HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-02-21 KCDP Minutes Final
Harry Kim Michael Yee
Director
Mayor
Daryn Arai
Deputy Director
County of Hawai‘i
PLANNING DEPARTMENT
KONA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ACTION COMMITTEE
Aupuni Center 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 3 Hilo, Hawai‘i 96720
Phone (808) 961-8288 Fax (808) 961-8742
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Meeting Minutes
CALL TO ORDER
Chair DeFranco called the Kona Community Development Plan (KCDP) Action Committee (AC) to order at
2:00 p.m. in the West Hawai‘i Civic Center Planning Department Conference Room. The following
persons were present:
ROLL CALL
Action Committee Members Present: Barbara DeFranco (Chair), Charles Young (Vice-Chair), Shirley David,
Kari Kimura, Shane Palacat-Nelsen, Janice Palma-Glennie, Douglas Payne, and Arnold Rabin.
Action Committee Members Absent-Excused: Hiram Rivera.
Staff: Michael Yee – Planning Director; April Surprenant – Long Range Planning Program Manager; Keola
Childs – Kona CDP Planner; and Heather Bartlett - Planner.
Members of the public: 9
ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA: NONE
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Chair DeFranco requested a change in order of the agenda items on behalf of
Planning Director Michael Yee to hear the agenda items in the following order: 1, 5, 6, 2, 3, and then 4.
PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS:
Six people signed up to provide comment. All chose to speak at the start of the meeting, except for Mr.
Melrose who spoke at the end.
1. Bill Moore, representing RCFC Kaloko Heights LLC Kaloko Heights), a land developer, testified on
agenda item #1 – Kona Community Development Plan Proposed Amendments Subcommittee
Report. Mr. Moore said he was speaking for himself and as a consultant for Kaloko Heights, and
not as member of reporting subcommittee of which he was a participating public member. He
explained that Kaloko Heights has given 10 acres of land to Hawai‘i Island Community
Development Corporation to develop a low income housing project. The developer is considering
building a sewer line down Hina Lani to connect to the Kealakehe wastewater treatment plant. He
referenced Kona CDP Policy PUB-4.5: Wastewater Treatment \[stated below\]. Mr. Moore explained
his belief that a phrase in the policy “south of Hina Lani Steet” prevents their ability to link to the
sewer system since the project is located north of Hina Lani. Mr. Moore advocates for maintaining
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the language in the original proposed amendment of this policy (see communication number
2017-03) with additional changes which would read as follows:
“The Kealakehe Wastewater Treatment Plant shall should be expanded to accommodate
at a minimum the projected sewage volume from the Urban Area sewer priority areas
extending from the south of Hina Lani Street service area to the Keauhou Wastewater
Treatment Plant service area.”
Action Committee members asked clarifying questions of Mr. Moore’s testimony. Mr. Moore
explained that the 10-acre affordable housing project has received its state funding and they are
now comparing options for on-site treatment systems instead of connecting to the sewer. He
additionally stated that the developers propose paying for the sewer line, and that there are a
total of 1,200 – 1,300 affordable housing units being planned. In response to questions raised
about the capacity of the existing sewer treatment plan, Mr. Moore explained that they were
already working with the Hawai‘i County Department of Environmental Management (DEM)
regarding those concerns.
Mr. Moore said he would be following up with a written version of his testimony.
2. Carol Ignacio, representing herself, testified on agenda item #6. She introduced herself as a
lifelong resident of the Big Island and spoke to the importance of incorporating community input
into planning decisions. Ms. Ignacio stated that people care about the future of their communities
and desire opportunities to be involved. She stressed her belief that gathering community
feedback and suggestions is not only valuable but necessary for success. She stated that while she
often finds it easier to plan by herself, “chances of success get diminished with every less person
I’m willing to engage with.” Ms. Ignacio read some comments from a 2008 County evaluation
which lists feedback from the community, many of which included a desire for more community
inclusion and engagement. Through her experience attending CDP meetings around the island,
Ms. Ignacio said she is an advocate for 5pm meetings which allows members of the community to
attend meetings after work. This would help to “give the community a forum to establish county
policy.”
3. Sharon Willeford, representing herself, testified regarding the CDP generally. Ms. Willeford
expressed concern for the traffic congestion along Palani road which could be -worsened by an
increase of development in the area. She expressed further concern for the community in South
Kona for the same reason. Ms. Willeford stated a plan should be drafted by the community, not
developers. She also talked about creating food self-sustainability on the island, and advocated for
placing a moratorium on further development in the Kona area until infrastructure concerns are
solved.
4. Martin Ohan, representing himself, testified on agenda item #1. Mr. Ohan explained the issues he
has experienced trying to rezone his property in Kona Acres due to legal issues surrounding the
CDP. Mr. Ohan would like to subdivide his 6 acre property into 5 lots. He explained that the CDP
language lumps projects of all sizes together, which may negatively affect the smaller, low-impact
projects. Chair DeFranco requested that Mr. Ohan submit written testimony that may point the
Action Committee to specific policies in the CDP which may be effecting his property.
5. Keith Kato, representing Hawai‘i Island Community Development Corporation, testified on agenda
item #1. In Mr. Kato’s written testimony he addressed various policies within the Kona CDP as
they affect affordable housing projects in Kona. Mr. Kato explained that because it is difficult to
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provide the means to develop an affordable housing project in ideal locations in Kona, that there
should be a better means to support these projects through the CDP.
Communication No. 2018-03: Hawai‘i Island Community Development Corporation Written Testimony may be viewed
and downloaded from the following website: http://records.co.hawaii.hi.us/weblink/1/doc/92075/Page1.aspx
6. Ken Melrose, representing himself, testified on agenda items 1, 5, and 6. He gave insight on his
experience as the Steering Committee Chair during the drafting process of the Kona CDP. He
explained that when they were in the process of gathering community input they created groups
of one or two Action Committee members who would facilitate topic specific meetings to gather
input from community around Kona.
Mr. Melrose suggested some financing methods for the Action Committee to consider
introducing: 1) amendments to County Code provisions for tax increment financing, and 2) the
use of community facilities \[financing\] districts. He explained that these methods were integral
considerations during the initial drafting of the CDP and that there are legislative impediments to
the methods which still need to be worked through.
For Public Open Space and Natural Resources Commission (PONC) nominations Mr. Melrose
suggested the Action Committee consider nominating the acquisition of the Amy B.H. Greenwell
gardens. TMKs: 8-2-013:002, 8-2-013:003, 8-2-013:014 and 8-2-014:043.
Mr. Melrose also expressed his appreciation for the work of Nancy Pisicchio and Roy Takemoto
for initiating the Kona CDP Amendment process while still honoring its vision and guiding
principles. Mr. Melrose expressed that the amendments should go even further than the original
proposal to better provide guidance to agencies, and to remove unintended disincentives toward
desired outcomes. The goal of the CDP is to direct growth in the Kona area, in the process further
defining the General Plan, and to foster compact neighborhoods that reduce sprawl and improve
transportation. Since its adoption in 2008, Mr. Melrose stated, no such growth pattern has
emerged and there are few housing projects that have begun. He advocated for further
amendments, beyond changing the “shoulds” to “shalls”, primarily in the Transportation, Land
Use, and Housing chapters/policies. He advised the Action Committee that they have the
opportunity to take the initiative on how they should interpret the text and how in-depth the
amendments should go.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Committee Member Palacat-Nelsen moved to approve the minutes of the January 9, 2018 meeting as
submitted. Second by Committee Member Payne. The motion to approve the minutes as submitted
passed with 8 votes aye, 0 votes nay.
REPORTS and OTHER PRESENTATIONS:
1. Kona CDP Proposed Amendments Subcommittee:
Subcommittee Chair Palacat-Nelsen distributed his report and cover letter to the Action
Committee. Participants included Action Committee members David, Rivera, and Young;
community members Bill Smith, George Robertson, Ken Melrose, Max Newberg, Riley Smith, and
Roger Harris; as well as County Staff Karen Eoff, April Surprenant, Keola Childs, Allen Salavea, and
Heather Bartlett. He thanked everyone for all of their hard work in a process which took place
over a series of 6 meetings. \[Note: reference material links provided at end of agenda item
summary.\]
Subcommittee Chair Palacat-Nelsen explained that while looking at the proposed amendments
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\[provided to them in Communication Number 2017-03\], they noticed other areas of concern due
to legal ramifications and/or inconsistencies with other parts of the text. He urged fellow Action
Committee members to use their own discretion as to whether these additional proposals extend
farther than what may be necessary in a \[presumably\] interim amendment of the Kona CDP.
Roy Takemoto from the mayor’s office spoke to the issue of concurrency in the CDP Amendment
Subcommittee’s report. Both the original proposed amendments \[Communication Number 2017-
03\] and the Subcommittee Report \[Communication Number 2018-08\] offer vastly different
rewording of the Concurrency policy \[TRAN-6.1: Official Concurrency Map\]. The Subcommittee
proposed moving a proposed section of policy TRAN-1.1: Official Transportation Map to policy
TRAN-6.1 and removing much of the original proposed wording. Mr. Takemoto advocated for
keeping the wording as it was in his original amendment claiming that the subcommittee was
respectfully, and possibly unintentionally, gutting the concurrency policy.
Mr. Takemoto stressed the importance that the concurrency requirements are in proportion to
the impact the developer proposes. He explained that under his proposed language \[as contained
in Communication 2017-03\], a developer would have to work toward reasonable means to allow
area mitigation requirements to be satisfied by government or private developers in the near
future following the start of a new development rather than being required to construct roads
concurrently with their development. Mr. Takemoto’s proposed language requires a developer to
define an applicable right-of-way by metes and bounds, or by guaranteeing the performance of
the metes and bounds description commitment pursuant to HCC §25-2-46(f)(2). He explained
that the intent of this wording is to put the burden on developers to help plan for the future roads
in Kona without going beyond what is proportionate to the impact of the project.
Mr. Takemoto also commented on the Concurrency Table 4-1, which was also further edited by
the subcommittee. He said that there are 3 Concurrency Zones with roads listed on that table
without any guidance in the CDP on defining those road corridor alignments and thus for
preparing any metes and bounds descriptions of their exact future alignments:
1. In Concurrency Zone C – the extension of Ane Keohokālole Highway between
Kaiminani and Hina-Lani largely because much of that land is owned by the State and is
unplanned.
2. In Concurrency Zone I – the proposed Kuakini Highway Extension through lands owned
by Queen Liliuokalani Trust.
3. In Concurrency Zone K – the proposed Hienaloli Street Extension north to Palani Road,
a complicated issue involving many land owners.
Mr. Takemoto also explained that there are concurrency zones which have puka \[gaps in their\]
segments for which preparing proposed metes and bounds requires further study:
1. In Concurrency Zone A – Queen Ka‘ahumanu Frontage Road (north of the National
Park)
2. In Concurrency Zone B – University Drive Extension mauka to Mamalahoa Highway.
Mr. Takemoto also explained that the County Fair Share account requires developers to
contribute to a fund when they apply for a rezoning. This account gets used for general
improvement in the area. He explained that there may be funding in this account which recently
lapsed from its previous appropriation, he encouraged the Action Committee to further look into
this opportunity for their projects.
He briefly explained the process to fund projects through the county, which happens in 3 steps. 1)
Appropriation: a project is named in the CIP as being appropriate for funding and development; 2)
Allotment: available funds are placed in a restricted account for the project, so that bidding may
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begin, and 3) Encumbrance: once a contract is executed between the County and a contractor,
the allotted funds are encumbered (“locked in place”) to be withdrawn from the account only to
pay for costs related to the project.
In accordance with Sunshine Law requirements, the Action Committee deferred all deliberation
on this report to a future meeting.
Communication number 2017-03: Kona CDP Proposed Amendments may be viewed and downloaded from the
following website: http://records.co.hawaii.hi.us/weblink/1/doc/90193/Page1.aspx
Communication number 2018-08.1: Kona CDP Amendment Subcommittee Report Cover Letter may be viewed and
downloaded from the following website: http://records.co.hawaii.hi.us/weblink/1/doc/92187/Page1.aspx
Communication number 2018-08: Kona CDP Amendments Subcommittee Report may be viewed and downloaded
from the following website: http://records.co.hawaii.hi.us/weblink/1/doc/92186/Page1.aspx
Hawai‘i County Code Chapter 25: Zoning may be viewed and downloaded from the following website:
http://www.hawaiicounty.gov/lb-file-review/files/county-code/chapter25.pdf \[the mentioned section is 25-2-46(f)(2)
which can be found on page 45.\]
The Kona CDP Concurrency Map \[Figure 4-3\] may be viewed and downloaded from the following website:
http://www.hawaiicountycdp.info/site-resources/pictures/kona/figure-4-3-concurrency-map/at_download/file
BUSINESS:
2. Election of Action Committee Officers:
Chair DeFranco restated the deferred motion made by Committee Member Rabin to nominate
Charles Young as Chair of the Action Committee. Second by Committee Member Payne. The
motion passed unanimously with 8 vote aye and 0 votes nay.
Chair DeFranco restated a second motion made in the last meeting by herself to nominate Shirley
David as Vice-Chair of the Action Committee.
Committee Member David moved to nominate Committee Member Palacat-Nelsen as Vice-Chair
of the Action Committee.
Committee Member Palacat-Nelsen respectfully declined the nomination with a concern
for work-related time commitments.
Upon the motion to nominate Shirley David as Vice-Chair of the Action Committee a vote was
taken. The motion passed unanimously with 8 votes aye and 0 votes nay.
3. Communication Number 2017-04: Kona Open Space Network Subcommittee Report:
Recommendations for development of Kona’s Open Space Network.
Committee Member Kimura spoke on behalf of the Kona Open Space Network Subcommittee and
recapped the report they made in November of last year to present the vision statement they
created. Ms. Kimura made clear that the intent of including the Open Space map in the reports
attachment was to simply illustrate what such a map would look like, not to be considered the
finished product. They requested having the map relabeled as public testimony, and not an opinion of
the Subcommittee to avoid confusion as the report is sent to the Planning Director.
Staff Childs reminded the Action Committee of a current appropriation in the Capital Improvement
Plan (CIP) budget which lapses in 2019. A possible logical step would be to ask for an allotment of
funds for the project.
Mr. Takemoto reminded the Action Committee of the Fair Share account, from which funding could
potentially be allocated. This may pay for a portion of the appropriated $195,000.
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Chair DeFranco moved to send a letter to the Planning Director to request that the Kona CDP Open
Space Network Plan appropriation be allotted in accordance with the subcommittee’s vision and
recommended action. Second by Committee Member David.
Vice-Chair Young suggested including a mention of the possibility of requesting Fair Share funds.
Upon the motion to send a letter to the Planning Director asking for allotment for the Kona Open
Space Network Plan appropriation with the possibility of using Fair Share funds, passed with 8 vote
aye and 0 votes nay.
4. Nominations of lands in North and South Kona for acquisition with Funds from the County’s Public
Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Fund:
No nominations were heard.
5. Discussion of 2018 AC Meeting Dates and Goal Setting:
Chair DeFranco explained that this is a continuation of a discussion item from the last meeting.
Planning Director Yee shared his input that reaching out to the community may require simply
opening up the conversation and providing a forum. He stressed the importance of reaching out to
working families and the importance of hosting meetings outside of typical working hours.
The Action Committee discussed how to develop a schedule which would maximize the ability for
community members, as well as Action Committee members, to be present. They decided upon a
schedule, which would be held on the second Tuesday of every other month (with occasional interim
special meetings) and would alternate between a 2pm and 6pm time.
The schedule would read as follows:
th
– West Hawai‘i Civic Center
March 13, 2pm
th
– West Hawai‘i Civic Center (Community Hale)
April 10, 6pm
th
– Location to be determined
May 8, 6pm
th
– West Hawai‘i Civic Center
July 10, 2pm
th
– Location to be determined
September 11, 6pm
th
– West Hawai‘i Civic Center
November 13, 2pm
Committee Member Palacat-Nelsen moved to accept this proposed meeting schedule for the
remainder of the year. Second by Committee Member Rabin. The motion to accept the proposed
meeting schedule passed with 8 votes aye and 0 votes nay.
Staff agreed to work on making the reservations to meet their proposal and to also expand their
meeting locations to other areas in the Kona region to include South Kona when relevant topics
present themselves.
The Action Committee additionally discussed hosting a smaller 2pm meeting in March to discuss the
CDP Amendments before bringing it out to a larger community forum in April.
Chair DeFranco moved the discussion to Action Committee goals. A couple goals were identified and
discussed.
1. Increase public engagement
2. Finish an Action Committee recommendation regarding the CDP amendments
3. Work toward the goal of undergoing a Kona Open Space Network plan
4. Develop openness toward requesting community expertise on Action Committee business
matters
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5. Research financing mechanisms \[ex: tax increment financing, and community facilities districts\]
Chair DeFranco encouraged the Action Committee members to think over their goals in order to
continue this discussion at the next meeting.
6. Discussion of a Committee Member proposal to establish a Subcommittee to propose a schedule of
community meetings to be held by the Action Committee at various locations in addition to or in
conjunction with regular meetings:
Committee Member Rabin moved to form a subcommittee to schedule community \[Action
Committee\] meetings. Second by Committee Member Palacat-Nelsen.
Committee Member Rabin elaborated further on his intention, which also included creating a
means to have video records/broadcasting to give community members another venue for
staying informed.
Committee members shared concerns about needing a clear purpose for hosting community
meetings. Without a clear purpose, and proper meeting organization and facilitation, they feared
community members would stop showing up for meetings altogether.
Staff suggested that Committee Member Rabin could work on organizing community meetings on
his own and because of that he may not need to create a subcommittee for that purpose. Ms.
Surprenant suggested that such a task would probably be best left to the Chair of the Action
Committee and the administrative planning staff to decide meeting venues when they know they
have relevant agenda items for the meeting location. However, help with establishing contact
with venue owners is always helpful.
Upon the motion to form a subcommittee to schedule community meetings a vote was taken. The
motion failed with 1 vote aye and 7 votes nay (one vote kanalua \[uncertain\] nay).
AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING: (March 13, 2018)
1. Kailua Village Redevelopment Subcommittee Report
2. Kona CDP Amendment Discussion
3. 2018 Goal Setting
ADJOURNMENT: The Chair, without objection, adjourned the meeting at 4:37 p.m.
All Action Committee information can be viewed and downloaded from our website: http://www.hawaiicountycdp.info/kona-
cdp/
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