HomeMy WebLinkAboutComm No 0003.01.21 - Testimony - Ad Hoc - PONC fund and Maintenance fundNovember l , 20th
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Prefetving Howe `l i pr ecl .s naturI h crit ge
Douglas Adm, Chair
members of the HI, County Charter Corn iss on
25 Aupuni Street
Hilo, HI•06720
RE: PROPOSED CHANGES TO PONC
Aloha:
I am mrltirig afi president of Malaria. 0 Puns, a 501(c)(3) environmental nonprofit that has advocated
for PONC since befr re its inception; arid. also as reg. entiy retired i.ce=Chai.r of POMC. I at , vel
concerned but some of the proposed changes that the Charter Commisien Is considering, ro,thich I
believe will virtually handcuff the- comnlissi n members from successfully doing their mandated w rk.
Re proposal to cap the fund and move "excess" funds to the General Fund: Onc argument I havescen is
that other islands are funded by smaller rates of .county income, This ignores the fact that Hawaii
Island is the largest island in the chain and for the most part, the parcels in need of preservation are also
larger than .on other islands; and so far they are all coastal properties, which increases the cost.
Because of this size differential the fund must also be sufficient to match. Residents of the Big Island
have seen the over -development on the other islands and have indicated more than once with their
votes that they do not want that to happen here.
Some of you = question why we are spending big money, on lands that are already zoned conservation.
As you probably know, the DIJN'R docs liavv procedures €:l.at allow conservation lands to have ce in-
ty{pes of development = a Conse37vation Development Lige Application for a permit is the method, o
lands in the:. category are not ipso facto saved for the f=uture. But the votes have three times indicated
that in perpetuity is what they want, and so having. dies_ lands. acquired by ri0NC (and its partners)
maintains the rule that the lands be protected from development forever,
From what I have read in the newspaper coverage, and what Finance Department land manager
llamana Ventura has told the PONC, your commissioners are concerned about the relatively small
number of land acquisitions, Of course, when the County purchases land it has to jump through many
more hoops than a private buyer in order to be responsible to the taxpayers and follow the procurement
rules, For example, requiring a shoreline survey, doing a title search, doing an archaeological and
biological survey, etc. This takes time, Another requirement that slows down the process is that
PONC acquisition & stewardship decisions go to Parks Si. Rec for vetting. P&P, has neither the staff
Comm. No. 3.1.21
nor the expertise to handle this and it is there that things get bogged down. That is why the
commission is requesting that PONC decisions go directly to Council, just the way they do for the
Planning Commission and that Finance replace P&R in the process. The Charter Commnissioii could
help by supporting that change.
In the past, at least one acquisition (Waiele) did not result in a purchase' because the landowner changed
his mind: In another case (Ka:kaIau), owner- ateve Shropshire tried to icon the County into buying an.
additional parcel for $4a sncd did r t negoliate in good faith, in a.third rase (Wai '0 P .e/VLT) the
trustee pawrydaway andit took a long time far th.et. f . to WIC- a new negotiator — and thw;r ali t
were off when the property was coveted by lava this past, summer. PONE and the Finance Dept. had
spent a lot of tete and energy an these € reei3 that did not rrsu.it in acqtdsidons, and were c autd by
forces beyond our control. Stuff happens, _ ,
So once PONC approves a purchase and it goes through all the legally required vetting and procedures,
often more than a year has gone by. If the unended funds are returned to the General Fund, 63 you
are suggesting, then the money won't be there when we need it and landowners will rightfully interpret
that to mean that the County was not negotiating in good fait&. That will not speak well to other
potential land sellers.
Finally, your suggestion that PONE funds be used for Pa'ks pec improvements'. PEA -4 has been
deficient hi a1'ty ways in the past in not itvainfaining ita facilities — tli re is a big: disconnect between:
its varlom divisions and their failure to communicate with each other in a meaningful way, To ta_ke the
money from PONE in order to address the needed back maintenance does not encourage P&R to
improve it -.4 rrn rnana meat, i -'78!-..R neer s more money, lei it appJy for CIP funds for opeofic
maintenance projects when it submits its budget. They are overdue for a fiscal and programmatic audit
anyway.
Thank you for your consideration of these points. I am available if you have any questions.
Mahalo and malama porno,
len Siracusa