2024-04-15 Bill 121, 122, 123 Beth Thoma Robinson

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From: Beth Thoma Robinson.R(B) To: LPCtestimonv Cc: Jack Hoyt;Whitney Harvey;Teri Takata; Denni Keyes; Evans.Cynthia F.W. Subject: Public Testimony in Support of COUNTY COUNCIL(PL-CCI-2024-000003)(PL-CCI-2024-000004)and (PL-CCI- 2024-000005) Date: Monday,April 15,2024 5:52:59 PM Attachments: 014 220822.odf Aloha Chair DeFranco and Commissioners: I am writing as Secretary of the North Kohala Affordable Housing Group,a sponsored project of the North Kohala Community Resource Center that was originally formed as a Subcommittee of the 2008 North Kohala Community Development Plan Action Group.We currently have a mailing list of over thirty North Kohala community members who attend our monthly meetings and advocate for affordable housing in our district.At our April meeting the Group discussed and voted to write testimony in SUPPORT of the County Council's package of bills addressing Transient Accommodation Rentals(TARS)and related sections of the County Code. Housing was one of the four focus areas chosen for the 2008 North Kohala Community Development Plan.The Issue/Problem Statement described the need for affordable rentals as well as affordable for-sale homes.While increasing affordable rentals was identified as a need,in over 3,000 ideas generated in the Talk Story sessions the issue of short term rentals affecting the inventory of available long term rentals was not mentioned when the NKCDP was written.That perception has dramatically shifted in recent years. In 2022 our Affordable Housing Group members conducted an update of the survey of housing needs that was done by Townscape in 2007 during the writing of the North Kohala CDP.To date we have received over 250 completed questionnaires from Kohala residents. Of those responding, 117 chose to respond to the final,open ended question. At least five of the responses specifically mention short term rentals as affecting the rental housing market.Attached are those responses.While this is anecdotal evidence,our group has also reviewed TAR listings on the major websites and those listings do not support the claim that the ability to rent extra space is what is keeping local families in their homes.The survey responses would indicate quite the contrary:that every available room is being used to house family members who cannot otherwise afford to be housed.That is the priority,not income generation. We also read the UHERO study entitled Short Term Vacation Rentals and Housing Costs in Hawaii,which concluded that there is a relationship between the existence of TARS and the price of housing.We have watched events unfold on Maui in the aftermath of the Lahaina fire,with shocking data on the percentage of the entire housing stock that is in short term rentals,and the reluctance of those owners to convert to long term rentals even in the face of financial incentives and dire emergency conditions. We have carefully followed the evolution of Bill 121 through five drafts.We note that each draft responded to key feedback from public testimony,for example by allowing for more flexibility in who"hosts"the rental,and the possibility for more new owners to register their homes as TARS in the future.While there are items addressed in the Planning Director's comments that will improve the bill,we support the intent of Bill 121. We also support the two companions bills.Bill 122 repeals and thereby eliminates conflicts with the existing Bed and Breakfast regulations,which were so cumbersome that few owners pursued this legal route.With respect to Bill 123,North Kohala CDP Housing Strategy 3.1 specifically addresses `Ohara Housing and Additional Farm Dwellings as"potentially providing some affordable rental homes."Using the broader and more commonly accepted term"Accessory Dwelling Units" in the code is a first step towards facilitating the creation of more ADUs.We support code changes that support this mechanism to quickly create more housing in a form that per our North Kohala CDP is desired by,and in keeping with the character of,our rural community.By"quickly"we mean that individual owners applying for building permits should be years faster than a developer's process to build a new affordable subdivision from district boundary amendment through to actual construction. We urge a favorable vote on these bills and are copying our County Council member in hopes of quick approval by the County Council once the Windward and Leeward Planning Commissions approve.