THE HAWAII COUNTY GENERAL PLAN

A proposal has been developed by the Hawaii 
County Planning Department, after extensive public hearings collecting input from the community. 
More Public Hearings are to be held to decide 
whether to adopt this proposed new General Plan 
which will guide our island's development for 
the next decade.

The proposed general plan will help to protect local values and lifestyles. It recognizes the value of our beautiful undeveloped coastlines, and protects agricultural land, areas of natural beauty and natural resources throughout the island from inappropriate urbanization.

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Learn more about the Proposed General Plan here......


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HARRY HITS A HOMER
by David Kimo Frankel

 Mayor Kim and his planning director Chris Yuen have laid out a magnificent vision for Hawaii's future.  The proposed revision of the general plan, if approved by the Planning Commission and the County Council, will direct future growth and guide county decisionmaking for the next decade.

Making a major break from the Yamashiro administration, the county administration proposes to take real action to protect wild coastal areas.  Mayor Kim has proposed to protect the scenic, undeveloped areas surrounding Kealakekua Bay, Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Park and Kaloko-Honokohau National Park.

The proposed general plan provides significant new protection at Keopuka, Honaunau and Kohanaiki.  In response to massive public opposition to resort proposals at  Kohanaiki, O'oma, Honaunau Bay and Pohue Bay (site of the proposed Riviera), the Kim administration proposes to remove the resort designations for these areas.

Wilderness coastlines such as these provide families areas to swim, whale watch, hike, snorkel, surf, explore tidepools, picnic, seek tranquility and fish.  They provide habitat for native species and protection of native Hawaiian cultural sites.  And they create jobs for the visitor industry, which is dependent on the preservation of Hawaiiís natural beauty.

We all suffer the consequences of inappropriate coastal development.  The fact is, most local folks don't want to go to a beach in front of a hotel or condos.  When hurricanes, tsunamis and other natural disasters strike, our tax dollars pay for the reconstruction of houses built too close to the shoreline.  And then there's the Hokulia disaster.  Twice last year, massive amounts of soil from the golf course development polluted Kona's pristine waters.  A Board of Land and Natural Resources report raised serious concerns about damage to the Big Island's coral reef resources from the Hokulia sediment runoff.  As much as three inches of sticky mud covered much of the bottom -- and corals were smothered -- killing them.

If we are going to preserve our cultural heritage, provide recreational opportunities and support our visitor-based economy, we must, as Mayor Kim has proposed, keep our wild places wild.

While recognizing the value of these beautiful undeveloped coastlines, the plan also protects agricultural land, areas of natural beauty and natural resources throughout the island from inappropriate urbanization.

 No plan proposed by the county is going to completely satisfy environmentalists. More open space could have been designated, for example, at Keopuka, Ooma and Kohanaiki. Less development could have been proposed around Kailua-Kona until road improvements are made.  And the proposal for resort nodes creates the opportunity for hotel owners to reduce the amount of open space around their resorts in future years.

Nevertheless, the Kim administration has produced a document light-years ahead of the status quo.  Past general plans simply paved the way for development to accommodate unrealistically high growth scenarios.   This proposed general plan balances the need to protect the areas most deserving of protection, while respecting property rights and facilitating important economic activities.

It is now up to the Planning Commission and the County Council to hold public hearings and consider whether to approve Kim's vision.  They have the opportunity to protect the areas surrounding Kealakekua Bay, Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Park, Kaloko-Honokohau National Park and Pohue Bay.  They can adopt the proposed general plan.  They can vote to keep our scenic undeveloped shorelines wild, for our families and for our future.

David Kimo Frankel is an environmental attorney.
 
 

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HAWAII ISLAND JOURNAL ARTICLE - Copyright 2001 By Jack & Gretchen Kelly

Hawaii County Revises The General Plan - Public input pays off

Sprawl. Traffic congestion. Overdevelopment. Coastal access. Native Hawaiian rights. Protecting agricultural lands and open space. These and other high-profile community concerns prompted an unprecedented public involvement in the process of revising the Countyís General Plan. What is this General Plan and why were so many people willing to invest so much energy into being part of this revision process?

In the late 1950ís, the County of Hawaii first initiated plans that would guide planning for the island. These plans were developed on a regional basis and grouped together to create the first General Plan that was adopted in July 1965. A plan for Kona, one for Hilo and one for the Kohala-Hamakua region were included in this first prototype. Kaëu was not covered by this plan as no one initiated a regional plan for that area at that time.

In 1971 the first comprehensive plan which included all districts was adopted. This document set forth policy for the development of the whole island. In the late 1980ís that plan was amended and adopted. The General Plan mandated that this updating and revision process should take place every ten years.

The current revision, which is now moving into its final stages, has been ongoing for the past two and a half years. Norman Hayashi, the County Planning Program Manager, has supervised the revision process and was part of the 4-person team that wrote the text and created the new maps contained in the final draft of the plan.

Due to the extraordinary level of community response to the two previous drafts, released in September of 2000 and January of 2001, the task of creating a comprehensive final draft was a daunting one. "We made every effort to get participation in the community for this process and we got it," says Hayashi. "The process took much longer than we had anticipated."

Hayashi expresses gratitude for those members of the community that took the time to study the 400+ page document and prepare detailed commentary and suggestions. "The community has been very helpful in the process," he notes.

During the past year there have been two rounds of public meetings held around the island discussing the various drafts of the plan, and written comments to the Planning Department were encouraged.

The final draft of that document will now go before the Planning Commission and subsequently the County Council for acceptance.

The General Plan provides direction for the long-term maintenance of our Island. It provides the legal basis for subdivision approvals, zoning, and the initiation of all public improvements and projects. It can be a very powerful tool for community-based planning if implemented properly. However, continual amending of the Plan to serve short-range political purpose defeats the purpose of long range planning. Piecemeal approvals can lead to uncontrolled urban sprawl and its accompanying nightmare of infrastructure deficiencies.

After the past years of the Yamashiro administration, the Hawaii Island community has become wary of all governmental process, expecting their public comments to fall on deaf ears as time after time overwhelming public comment on an issue was ignored. When government fails to respond to its community, a sense of powerlessness begins to pervade, which leads to apathy and lack of participation. This is a scenario that the people of this county are all too familiar with.

However, something lit up our community this last year. The election in November 2000 brought the winds of change to our county. Even though voter turnout was rather disappointing, the people and groups that participated did so in a very active way. Successes at the polls have spilled over into a community activism that is still picking up steam.  Although the General Plan revision process was begun during the Yamashiro administration, it received a real shot in the arm once the new Kim administration took over.

"For the first time, the Planning Department listened to the community and implemented what they heard from the community, which is what they were supposed to do all along," notes County Councilwoman Nancy Pisicchio. "A lot of specific input about growth management and agriculture was not included and will need to be addressed, but overall the plan is a big improvement and lays down a framework and an opportunity."

Chris Yuen, the new Planning Director for the County, has been a major player in the process. "We received a lot of really good comments," says Yuen. "Sometimes the level of detail was too much for a General Plan, but we added things which were consistent with the theme of the comments we received."

"Overall, this is a vast improvement," believes County Councilperson Julie Jacobson. "It addressed quite a few of the important concerns." Jacobson feels that it is clear that the communities that really came out in force to submit oral and written comments were those that got listened to.

Some question the philosophical foundations of the General Plan as a document upon which to base Hawaii Islandís future. Does the plan serve development or planning? The County defines the General Plan as a "document for the long-range comprehensive development of the Island of Hawaii" that "provides the direction for the future growth of the County." Is growth a necessary element of planning? If so, how much growth can be withstood without compromising all the concerns the public has about environmental quality, cultural resources and rural agricultural lifestyle?

"We need to go in the direction of looking at growth management and urban growth boundaries, changing the paradigms of how weíre looking at land use," says Pisicchio. "The General Plan doesnít have enough mechanisms for growth management."

Although the goals, policies, standards and courses of action expressed in the Plan are rather generalized and sometimes contradictory, the Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide (LUPAG) maps in the Plan define land use for the County. These maps are the heart of the Plan, applying specific land use designations (urban, resort, agricultural, etc.) to every acre of land in Hawaii County.

Farmers Applaud New Protections for Agricultural Lands
In previous drafts, agricultural lands in the mauka Honaunau areas were identified as "other agriculture", even though similar lands in mauka Kealakekua and Keauhou were designated as "important agriculture". Those agricultural lands deemed important had a far higher level of protection. In the new draft the LUPAG maps show that Honaunau lands both mauka and makai were redefined as important agriculture, a significant change.

Quality of soil is one major element that is used in the General Plan to determine agricultural land classification. "Using quality of soil as a major criteria in determining value of agricultural land is irrelevant in Kona," says John Langenstein, Vice President of the Kona Chapter of the Farm Bureau. "Coffee and macadamia thrive in rocky soil. The Farm Bureau, in its comments on the General Plan, requested the County to extend the important agriculture definition to include all Kona coffee lands as described in the newly acquired U.S. Certification Mark."

Specific language in the Kona subsection of the Agriculture element of the Plan states, "Although the climate of Kona is favorable for agriculture, soils and topography present some limitations, especially for mechanized farming. This has been one of the problems faced by the coffee industry."

"The Farm Bureau opposes any reference to mechanized farming," says Langenstein. "Kona is one of the last bastions of the family farm. We produce the finest coffee in the world. One reason is the personal care afforded the individual coffee estates here in Kona. Mechanization would only serve to deteriorate the quality of our product. Encouraging profitability for small farms is key and we can do that by controlling development of agricultural lands, limiting taxation and improving access to water."

"I feel that the Farm Bureau has a great working relationship with the County," said Langenstein. "I think weíre basically on the same page."

Gus Brocksen, Steering Committee Chairman of the Kona Farmerís Alliance, is also enthusiastic about the Planning Departmentís responsiveness to KFA concerns. "All through this final draft, Iím seeing the tracks that we laid down," he says. "The recognition of the small, independent farmer, rather than the previous planís focus on the sugar cane lands, was very important to us."

Coastal Lands and Cultural Resources
The preservation of coastal lands and cultural and historical properties is paramount in the minds of our islandís residents, and was reflected in the comments submitted to the Planning Department. Does the Plan go far enough in protecting these areas?

Changes in the LUPAG maps  have been significant in many coastal  areas. At Kaëawaloa and Keopuka, bordering Kelalakekua Bay, the designation has been changed from agriculture to conservation, fulfilling the planís goal of providing a conservation buffer around Kealakekua Bay. Along the stretch of coastline from Kealakekua Bay to Honaunau, the new designations have brought these lands out of resort and urban categories and reclassified them for open space and important agriculture. These changes will have a significant impact on how these lands will be regarded in the future.

Pohue Bay in Kau, once the site of the proposed Hawaiian Riviera Resort, has been changed from resort to conservation. The coastal lands at Kohanaiki have been brought out of resort classification and re-designated for open space.

Extensive areas of coastal lands near Mahukona and the border between North and South Kohala have been classified from agriculture to conservation.

Many of these coastal areas are also culturally sensitive regions. In the Planís Historic Sites section it states that  "an estimated 11,500 archeological sites have been identified on the island of Hawaii. However only 5% of the island has been surveyed. The other 95% of the island contained an indeterminable number of historic and archeological sites." It also states that " it is realized that once destroyed historic sites and the information they contain cannot be replaced."

The Plan also gives deference to the 1995 PASH decision ensuring native Hawaiian rights to conduct "their cultural traditions and practices upon lands where these activities had been conducted in the past".

Given the general feeling of the public concerning the extreme importance of preserving Hawaiiís ancient culture many feel the County should do more to ensure preservation.

"The Plan shows a heavy reliance on the State Historic Preservation Division to protect these areas. This is inadequate," says Jim Medeiros, President of Protect Keopuka Ohana, which submitted extensive commentary during the revision process. "Recent findings in the landmark Hokulia case bring into question the ability of SHPD to enforce its mandate. The County, however, holds the key through stipulations it may make when issuing grading and grubbing permits. Placement and enforcement of restrictive conditions when altering the landscape is paramount to preserving the culture."

Parks, Affordable Housing, and Cellular Towers
The General Plan, in its twenty major elements, encompasses a broad range of topics relevant to planning decisions. It includes the establishment of Hawaiian Heritage Corridors in the Historic Sites element and a new statement about controlling pollution in the Environmental Quality element.  The Transportation section defines the future Mamalahoa Bypass Highway as a Scenic Corridor with totally unobstructed viewplanes, and the Energy element contains significant additions addressing the development of alternative energy sources.

The Recreation element of the Plan recognizes that facilities available in relation to population are not presently equitable, with the Hilo area receiving the lionís share of park facilities. In this section, the Plan delineates a policy of reallocating park lands relative to population. This provision should insure that all park development funds for the next several years will be spent on providing more parks and recreational facilities for South Kohala, Kona, and Puna.

Brenda Ford, a board member of the nonprofit organization Plan To Protect, feels that the final draft of the Plan is a definite improvement. "But some of the most important issues we brought up are not included," she says, "and it really concerns me."

The Housing section of the Plan contains significant new language regarding the importance of affordable housing for Hawaii County. "Thatís excellent," says Ford, "but talking about it doesnít get these homes built. The policies and standards of this section needs to specify that the County shall require all developers to provide 10% affordable housing."

Ford is troubled about what she feels is ignorance on the part of county planners regarding the fast evolving technology of telecommunications transmission. "Visually invasive cell phone towers should never be allowed in populated areas," she says. The Public Utilities element of the Plan contains language stating that telecommunications towers are usually much taller than the surrounding structures or vegetation and may negatively impact the scenic nature of a given area. "This is totally unnecessary and does not belong in the General Plan," Ford says. She encourages the use of "stealth technology", where cellular carriers can hide antennas in false chimneys and other such devices, as was recently done in Waimea.

The Final Stages
On May 21, the Planning Department held a workshop where the Final Draft of the General Plan was presented to the Planning Commission in a detailed briefing. The Planning Commission is now studying the document. Planning Director Yuen explains that the Planning Department is scheduling three public hearings in June and early July where people will have the opportunity to offer testimony to the Planning Commission. The General Plan will then go, with any specific recommendations by the Planning Commission, to the County Council, who will make the final vote to adopt the Plan.

"The public should make sure to continue to participate," says Pisicchio. Five County Council votes are needed to approve the Final Draft of the County Plan. The Council can also require more public hearings on the Plan if they feel that the opportunities for public input in these last stages of the process have not been adequate.

Once the new General Plan has been adopted, how can the community continue to participate in the planning process?

The new Plan Implementation section notes that the General Plan sets forth broad goals, objectives, and policies, while implementation requires translating these broad statements to specific actions that also include community participation. The efforts that follow the adoption of the new General Plan will involve the preparation of Community Development Plans, a capital improvements program (CIP), and an annual report.

The CIP and annual report will be used by the Mayorís office to monitor progress towards achieving the General Plan goals, objectives and policies. The Community Development Plans, with a target completion date of within three years of the adoption of the General Plan, will be the next forum for community input into managing growth.

Sometimes referred to as "regional plans", Community Development Plans will be developed for the nine judicial districts of the County and will reflect the specific desires of the residents of those communities. When the current General Plan revision process is complete, the Planning Department will turn their attention to creating the process for communities to generate their regional plans.

"These Community Development Plans will allow communities to define themselves," says Nancy Pisicchio. "The regional plans will put a lot more precision in the process."

For Hawaii Island communities hungry for change in the way planning decisions are made and eager for more control over growth, the new Administrationís willingness to listen will enable a true community-based planning process to evolve. "The Planning Departmentís best resource is the people who live here and have a history here," observes Pete Martin, President of CERG (Citizens for Equitable and Responsible Government). "In each community, itís the residents that know best - they know the issues and are the best qualified to make these decisions."
 
 
 

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