HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-01-09.PCDP.ACMinutes.DRAFTHarry Kim
Mayor
County of Hawaii
PLANNING DEPARTMENT
PUNA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ACTION COMMITTEE
Aupuni Center • 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 3 • Hilo, Hawaii 96720
Phone (808) 961-8288 • Fax (808) 961-8742
1 Tuesday, January 9, 2018
2 DRAFT Meeting Minutes
Michael Yee
Director
Daryn Arai
Deputy Director
3
4 CALL TO ORDER
5 Chair Larry Brown called the Puna Community Development Plan (PCDP) Action Committee (AC) to
6 order at 5:00 p.m. in the Kea'au Community Center
7 ROLL CALL
8 Action Committee Members Present: Larry Brown (Chair), Leila Kealoha (Vice -Chair), Elmer Solis,
9 Michael Bernard, Patti Pinto, Yumi Kawano.
10 Action Committee Members Absent -Excused: Susan Osborne
11 Staff: CoH Planners - Keiko Mercado, LeAna Gloor, Eric Cook
12 Members of the public: 8
13 ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA: NONE
14 ANNOUNCEMENTS:
15 1. Committee Member Michael Bernard announced that he had contacted Hawaiian Telcom via
16 email to inquire about their recent expansion in service to the Puna area. He asked specifically
17 about what percentage of the $26M in funds from Connect America was spent on Hawai'i
18 Island and how many of the 5000 connection locations were on Hawai'i Island. Committee
19 Member Bernard received the following answer:
20 "To answer your questions, more than 4,500 of the 5,000 locations are on Hawaii Island. In
21 terms of the amount, Hawaiian Telcom receives Connect America Fund support over a six year
22 period that will total $26M in 2020. We receive about $4M per year and the majority of the
23 CAF support we've received thus far has been invested on Hawaii Island."
24 Additional information can be found on the Hawaiian Telcom website:
25 http://www.hawaiiantel.com/aboutus/CompanVNews/tabid/1487/Default.aspx
26 2. Committee Member Patti Pinto announced that the Hawaii County Community Emergency
27 Response Team (CERT) Program would be offering training in Hilo beginning on January 20tH
28 The CERT Program provides residents and businesses with the basics in how to properly
29 prepare and respond to an emergency at home, at work, or in the community. Email
30 hawaiicert@gmail.org to reserve your spot.
31 Additional information can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ml2VT7cc6I-
32 rILH9H56x1IPHWgzrSl9C/view
Hawai'i County is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer Page I
33 3. Ms. Mercado announced that emails from Hawai'i County had recently been blocked by Google
34 servers. If you have a Gmail account or use Google as your email provider, Hawai'i County
35 emails may not be getting through to you. The County recognizes the inconvenience this
36 continues to cause and is working diligently to fix the problem. If you have had trouble
37 receiving emails from County email addresses, please check your spam and junk folders to be
38 sure the emails are not being routed there.
39 4. Committee Member Kealoha announced that SSFM International is working with the County of
40 Hawai'i Department of Parks and Recreation to develop a masterplan for the new public park in
41 Hawaiian Paradise Park. The next public meeting with SSFM and the Department of Parks and
42 Recreation is scheduled for February 191h, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the HPP Community
43 Center. The masterplan is to be developed and adopted by March 171h. Three different design
44 scenarios can be viewed on Big Island Video News. Members of the public can submit
45 comments on the design scenarios until January 21st. Send comments to Jared Chang at
46 0chang@ssfm.com or call (808) 356-1242.
47 HPP design scenarios can be found on Big Island Video News:
48 httb://www.biRislandvideonews.com/2018/01/09/video-first-hbb-public-bark-master-plan-meeting-held/
49 PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS:
50 One person signed up to testify and chose to speak at the time of the agenda item.
51 APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
52 Committee Member Elmer Solis moved to approve the minutes of the November 14, 2017 meeting as
53 submitted. Second by Committee Member Patti Pinto. The motion to approve the minutes as submitted
54 passed with 6 votes aye, 0 votes nay.
55 BUSINESS:
56 1. Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Presentation: Laila Jayyousi, Soil Conservationist
57 with the United States Department of Agriculture NRCS, gave a presentation on the Pacific
58 Islands Area NRCS Conservation Programs. The conservation programs work with farmers,
59 ranchers, land owners, and foresters to help protect the natural resources on their land and
60 improve native habitats. When someone applies for assistance, the NRCS will complete a site
61 visit and assist in identifying issues. Once issues are identified, staff then works to determine
62 possible mitigation strategies. NRCS has several Farm Bill Programs, the most commonly used
63 program is the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). EQIP provides agricultural
64 producers with financial resources to help plan and implement improvements and conservation
65 practices.
66 Ms. Jayyousi covered topics such as maintaining soil health, reducing erosion, and pollinator
67 and wildlife habitats. The NRCS will cost share to remove invasive species, as well as assist with
68 purchasing new plants for reforesting. They will also cost share projects such as mulching,
69 creating pollinator habitats, windbreaks, and fencing. To qualify or these cost sharing programs,
70 Ms. Jayyousi stated that you must own or lease the land being considered and there must be
71 an appropriate concern. Lots of one acre or more are typically considered for restoration
72 efforts. Site assessments and restoration design plans are provided free of charge.
73 Communication No. 2018-01: NRCS Programs PowerPoint Presentation can be viewed and downloaded from the
74 following website: http://records.co.hawaii.hi.us/weblink/DocView.aspx?dbid=l&id=91746
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75 2. Pahoa Regional Town Center Master Plan: Ms. Mercado provided an update on the Pahoa
76 Regional Town Center Master Plan. She explained that six categories on the County of Hawai'i's
77 Professional Services List were used to select 11 potential consultants for the project. Letters
78 requesting additional specific information had been sent out to each of the 11 potential
79 consultants. The potential consultants were asked to respond by 4:30pm on January 191h. If a
80 response is not provided, the potential consultant will no longer be considered. Once the
81 Planning Department has received the responses, a selection team will review each statement
82 of qualification and select the consultant best suited for the project.
83 It was asked if the Action Committee or members of the public would be able to serve on the
84 selection team. Ms. Mercado stated that the Planning Department is open to having an Action
85 Committee Member participate in the selection of a consultant. She continued to clarify that
86 while the selection committee is not an appropriate area for the general public to participate,
87 community and agency engagement is required of the consultant once their work begins.
88 Committee Member Pinto stated that she would like to see Chair Brown sit on the consultant
89 selection committee. Committee Member Pinto emphasized the importance of avoiding
90 resistance from the community by maximizing community participation in the masterplan
91 process. Chair Brown agreed to sitting on the consultant selection committee.
92 3. Action Committee Representation on Subcommittees and Community Partner Groups:
93 One person testified on agenda item #4
94 1. Ms. Hannah Hedrick, testifying on behalf of herself expressed concern that some of the
95 upper Puna subdivision associations may not be receiving information from the Action
96 Committee regarding connectivity and emergency response and preparedness in Puna. Ms.
97 Hedrick stated that she would gladly share any information she receives on this matter
98 within the upper Puna community.
99 Chair Brown introduced agenda item #3 and opened the floor for AC discussion. It was asked
100 when new action committee members would be joining the AC and when the current
101 holdovers would be leaving. Ms. Mercado conveyed that there had been one nomination
102 before the County Council Planning Committee that was approved and set to go before the full
103 council soon. It is possible that the AC would have an additional person by the March
104 6lhmeeting.
105 Committee Member Pinto urged the action committee to actively continue the work of the
106 Connectivity and Emergency Response Subcommittee (CERS). She reminded the AC that CERS
107 meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 2:OOp.m. in the Kea'au Community Center and
108 reiterated that the general public is always invited. Committee member Kawano volunteered to
109 take the lead on CERS.
110 Chair Brown stated that it was difficult for the Action Committee to take a proactive role in the
111 Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Commission (PONC)
112 applications. After discussion, Chair Brown proposed to dissolve the PONC subcommittee.
113 Committee Member Bernard moved to dissolve the PONC subcommittee. Second by Committee
114 Member Pinto. The motion to dissolve the POMC subcommittee passed with 6 votes aye, 0 votes
115 nay.
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116 Committee Member Solis moved that the Action Committee send a letter to home owners
117 associations and other community groups informing them about POMC and encouraging them
118 to submit applications. Second by Committee Member Keoloho. The motion passed with 6 votes
119 aye, 0 votes nay. Committee Member Solis volunteered to draft the letter.
120 Committee Member Kawano reported that the Volcano Long Range Planning Committee is
121 currently meeting every third Thursday of the month at Cooper Center, Volcano. She stated
122 that the committee is currently focused on forest protection. Ms. Mercado asked Committee
123 Member Kawano to encourage the Volcano Long Range Planning Committee to look into using
124 PONC as a way to achieve the buffer zone they desire.
125 AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING: (March 6, 2018)
126 1. Draft letter from the Action Committee to community associations regarding PONC
127 applications.
128 ADJOURNMENT: Chair Brown adjourned the meeting at 6:14 p.m.
129
130 All Action Committee information can be viewed and downloaded from our website:
131 http://www.hawaiicountycdp.info/puna-cdp/implementation/puna-cdp-action-committee
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