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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-12-29 Open Space Commission Minutes Approved COUNTY OF KAUAI PUBLIC ACCESS, OPEN SPACE, & NATURAL RESOURCES PRESERVATION FUND COMMISSION Liliu'e Civic Center, Moikeha Building, Meeting Room 2A/213 MINUTES A regular meeting of the County of Kauai, Public Access, Open Space, & Natural Resources Preservation Fund Commission of the County of Kaua'i was held on December 29, 2010, in the Lihu'e Civic Center, Moikeha Building Meeting Room 2A/2B. The following Commissioners were present: Tessie Kinnaman, Chairperson, Johanna Ventura, Vice Chairperson, Linda Dela Cruz, Maurice Nakahara, and Jean Souza. The following Commissioners were absent: Eugene Punzal, and three (3) vacancies. The following staff members were present: Nani Sadora, Duke Nakamatsu, and Deputy County Attorney Ian Jung. CALL TO ORDER Chair Kinnaman called the meeting to order at 1:16 p.m. MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Johanna Ventura to take item VA, Status of filling of vacant commissioner positions, out of order. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Status of filling of vacant Commissioner positions. The Commission received an update from John Isobe, Administrator of the Office of Boards and Commissions. Commissioner Souza noted that they have not had a fully seated commission for at least a year and a half and would probably not have a meeting in January since they are down to 5 commissioners. She stated that the hold up is affecting all of the commissioners' burdens and they have no flexibility. She said the commission has only missed one meeting all year, but last year there were a couple of months worth of meetings missed due to no quorum. She said that something needs to be done. I Mr. Isobe apologized and noted that the administration has one vacancy in the Lfhu'e/Hanama'ulu district. He stated that there were 3 potential candidates that had indicated an interest in serving, but in the process of applying, for whatever reasons, they decided not to serve. He stated that they currently have an application for the Kapa'a/Wailua district and there is another individual who has expressed an interest in the Lru'e/Hanama'ulu district, but that applicant was off island at the moment. He was hopeful that the positions would be filled by the first couple of weeks in January. He noted that the council still has a vacancy but the administration has no control over their appointment process. He said he would be happy to stress to council the importance of filling that position. He encouraged the commission to start the process of recruiting for their appointed position sooner than later. He expressed appreciation for all of the commissioners. Commissioner Souza stated that the commission's has experienced that some people did not realize that the work load was heavier than they had anticipated. She stated that they want to be realistic on how they operate and the frequency of their meetings. She noted that the commission has been ready to go with the ninth member appointment for over a year, but they need to have 8 seated members in order to appoint the 9t". She stated that they are proposing a change to the ordinance regarding the appointment of the ninth member. Chair Kinnaman clarified that the way the ordinance is currently stated, the commission is unable to appoint their ninth member until all eight are seated. Commissioner Souza stated that there appears to be a discrepancy with the intent on what the council had hoped to accomplish versus the way the ordinance reads and what the duties of the commission are. She stated that the commission did a comprehensive review and has suggested a proposed change to the ordinance related to the appointment of the ninth member. Mr. Isobe apologized and stated that he did not realize that all eight members needed to be seated before the commission can appoint the ninth member. He was hopeful that by January, the vacancies would be filled, and he said that he would send an email to the council stressing that is imperative that they begin their selection process. Commissioner Ventura thanked Mr. Isobe and stated that she appreciated any assistance they could provide to lesson the commissioners' burdens. She stated that as time has gone by the sense of frustration has continued to grow and it helps to hear that there have been efforts made on behalf of the commission. Mr. Isobe thanked the commissioners for their service. He stated that he doesn't anticipate any problems with the appointment of the applicant. He said another individual has indicated an interest for Lihu'e-Hanama'ulu, but is off-island until next week. He said that both have a high level of interest in the preservation of open space and the need for areas being preserved or expanded for recreational purposes. He said he and the Mayor felt that it would be nice to have people who are looking forward and 2 thinking about what should happen for the island and what should be preserved. He said they are looking for depth as well as a breadth of ideas. Commissioner Souza stated that the commission's mandate is to provide an annual list of recommended sites to be acquired to the council and the mayor and to hold a public input process in developing that list. She noted that the public's expectations and the commission's expectations are greater than what they are allowed to do. She stated that they are hoping that their proposed amendments to the ordinance will be received favorably. She stated that they recently celebrated the acquisition of Black Pot Park expansion, but she felt there was much more that people expect of the commission. She agreed that looking for candidates that have a good vision and willingness to work toward moving forward matches where the commission would like to go. Ms. Sadora stated that Peter Nakamura is currently on vacation but a potential candidate from the Kilauea area has been referred to the Council. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Linda Dela Cruz to approve the agenda. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES — Regular meeting minutes of 10/28/10, 11/04/10, 11/18/10 and 12/02/10. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that theoretically the minutes should be approved within 30 days. He suggested that if the commissioners needed time to review, that they take action at the next meeting and have any amendments ready to go. Regular meeting minutes of 10/28/10 — Deferred. Regular meeting minutes of 11/04/10 —Approved. MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Johanna Ventura to approve the minutes of the 11/04/10 meeting. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. 3 Regular meeting minutes of 11118110 —Approved. Chair Kinnaman requesting amending the third to the last paragraph on page 7 regarding Hoban from "a property to be acquired" to "an access easement to be acquired", and the last line from "acquire the property" to "acquire the easement". MOTION: It was moved by Johanna Ventura and seconded by Linda Dela Cruz to approve the minutes of the 11/18/10 meeting as amended. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. Regular meeting minutes of 12/02/10 —Approved. MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Johanna Ventura to approve the minutes of the 12/02/10 meeting. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. ANNOUNCEMENTS Deputy County Attorney Jung announced that the Hodge parcel closed on December 23rd and the County of Kaua'i is now the official owner. He stated that the park plan would be starting some time in 2011. Commissioner Ventura requested that the planning process be a future agenda item. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that the park plan would be for all parks but it will be broken up by region, and the Black Pot Park would have its own section. Commissioner Ventura announced that she is participating on the committee that is helping to create the process. She stated that she heard there was going to be a parks planning process specifically for Hanalei or Black Pot, not in the context of an island wide process. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that he would check into working with the Parks Department to explain the process and the timeframe that they are looking at. Chair Kinnaman announced that she is no longer on the board for Hui Malama O Kaneiolouma. 4 UNFINISHED BUSINESS (Continued) Compilation and evaluation of 2010 public input process pursuant to Ordinance No. 812 and the development of an annual list of priority projects and 2010 Report to the Kauai County Council and the Mayor. Chair Kinnaman turned this section of the meeting to Vice Chair Ventura. The Commission reviewed the latest updates to each section of the report. Commissioner Souza noted that at the end of page 6, she deleted the commission's vision and mission statement because she didn't feel it aided in the discussion of the purpose of the report. She stated that it could be addressed in a different form. Vice Chair Ventura suggested including a reference that Ordinance 812 can be found in the appendix. She stated that there were a few recommendations that were not included in the final list because they were too large or involved other issues. She suggested including a list of those sites somewhere in the report noting that they are viable projects, but there is insufficient funding. She also suggested reaffirming all past recommendations should an opportunity present itself that the county could move on with open space funds. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that the council could refer particular properties that come up on the market to the commission. Vice Chair Ventura questioned if the council would be able to act on any annual list or just the most recent. Commissioner Souza stated that her hesitation would be that she has second thoughts regarding the CGB Evslin property that they recommended last year. Vice Chair Ventura stated that she just didn't want the intent of the fund to be hindered by a technicality such as a site not being included in the 2010 report, thus not qualifying. Chair Kinnaman noted that there was a page in the current report that included past recommendations. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that in reading the charter and the ordinance, it did not appear that the council would be limited to the commission's recommendations on the list. Commissioner Souza suggested a wording change to the first sentence in section 1.13. on page 5 to reflect the inclusion of Ordinance 812 in the appendix as follows: "On December 8, 2003, the Kaua'i County Council fulfilled its obligation under the charter to define the procedures for administering and spending monies in the fund by passing 5 Ordinance 812, which is included in the appendix." She added that the words "fund" and "commission" should only be capitalized when used in its official capacity. Commissioner Nakahara noted that the Salt Pond Park expansion was missing from the executive summary. Regarding Po'ipu Beach Expansion, Commissioner Souza corrected the last sentence in the first paragraph to read: "In the Po'ipu Beach resort area this is the only county beach park and is the only beach park with life guards." Regarding Hoban, the commission agreed to insert language from the 2009 report as follows: "This proposal is to acquire a pedestrian shoreline access over an existing drainage easement on the former Hoban property. This would provide the only safe access between Kukui`ula Harbor and Spouting Horn. The Open Space Fund could supplement, if necessary, the funds provided by conditions of Ordinance PM-2004-370 relating to zoning designation at Kukui'ula, Hawai'i, Section 2.15e(2)." Commissioner Nakahara questioned the progress or interest in the drainage easement since the 2006 assessed value. Vice Chair Ventura stated that condemnation proceedings would need to be initiated by the council, but they have not taken action. She stated that it has been a past recommendation, and at one of the prior meetings they asked the Planning Department to prepare dossiers outlining the process to the council should they decide to take action. Regarding the Restoration and Expansion of Shoreline Access, Lawa'i Kai to Port Allen, Vice Chair Ventura suggested amending the third paragraph to read as follows: "This proposal seeks to restore and expand shoreline accesses for fisherman and other coastal users from the highway and along a narrow coastal corridor stretching parallel along shoreline from Lawa`i Kai to Port Allen. Chair Kinnaman questioned if they should include the statutes that Dr. Kawane referred to in his testimony. Vice Chair Ventura stated that it might be good to state what motivated the recommendation, but that the attorneys were looking into the interpretation of the statutes. Commissioner Souza noted that she acknowledged that this site was recommended from public testimony. Regarding the north shore field trip, Vice Chair Ventura stated that the commission agreed to title the report "3/11/10 Field Trip Report; Aliomanu to Princeville". 6 Regarding the Summary of Public Input from 2010 Survey, Vice Chair Ventura suggested mentioning the number of responses that were received for each recommendation. Regarding Kapaia Swinging Bridge, Commissioner Souza questioned the status of ongoing discussions on this property. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that there is an organization in support of the bridge, but he was not aware if any money was appropriated by the council. He stated that discussions are ongoing to clarify the status of the property and that the Mayor's office is working with the council and the community organization which was formed for the preservation effort, to hopefully come to some resolution. The Commission continued to review and edit the report. MOTION: It was moved by Johanna Ventura and seconded by Maurice Nakahara to approve the 2010 Report to the Kaua'i County Council and Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr., as amended at today's meeting and subject to further grammatical edits and revisions by the investigative team as well as the inclusion of such content as may be needed to complete the executive summary, pulling content from the report as it stands today. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. Update and discussion of the commission's work plan/timeline of events and activities through 2010, to include future commission education topics and scope and timing of facilitated review of the commission's vision, goals, direction, priorities, processes, and proposals. MOTION: It was moved by Johanna Ventura and seconded by Linda Dela Cruz to defer the above item until the next meeting. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. Review and discussion on 3/11/10 North shore field trip. Commissioner Ventura stated that she inserted a map of the various sites that were visited including a bulleted list of the sites. She felt that the limited size of the aerials in the space that the column allowed was not very helpful. She suggested not including the aerials in the report. Chair Kinnaman stated that she was fine with the field trip report. 7 MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Maurice Nakahara to accept the 3/11/2010 Field Trip Report: Aliomanu to Princeville subject to minor edits and revisions by the task group for inclusion into the commission's 2010 report to the County Council and the Mayor. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. NEXT MEETING DATE AND AGENDA TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION Chair Kinnaman stated that the next meeting date will be determined. She noted the Commissioner Dela Cruz will not be available in the month of January, and Commissioner Souza would not be available on January 13t" Commissioner Souza stated that if there is at least one new commissioner by the 27t" they would have quorum. She requested that the task force receive the abstracts for the recommended sites and that the headings are consistent with the report. The Commission agreed that Chair Kinnaman will determine the agenda for the next meeting. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: It was moved by Jean Souza and seconded by Johanna Ventura to adjourn the meeting. All were in favor by unanimous voice vote — motion passed. Meeting adjourned at 4:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: :" a Duke Nakamatsu, Support Clerk 8 4�