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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-09-27 Open Space Commission Minutes PUBLIC ACCESS, OPEN SPACE &NATURAL RESOURCES PRESERVATION FUND COMMISSION REGULAR MINUTES September 27,2012 A regular meeting of the Public Access, Open Space &Natural Resources Preservation Fund Commission of the County of Kauai was held in the Lihue Civic Center, Moikeha Building, in meeting room 2A/2B. The following Commissioners were present: Joseph Figaroa, Chairperson Maurice Nakahara, Vice Chairperson Nathaniel Childs Linda Dela Cruz Luke Evslin Patrick Gegen John Lydgate Absent and excused: 2 Vacancies The following staff members were present: Nani Sadora, Duke Nakamatsu, and Deputy County Attorney Ian Jung. CALL TO ORDER Chair Figaroa called the meeting to order at 1:09 p.m. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that a speaker would like to make an announcement about a program she is working on at the Wailua River. There is an exception to the Sunshine Law that allows amending agendas to include additional items if the Commission makes a finding that the item to be added is not of reasonably major importance and that action by the board will not significantly affect a number of persons. She is only on island today so there was insufficient time to notice her presentation. The Commission would need to make any materials presented today available at the next meeting and any discussion by the Commission on the project would need to be noticed on the next meeting agenda. On the motion by Nathaniel Childs and seconded by John Lydgate to allow a presentation by Meredith Speicher regarding a project at the Wailua River under announcements, the motion carried by unanimous roll call vote. 1 V:\2012 Master FilesTomrnissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Figaroa also requested moving Item C, Selection of Chair and Vice Chair to the end of the agenda. ANNOUNCEMENTS (Commissioner Dela Cruz arrived at 1:14 p.m.) Meredith Speicher, a planner from the National Parks Service stated that she works for a program called Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance, also known as RTCA. They are a small program that provides technical assistance to non-Federal partners; anyone that wants to do anything related to conservation or recreation. Commissioner Lydgate questioned if it would be for County or State agencies. Ms. Speicher clarified that she is with the Federal Government but the assistance can be for County, State, non-profit, or community group, and they don't have to be a 501(c) 3. The project she would like to talk about is part of America's Great Outdoors which is an initiative that came out of the Obama Administration. They went around the country and found that people were very interested in the great outdoors, rivers, large landscapes and building partnerships. There is also focus on youth and getting them engaged in the outdoors. The Federal Government approached the States and offered assistance in priority projects. The State selected one project on the Big Island and the Wailua River Blue Way on Kauai. Originally they thought there was going to be a lot of money associated with it, but instead it is just her offering assistance. She has been meeting with stakeholders, the State and County agencies, and users of the river. She will be doing needs assessment, looking at opportunities, and reporting back what she heard with focus on safety, access, youth, and communities. There is a push to connect communities to their resources. Along with the study she is looking at implementation, funding, ways to partner and ways to work together to accomplish the goals. She commended the Open Space Commission. She has been impressed with their reports and community outreach. She provided contact information to the Commission regarding her program and welcomed any information or suggestions. Commissioner Lydgate stated that he is excited by the concept of the Wailua River as a partnership. The Wailua River is a vast watershed from Waialeale to the heiaus. All of the wood from the watershed gets flushed into the Lydgate pond. He would love to have input on how to deal with the Wailua watershed. He questioned if the Friends of Kamalani community group, the Kauai Historical Society, the fishponds, the heiaus, the petroglyphs, the Coco Palms Hotel, and Smiths are all part of her purview. Ms. Speicher stated that she is working mostly with State Parks, but she is not restricted to the boundaries of the State Park. She is looking more from the watershed perspective. 2 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Commissioner Lydgate stated that where the Wailua River meets the sea is a fantastic challenge, opportunity, and a problem. It has been a problem for visitors and locals maintaining the pond that is flushed down by tons of wood and tons of debris from the storms. He questioned her budget. Ms. Speicher stated that she has a small budget for travel and reporting, but she is looking at funding strategies and funding to support. Commissioner Lydgate stated that he believes that the plantations maintained the watershed in the past and they did not have problems in the old days because they were there to look after the watershed. He thinks it would be wonderful if the Federal Government can help with managing the watershed. Commissioner Evslin stated that he understands the concept, but asked for examples of specific accomplishments in the past. Ms. Speicher stated that the philosophy of the agency is that they want to support community ideas and stakeholder ideas. They listen to the issues and try to help come up with solutions. It is dependent on the needs. Some of her cohorts in other states work on river trails so they look at landings and private property issues and agreements to allow access along rivers. Commissioner Evslin noted that he is the head coach of one of the canoe clubs on the river and there are a lot of issues. It is a very special place for him, but the river mouth smells like sewage every day and there is a lot going on. He suggested speaking with some of the canoe clubs that use the river. Commissioner Childs questioned if she gathers funding or groups together to complete projects or if she assesses what is going on and helps with resources. Ms. Speicher stated that normally they work with groups who apply for assistance. This is different because they were put in the position where the Federal Government wants to provide assistance but are trying to reverse it so they are doing what is really needed or desired. Commissioner Childs questioned if they can acquire a grant though her program to clean the river. Ms. Speicher stated that she is looking at different funding opportunities both private and government so hopefully in a few months she would be able to say yes. Chair Figaroa asked for clarification that her program is a middle person that puts the funding and the organizations together. Ms. Speicher stated that it is almost what she does, without having the readily available funding always there. She can look for funding and help to connect funding. 3 V:\2012 Master FilesTomrnissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Figaroa clarified that she is an information hub but at the same time she does studies on specific projects. Ms. Speicher stated that other projects could be different. They do capacity building, organizational development,planning, and compliance, mediation, and landscape architecture type services. Commissioner Childs asked for clarification that she mentioned youth involvement. Ms. Speicher stated that one of the focuses is to connect youth, so the canoe clubs would be a great way. They are looking at potential environmental or cultural types of educational opportunities, especially with some of the resources in the valley that have not been restored. There are some curator groups that work with State parks so they are looking at different partnerships or ways to involve the youth. Commissioner Childs questioned if this is a shot gun approach now, that will be narrowed down later. Ms. Speicher agreed with Commissioner Childs. Chair Figaroa clarified that her intent today was to connect with the Commission to add to the network of organizations. Ms. Speicher stated that she wanted to inform the Commission about the program and hopes that there could be a partnership or ideas on who she should talk to, stakeholders that haven't been identified, or issues. She is in the information gathering stage. Commissioner Childs suggested that she connect with Commissioner Evslin. Ms. Speicher distributed information about the program. She thanked the Commission. APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES Regular meeting minutes of 8/23/12. On the motion by Patrick Gegen and seconded by Linda Dela Cruz to approve the meeting minutes of 8/23/12,the motion carried by unanimous voice vote. RECEIPT OF ITEMS FOR THE RECORD There were no items to receive for the record. 4 V:\2012 Master FilesTomrnissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Figaroa took item H.Lout of order to accommodate the presentation by Councilmember Bynum. NEW BUSINESS Presentation by Councilmember Tim Bynum regarding public access and open space issues. Councilmember Bynum stated that he attended the last Open Space Commission meeting and expressed his pleasure at the Legislation they passed that gives the Commission the ability to get involved in things that the community wanted them to get involved with in the past. He stated that he specifically wanted to speak about Papaa Bay, but he wanted to outline some of the other areas that he thinks the Commission can collaborate on. First are the opala issues that the Commission identified at its inception as some of the high profile access issues that they were not able to work on. Now they have that ability. The County also has a study of ocean and mauka accesses that was done in the 80s. He hopes to collaborate on systematically looking at them and their current status. He is also interested in obstacles for people using accesses. He is interested in ones that are closed, but there are also accesses that are open but have no parking due to encroachments. All of the County roads have easements intended for parking, but in some instances owners have either on purpose or unintentionally encroached on the access and made it hard to park. In Public Works, there are mechanisms to identify encroachments on to public easements. He noted that there have been a lot of changes over the years at Papaa Bay. He used to snorkel there and it has a beautiful, sheltered, sandy beach that is great for families and has unique characteristics. There is a rocky point on both sides of the bay with a channel to enter. Fisherman often camp on the point. He used to go there 15 years ago. One day he drove down and it was fenced off with a security guard. He stated that the only legal way to access the bay now is to traverse the boulders from Aliomanu Beach. It is not safe for some people and they are not comfortable. There is also another way through the trees, but he is not clear of the status. The history is that local people used to just drive to the beach and the land owner used to allow it for many years. Then a gate was put up to close off the road,but you could park there and there was a switch back trail that ended at the sandy beach. Then, security guards prevented people from going down that trail. A new owner eliminated the trail. They also did extensive landscaping and irrigated naupaka so the sandy beach was grown. It became a community issue and the land owner was told to stop restricting access and the gate was open. There was a legal dispute. In 2001 there was a proposal to sell part of the road for around $47,000. The Council at that time did not approve the sale. There are legal complexities on whether a road to the beach even existed. On TMK maps it is labeled as Papaa Bay Road Mauka that indicates to the beach. There was a portion that was referred to as the Weidman Reservation that didn't get subdivided and there are maps that show the road ending at the Weidman Reservation. The property line is a diagonal across the road. Today there is a gate across the road. The current legal status as he understands is that the County has a 20 foot road, undisputed, but we don't own the road beyond the Weidman Reservation. There was a lawsuit where the County claimed they owned the road, but they lost. Then there were negotiations with the land owner about an alternative access, but there has never been an established alternative easement. He noted there is a new owner now. 5 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes He referenced an aerial map of the tennis courts and yoga hale. At the top are two guest cottages that are over 3,000 square feet. There is an overgrown road with trees in the right of way and off to the left you can drive into the pastures. He noted that the owner is not currently using the road so it has overgrown with trees because they access the guest cottages through a different way. It is about 670 feet from the end of the County access to the ocean. He is looking for a safe and appropriate access to Papaa Bay that people can use. He is not suggesting that this is a beach that we would want to drive cars to; it's like Larson where you don't want overuse, but you want public access for people who choose it. If there are a bunch of accesses that are open, then no since access will be overused. When there is only one access, the adjacent owners will have concerns about trash and dumping. He presented a draft resolution that he would like to introduce as soon as two weeks from now, but requested the Commission's input. A Google map still shows the road going all the way down to the beach. If you went down Papaa Road now, you would come to an end of the pavement. Then, if you go down further,you would see a big green gate that says private property, no trespassing. A few more feet, the road turns sharply to the left and it goes down the hill and comes to area where the County's road easement ends. He can't legally discuss executive sessions,but they met about whether they would appeal it or not, and what legal avenues they could pursue. He was inspired to bring it back up, mainly because of the changes in the Commission and their being able to utilize staff resources and funds to acquire land. The County attorney informed him that they could negotiate with the land owner an acceptable safe access, to be cognizant of their concerns,but if they wanted to be really assertive, they have a 20 foot easement. His suggestion is to acquire a 10 foot easement from the end of that road. If he were the land owner, he wouldn't want people to come too close to their cottages and would want to negotiate a different easement that might be longer, but meets their needs to not bring a public access straight to them. He would suggest offering the portion of the road that goes close to the cottages in exchange for an easement that follows the stream to the side of the beach. It would be up to the land owner how they want to screen it from view, or we negotiate a wider area where people can park and walk down the easement. He doesn't feel it should ever be a public access that allows cars all the way down, but to have a safe access. His draft resolution is straight forward and states: Be it resolved by the Council of the County of Kauai that the Open Space Commission is requested and encouraged to pursue safe and adequate public access route to Papaa Bay. Be it further resolved that Council requests the Open Space Commission look at all avenues for obtaining this public access including the use of eminent domain. He felt the County has leverage because they have a legal right and responsibility on behalf of the citizens to provide safe access and the right to use eminent domain which is settled law. It's about whether and what is just compensated. Because their best interest is to keep the cost lowest, they would want the fewest square feet. If he were the land owner he would say they don't want us to use the access near the guest cottages and he would want to come up with an alternative. He also noted that he and another Councilmember are working on legislation to increase the .5%that is allotted to the Open Space fund each year and would anticipate that would be introduced by someone in the next year. The outcome of the election will depend who does that, but Councilwoman Yukimura is working on that legislation with him. Lastly, he is aware that there are two vacancies and he has been talking with individuals and is looking for a resolution to fill those spaces. He stated that he is open to suggestions. 6 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Figaroa stated that he supports the idea of an alternative road along the stream. He questioned if the stream was already a public access. Councilman Bynum stated that his understanding is that the stream bed is not owned by the property owner, but outside of the water is private property. That would have to be negotiated with the owner and if they ask to be compensated. His understanding of eminent domain is that it is about fair compensation. He did not think there would be any question about whether the County has a right to acquire an easement. Chair Figaroa stated that he is in support of an alternate access as long as it is safe. Councilman Bynum stated that it is important that a family be able to get there with children and feel that it is safe and passable. Right now, he jumps over the rocks and there are times when weather conditions make it impassible. There are two access points, one to the beach and the other is to the fishing point. He is not sure how fishermen are accessing the area now and whether it would be considered trespassing on private property to get there. He believes that the legal access is along the shoreline. Chair Figaroa stated that he supports the draft resolution. Councilman Bynum stated that he would like to introduce it at the next Council meeting in two weeks. He believes it is something the Commission would be interested in. Commissioner Childs stated that is what they do. Councilman Bynum stated that he is excited about the future of the Commission. They have great staff support, Planning Department support, and a staff attorney; all of the elements that make a significant difference. Commissioner Evslin questioned what happened to the path down the hillside. Councilman Bynum stated that he was told that the land owner physically removed it. It was a steep, switchback path and he heard that it was flooded and eroded. There was a huge amount of landscaping. The previous owner was a Hollywood producer and made it clear to the County that he would resist with all legal means. He hopes that the current owners are more willing to help the community with reasonable access. He feels we need to be good neighbors and understand their concerns and be willing to compromise a win win situation. Commissioner Evslin questioned if the access can be re-established since it was used for 50 years. Councilman Bynum stated that it may be an alternative, but safe access may mean having to build a cement staircase. He doesn't know what the land owner would prefer, but that's another alternative. His memory is that it was a very long trail to come in from that side. He feels that if the County makes it clear that they intend to get access and are willing to use the 7 V:\2012 Master Files\Commissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes legal mechanisms at our disposal, it would give leverage for the owner to come up with something we can agree on. Commissioner Evslin questioned the previous owners. Councilman Bynum stated that the whole legal issue was that there was always a road, but the map shows that it ends at the Weidman Reservation. The map was made for a subdivision of land that didn't include the Weidman Reservation,but the TMKs label the road as going to the beach. It is complicated. Whether it was access or not, it was used by the public for so long there was adverse possession, but then the land owner gated it for 30 years and they got it back by adverse possession. Commissioner Childs asked for clarification that the County has sued in the past. Councilman Bynum stated that the County was sued and he can make a request for the public documents regarding the settlement agreements. Commissioner Childs clarified that the County lost so the private land owner owns the road. Councilman Bynum started that they own the road from the gate on. Commission Evslin questioned if they own the property beyond the river. Councilman Bynum stated that they own the property on both sides of the stream. It was his understanding that this land owner had concerns regarding runoff from the dairy which is one of the main reasons why the dairy closed; they couldn't meet EPA requirements. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that ownership of the stream depends on the conveyance documents. Normally the State would reserve the waters of the stream, and there is an issue of whether or not they accepted the bed of the stream and whether or not you can traverse it. It all depends on the deed. Some land owners own under the waters of the stream to the middle of the stream if that's where the boundary is. He would have to do more research on this particular case. Councilman Bynum encouraged the Commission to visit the area. The legal way to access Papaa Bay is by taking Aliomanu to the shoreline and going along the shoreline, across the rocks. Commissioner Lydgate questioned if a field trip is possible. Chair Figaroa stated that they would still need to visit the north shore anyway. Councilman Bynum stated that if you go down the road, it is pretty clearly delineated. When you come to the overgrown area, there is still the plastic fence that goes down the rail line. 8 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Then when you come to the area where you don't want to trespass, there is a big gate. It is pretty clear where the road is and where the private property is. Commissioner Lydgate questioned the likelihood of the increase in the annual allotment to the Open Space fund and the timeline. Councilman Bynum stated that he has learned not to make predictions. The Charter Amendment specifies a minimum of.5%which has been generating roughly $400,000 each year. The Council can increase that amount, they just can't decrease it. They are proposing 1.5% which would be around$1.2 million per year which would be more significant. He would expect there would be public support. He worked on property tax issues over the past two years and he has other Bills coming up. The Commission thanked Councilmember Bynum. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Status on acquisition plan for a portion of TMK(4) 2-6-003:017 to obtain a pedestrian public beach access easement to Kukuiula Bay through the former Hoban property. Ms. Sadora stated that the procurement process through the Purchasing Division required compliances with HRS 103D-310(c) from the vendor to produce before we could move forward with processing. The vendor just came into compliance and the request has been re-submitted to the Purchasing Division. It is a matter of getting the purchase order approved and processed to give to Hallstrom to execute the appraisal. Deputy County Attorney Jung noted that Hallstrom is the same appraising company that did the initial appraisal and they would just need to update the market data. Once we receive the data, the land owner's representative will be discussing issues with the County Attorney's office. Review and discussion on past recommendations and prioritization of the Commission's work plan/timeline of events and activities through 2012 including: • Criteria for recommendations list • New commissioner orientation packet • Past recommendations list and survey recommendations Chair Figaroa stated that at the last meeting they discussed coming up with an updated system of how the Commission recommends priorities. Ms. Sadora distributed the priorities criteria from 2005. She felt it was very complicated and involved a lot of work for minimal information from the survey. She also presented a 9 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes spreadsheet that was adopted since that report that was produced displaying the analysis of how the results came in from the public with the number of respondents. Once the list was established the Commission began to narrow down whether they felt it was a recommendation to fight for. Last year was the first year that the Commission decided to prioritize from the previous list of recommendations. The amount information to include into the criteria has always been a struggle. The most input that was received was from 152 respondents and it was mostly because of the motorcycle club that wanted the Piwai recreational area. She thinks it is more determining what works with the input that is received. Chair Figaroa stated that with the new Ordinance, he felt that the Commission should still maintain the system and see how it applies. In the end it depends on public and political support. Ms. Sadora stated that it was created to so the Commission would have backup to show why they made the recommendations. Chair Figaroa stated that after attending the HCPO, he questioned if the Department has thought of ways to encourage more community engagement. Ms. Sadora stated that in the past they have held meetings at the Commission meeting rooms, distributed flyers in the libraries, and advertised in the newspapers. She noted that they spent $2500 one year for a series of colored full page ads. It generated maybe 10 or 11 responses from the Garden Island, but it is not known if the ads generated more online responses. She noted that the Commission also went out into the community. It was a good idea to go out into the community versus the community having to attend a meeting to testify, but the lesson to learn was to be more prepared for other issues and that there could be County wide questions and concerns. The Commission needs to be sure to specifically outline the goal of public input for recommendations in their report to the Council. Otherwise, the public will expect responsibility for every other Department's kuleana. Chair Figaroa questioned the possibility of the Commission engaging in social media. Ms. Sadora stated that some Departments are looking into that possibility so they can try to bring the idea to the table again. Deputy County Attorney Jung noted that there is a social media policy that requires things to go through the Mayor's office's communication staff. There is some level of review that would need to occur so it would be difficult to have complete interaction because it would have to be screened. Commissioner Evslin questioned if all updates would need approval. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that he did not know of any other Departments other than KPD that has their own Facebook page. Commission Gegen noted that the Mayor has a Facebook page. 10 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that they are not saying that they want to control everything, they want to make sure that the right factual information is going out because a Commissioner may have an opinion versus the whole body having an opinion. Ms. Sadora noted that it would probably be more for receiving information versus responding. Commissioner Childs questioned the possibility of setting up a table at the mall with a sign. They can reach a good demographic of people just a couple of hours a week over 8 weeks. Ms. Sadora noted that more time would be available to gather public input and produce the report since it is now a biennial report. It was always a challenge; the weeding out of information took a good amount of time. She stated that she could look into the kinds of activities that are allowed in the malls. Chair Figaroa stated that it would be a good idea at community events. Ms. Sadora noted that in the past the Commission also presented at various community meetings, but that was only if each community organization was willing to network to their group. She felt the more that can be done, consistently, the better. Commissioner Childs stated that it seems like they have tried everything. He noted that they are grasping at social media that he didn't think would get much response either. He wasn't even aware the KPD had a Facebook page. His reservation regarding community meetings is that there are specific types of people that attend those meetings, either politically or personally motivated. Ms. Sadora noted that they were being utilized as another voice to network to the community. Commissioner Childs suggested possibly numbering handouts to identify which means are generating the most responses. If the Commission can identify what is most consistent and what the public engages in, then they can repeat those means. He felt they should do the newspaper ads again,because a lot of people read it. It would at least make the people aware. Chair Figaroa stated that in the end, they just have to keep trying. In today's society, people and government are like night and day. He feels they need to exercise the criteria with the new Ordinance and new Commissioners and they can always modify it. Commissioner Childs noted that it is already October so it doesn't hurt to start now to avoid a crunch in the end. A year is just enough time to get a report together. He suggested that the Commission set up their guidelines now so the staff can begin the work. 11 V:\2012 Master FilesTomrnissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Ms. Sadora noted that the Commission still owes an update to the Council so whether it means using last year's report and providing an update on activities resulting from the report is up to the Commission and focus on how they are going to reach out to the community for the report next year. Commissioner Evslin clarified that the objective criteria system is just information to process before making their recommendation. He noted that the criteria seems not necessarily relevant because one of the public recommendations was to acquire access to Papaa Bay, but Papaa Bay has no access, so there is no way to rank the importance to Papaa Bay in comparison to Kukuiula beach. He stated that he wouldn't want to spend too much time trying to rank sites when it seems like it wouldn't mean all that much. Ms. Sadora noted that is what eventually happened. There are criteria that recommendations need to fall under. The Commission tried to make it more specific according to a rating system. Out of 100 recommendations, maybe everyone made one vote for one site and the Commission needed to decide how to prioritize. She stated that a lot had to do with the Commission's knowledge on how to proceed. Commissioner Childs noted that is the reason there are nine Commissioners and not just one. In the end it is subjective, but they try to listen to as many voices as possible. Ms. Sadora noted that some of the Commissioners wanted the recommendations to be sorted by district. Commissioner Gegen questioned the order of the 2009 priority recommendations. He noted there was no percentages or criteria indicated. He questioned the reasons for the recommendations. He didn't feel that there could be straight objective criteria but some things make sense and they should have justification for their recommendations. Ms. Sadora stated that it came down to a vote. Once the most suggested sites were established it still came to a vote as to the priority recommendations. Chair Figaroa recalled that once they had the entire list of suggestions, the Commission voted on what they felt would impact he community the most. The last report was minimized because the Council commented that it was too long in the previous report. Ms. Sadora noted that the public input was taken into consideration in their determination. Commissioner Evslin stated that it is difficult to use a ranking system with so little respondents. He stated that the two suggestions for the Evslin parcel are probably his parents and Papaa Bay has one suggestion. He stated that the 25 suggestions for Secret Beach may be one person who called their friends. It seemed insignificant. Ms. Sadora noted that is why the Commission prioritized the way they did. 12 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Commissioner Childs stated that it doesn't have to be 12,000 people, but good demographics. Commissioner Gegen stated that he liked that people are at least putting ideas out. The Commission's job is to determine how it fits in with open space. He questioned the recommendations for Salt Pond, Piwai, and Kaneiolouma and what has been done or if they just give the recommendations. Chair Figaroa noted that the new Ordinance has passed since then and now they have to update the Council on what they have been doing. Ms. Sadora noted that before Ordinance 925, the Commission was just a recommending body and there was no format as to what happens beyond that. Now it would involve including and following up with an acquisition plan in the report so there is a next step once the recommendation is made. Commissioner Childs suggested listing ideas on how to reach the public and obtain a real sampling. Ms. Sadora noted that staff also provided media broadcasting on KONG radio twice in a two week period during a past year's public input period. Commissioner Evslin suggested eliminating the weighted scoring, keeping the 20 things they are looking for in a property recommendation, and starting that way. Commissioner Childs would like to strip it down to bare bones and start again with new criteria. Ms. Sadora suggested evaluating it individually and bringing it back to the next meeting. Commissioner Nakahara suggested keeping the criteria as a point of reference. Commissioner Evslin stated that he would prefer to discuss it further instead of keep tabling it. Chair Figaroa stated that he would really like to try the social media. Commissioner Childs suggested coming up with social networking ideas. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that he sends emails to the communications staff to publish and release. 13 V:\2012 Master FilesTommissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Regarding the new commissioner orientation packet, Chair Figaroa suggested including a one page list of challenges and things that will be discussed for the year. He stated that he read over the packet but it didn't prepare him for the meetings. Commissioner Childs suggested including the last four meeting packets. Ms. Sadora stated that aside from providing the current year's report, she encourages new commissioners to refer to the website and read over past minutes. She can assemble a list, but the Commission doesn't always stay on the same topic. There are a lot of information and challenges. The last meeting's minutes are usually included. Commissioner Childs suggested including the last four or five meeting minutes because they would be the most relevant. He cautioned against providing too much information. Chair Figaroa suggested that the previous Chair should meet one on one with new commissioners prior to their first meeting. He stated that if he had sat with the current Chair he would have felt better prepared. Regarding the list of past recommendations, Ms. Sadora noted that the lists were exactly how they appeared in the report. Two years ago the Commission decided to include the previous year's recommendations in the current reports. Report and Discussion from attendees of the Hawaii Congress of Planning Officials Conference (HCPO). Ms. Sadora displayed PowerPoint photos of the mobile workshop they she attended with Chair Figaroa and Commissioner Dela Cruz. The theme was planning in the new new economy. Every speaker had their own definition of what they felt the new new economy should be. The mobile workshop they attended was to the Waimanalo Gulch sanitary landfill, HPower, RRR Recycling Services, and Hawaii Earth Products. Commissioner Dela Cruz noted that the tractor at Waimanalo Gulch turns the trash over and compacts it. There are workers who only sift out plastic bags. Chair Figaroa noted that a lining is layered underneath, so nothing seeps into the soil. They use the trash to power HPower plant. There are pipes in the piles of trash to suck out the leachate and to extract the gases from the trash to power the trucks. The manmade hills of trash are used to plant trees to look like the natural environment. Commissioner Childs noted that Kewalo Basin is a huge landfill and it is beautiful park. There are chimney towers that are venting. Chair Figaroa noted that Kauai should implement similar programs for the trash. 14 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Ms. Sadora noted that there would have to be a considerable amount of waste taken in to be able to utilize every bit of waste. Kauai doesn't meet half the number required to run a similar plant. Regarding the HPower Plant, there are two workers that process the waste for 12 hours using a crane. Commissioner Gegen pointed out that the worst is that 70% of the trash is recyclable. Chair Figaroa noted that because they need to meet a high demand of trash to produce the electricity that they need, he thought it would be a good suggestion for Kauai to send their trash to HPower to have them process it. Commissioner Evslin clarified that trash is separated into what can be burned and what can't be burned. Chair Figaroa noted that the metals and woods get separated and the rest is burned. Ms. Sadora noted that the machinery separates paper, plastic, and aluminum. Chair Figaroa noted that each HI5 station is automated. There is an ATM that dispenses the refunds. Commissioner Gegen noted that they are using baling machines at what is called a materials recovery facility. He stated that if they want to implement curb side recycling, they would need this kind of facility that separates everything. That's the only way it would be economical. Chair Figaroa questioned if the County currently has this kind of facility. Commissioner Gegen stated that studies are being done to put up a temporary materials recovery facility because the way the landfill has been designed, it is a resource recovery park. The recovery facility is supposed to be put up in Hanamaulu,but if they went with that they were looking at least seven years, and the amount of trash and recyclables that can be done in that time is tremendous, so they are trying to fast track a mini recovery facility. Commissioner Childs questioned glass recycling. Commissioner Gegen stated that glass ends up at waste management. They also collect all the HI5 and they end up crushing it. We have a baler with two people that sort the plastics. They bundle all the cardboard, the aluminum, and plastics and ship it off. Commissioner Evslin stated that the biggest export to China is trash. 15 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Ms. Sadora stated that the last stop was the green waste plant and they learned all of the ways they are able to reuse green waste. Commissioner Dela Cruz stated that they are made into different colored compost. She stated that all of the restaurants send their vegetable waste there. Commissioner Gegen stated that on Kauai, Heart and Soul organics does the same thing and they are the only place licensed to take food scraps. Ms. Sadora noted that Governor Abercrombie spoke very aggressively at the conference and it was interesting. Chair Figaroa stated that many of his intentions were revealed and it made you view it differently. At the same time, he hit upon a lot of key points. He noted how difficult it is to pass Bills. The biggest thing is the fear factor. We are moving into a new economy, but people's mindsets haven't changed and they are fearful of what is to come. He stated that he enjoyed the Governor's speech. Ms. Sadora stated that the highlight for her was the mobile tour. She was able to appreciate how trash is disposed when you see what can be done with it. Commissioner Dela Cruz agreed that was the highlight because we don't realize what we throw away that goes to the landfill. Until you see it, you can't appreciate what needs to be done for Kauai. We can make it happen if everyone has the akamai. Commissioner Childs stated that it starts with that facility that can handle it. He noted that we spend money to barge it somewhere else. Chair Figaroa stated that the importance of communication and education was his take away. If the public was educated, they would realize that the solution is already there,we just need to research where it is. He learned that the government has good plans but they don't communicate well with the community, so the community thinks that they government is trying to take over when in reality it is for their benefit. They need to figure out a solution of education. If the outer islands can find a way to work together, everyone will move faster. The biggest issue on Oahu is work force housing. That is one thing that is missing from every island. The governor noted that 75% of the population lives in a condensed area so the rest of us are out on limbs. His take away was communicating with government bodies and at the same time the community has to educate themselves. Commissioner Nakahara stated that he didn't attend this year's conference but last year's conference was about living communities. It was based on community input, planning how it would be setup, and how they are going to do it. Here we hodge podge our planning in terms of the communities. An example would be Princeville where there is supposed to be affordable housing, but they wanted it in Kilauea. Now that the shopping center wants to expand it is being brought up again. He is learning more as he continues on the Commission. 16 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Figaroa learned that public and private partnerships actually work,but they have to be done in the right manner. He noted that HPower and the Waimanalo Gulch are private operations. Ms. Sadora stated that the Commission is also looking for partnerships for acquisitions whether government or non-profits. Commissioner Dela Cruz stated that although the Ihilani Resort was beautiful, but the employees were not very helpful or friendly. Ms. Sadora noted that was a comment from many people. Her understanding was that a consultant was hired for the conference, but the greeting was very short and there was no organization. She felt that Kauai set the bar very high. She noted that ice cream social meant that you walk up to a cooler that had dairy gold popsicles or ice cream, but the lunches were good. Commissioner Dela Cruz noted that she heard a lot of comments that Kauai did a great job on the HCPO last year. Ms. Sadora noted that we did not hire a private consultant. Chair Figaroa noted that aloha spirit is 90% of why people chose to return. When he flew back, he met many of the Maui attendees who also commented that Kauai's conference was the best and they can't wait to return to Kauai. One of the ladies at the airport mentioned that Kauai has a special aloha spirit. Update on vacant commissioner positions. Ms. Sadora noted that Councilman Bynum stated that he has been trying to fill the two vacancies. Council Services is looking at another press release in the next couple of weeks. They asked the Commission for any recommendations they may have. Commissioner Childs noted that most of his contacts are on the East side. Executive Session. This executive session is being held pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes Sections 92-4 and 92-5(a)(4), the purpose of this executive session is to consult with the County's legal counsel on questions relating to public access issues regarding Kauapea Beach, also known as Secret Beach, Kilauea,Kauai, Hawaii. This consultation involves consideration of the Commission's powers, duties,privileges, immunities, and/or liabilities with regard to this agenda item. 17 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that he did not have an update. There is one last thing he needs to draft that he would have ready by the next meeting. Chair Figaroa deferred this agenda item. COMMISSION EDUCATION Status update regarding upcoming public access workshop. Deputy County Attorney Jung stated that David Franco is willing to participate. He still needs to coordinate with Kawika Smith. The date will be second meeting in November. If Tom Shigemoto is unable to attend, then maybe Max Graham would be willing. Chair Figaroa suggested contacting Mike Tressler from Grove Farm. Deputy County Attorney Jung noted that Tom Shigemoto outlined issues for the Commission in the past, but if the Commission wants a fresh perspective, he could ask Mike Tressler. Commissioner Childs suggested asking everybody. Deputy County Attorney Jung suggested one representative from each side. SELECTION OF CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR Chair Figaroa announced that nominations were in order for the position of Chair. Nominations need not be seconded. He nominated Nathaniel Childs for Chair because he felt that he has experience as a Commissioner and has a good perspective. On the motion by Linda Dela Cruz and seconded by Maurice Nakahara to close nominations for Chair, the motion carried by unanimous voice vote. There were no requests for secret ballot vote. All were in favor of electing Nathaniel Childs as Chair by unanimous hand raise vote. Chair Childs thanked the Commission for his nomination. He announced that nominations were in order for the position of Vice Chair. Commissioner Nakahara nominated Joseph Figaroa for Vice Chair. Commissioner Evslin nominated Pat Gegen for Vice Chair. 18 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes Chair Childs questioned if anyone would like to remove themselves from nominations. Commissioner Gegen stated that he removes himself from nominations,but thanked Commissioner Evslin for the nomination. On the motion by Linda Dela Cruz and seconded by Joseph Figaroa to close nominations, the motion carried by unanimous voice vote. There were no requests for secret ballot vote. All were in favor of electing Joseph Figaroa as Vice Chair by unanimous hand raise vote. NEXT MEETING DATE AND AGENDA TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION Chair Childs stated asked the Commissioners to think about the criteria and ways to present their recommendations. He would like to be able to stand by their recommendations. He asked Commissioners to think about how to reach the public and how to come to a consensus. He requested that update on vacant commissioner positions, executive session, and update on Hoban access continue on the next agenda. Commissioners Evslin and Lydgate requested discussion on north shore field trip. Commissioners Gegen,Nakahara and Evslin would not be available to meet on October 11. Chair Childs stated that the next meeting will be on October 25. Ms. Sadora questioned that she will draft a north shore field trip agenda and the Commission can edit it at the meeting. Chair Childs stated that he would consider anything north of the airport part of the north shore field trip. 19 V:\2012 Master FilesTonunissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes ADJOURNMENT Chair Childs adjourned the meeting at 3:48 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Duke Nakamatsu, Support Clerk 20 V:\2012 Master Files\Commissions\Open Space\Meetings\2012-09-27 Minutes