willing to go with the recommended conditions, we will say no more. No further comments unless there is — UNGER: So you have received the recommendations and — YEH: We have — UNGER: — you do agree with them. YEH: — and we have no objections. UNGER: Thank you. BRILHANTE: Good morning, Chair and Commissioners. William Brilhante, Assistant Corporation Counsel, appearing on behalf of Planning Director Duane Kanuha. I am glad that the parties have come to amicable resolution in this matter, the conditions as proposed. The 3 EXHIBIT E Planning Director will stand, you know, by those proposed conditions, and I think we should move this matter forward. UNGER: Great. Thank you. If there is no other discussion, you may be seated. If there is any members of the public here that wish to testify, we can open the hearing up to public testimony. Seeing none, Commissioners, could I have a motion to close? SHIMAOKA: I motion that we close the testimony. NOBRIGA: I second. UNGER: We have a motion by Commissioner Shimaoka, second by Nobriga, to close public hearing. All in favor? COMMISSIONERS: Aye. UNGER: Oppose? \[None.\] Motion carries. Public hearing portion is closed. At this time, Commissioners, I would like to entertain a recommendation in regard to this agenda item. SHIMAOKA: Yeah, regarding the Amend SPP 378, I move that the application to amend Special Permit 378 be approved based on the parties’ March 13, 2016, Joint Stipulated Settlement Agreement, and the Planning Director’s recommendation, findings, and proposed conditions, which shall be adopted. KAHOLO: Second. UNGER: We have a motion by Commissioner Shimaoka, second by Commissioner Kaholo. Any discussion? Staff, roll call. KAY: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Commissioner Shimaoka? SHIMAOKA: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Kaholo? KAHOLO: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Carr Smith? CAR SMITH: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Church? CHURCH: Aye. KAY: Commissioner Nobriga? 4 EXHIBIT E NOBRIGA: Aye. KAY: And finally Chair Unger? UNGER: Aye. KAY: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Vote carries six-nothing. UNGER: Thank you, staff. The applicant will be notified of the decision by the Planning Department in writing shortly. Thank you. The discussion ended at 11:59 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Noriko Sauer, Secretary Leeward Planning Commission 5 EXHIBIT E