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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/11/2023 Council minutes COUNCIL MEETING JANUARY 11, 2023 The Council Meeting of the Council of the County of Kaua`i was called to order by Council Chair Mel Rapozo at the Council Chambers, 4396 Rice Street, Suite 201, Lihu`e, Kaua`i, on Wednesday, January 11, 2023, at 8:52 a.m., after which the following Members answered the call of the roll: Honorable Addison Bulosan Honorable Bernard P. Carvalho, Jr. Honorable Felicia Cowden Honorable Bill DeCosta Honorable Luke A. Evslin Honorable KipuKai Kuali`i Honorable Mel Rapozo APPROVAL OF AGENDA. Councilmember Kuali`i moved for approval of the agenda, as circulated, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion? Hearing none. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion for approval of the agenda, as circulated, was then put, and unanimously carried. MINUTES of the following meetings of the Council: November 16, 2022 Council Meeting December 14, 2022 Council Meeting December 14, 2022 Public Hearing re: Bill No. 2890, Bill No. 2891, and Bill No. 2892 Councilmember Kuali`i moved to approve the Minutes, as circulated, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion or public testimony? There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to approve the Minutes, as circulated, was then put, and unanimously carried. COUNCIL MEETING 2 JANUARY 11, 2023 Council Chair Rapozo: The motion is carried. The next item is the Consent Calendar. There has been a request to take item C 2023-19 off of the Consent Calendar, so Clerk, can you read C 2023-17 and C 2023-18, please? CONSENT CALENDAR: C 2023-17 Communication (12/02/2022) from Council Chair Rapozo, transmitting for Council consideration and confirmation, Council appointee Victoria Wichman (Archeology) to the Kaua`i Historic Preservation Review Commission for a partial term ending 12/31/2024. C 2023-18 Communication (12/27/2022) from Councilmember DeCosta and Councilmember Carvalho, transmitting for Council consideration, a Resolution Encouraging Local Unions And Non-Union Companies To Create A Management Style Training Program To Promote Kama`aina To Become Top-Level Administrators. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to receive C 2023-17 and C 2023-18 for the record, seconded by Councilmember Cowden. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion or public testimony? There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to receive C 2023-17 and C 2023-18 for the record was then put, and unanimously carried. Council Chair Rapozo: Motion carried. Can you read C 2023-19, please? COMMUNICATIONS: C 2023-19 Communication (12/29/2022) from the Director of Finance, transmitting for Council information, the County of Kauai Schedule of Fund Balances as of June 30, 2022, pursuant to Kaua`i County Charter Section 19.14. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to receive C 2023-19 for the record, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: With that, I will suspend the rules. Will the Department of Finance come up, please? There being no objections, the rules were suspended. REIKO MATSUYAMA, Director of Finance: Good morning. Reiko Matsuyama, Department of Finance, and with me is Renee Yadao, Accounting Systems Administrator. COUNCIL MEETING 3 JANUARY 11, 2023 Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: Thank you for all the work that you do and thank you for the report you put here. I am trying to understand this. Most of the Fund Balance is just solid and moving forward, and it has not been spent very much. Is that correct? Ms. Matsuyama: This schedule must be submitted every year, per the Charter, by December 31st. These numbers come straight from the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR). Usually, you would see the ACFR before this comes over. Councilmember Cowden: Okay. Ms. Matsuyama: This year, we are a little behind, so while you will get the ACFR by the end of this month, these needed to be submitted prior. These are just actual fund balances as of June 30, 2022. Councilmember Cowden: Okay, because it seemed like it was different than what we usually get, but we will see what we used to call the "CAFR" soon? Ms. Matsuyama: Yes. You will see that by the end of this month, and they will reflect these balances, and with detail, obviously. Fund balance is basically total assets minus total liabilities, right, and that is what you see here. In the ACFR, you will see the detail of it. Councilmember Cowden: Okay. Thank you. I did not mean to make them come across the street just for that, but thank you very much. That was the only thing I had. Council Chair Rapozo: Okay. Are there any further questions for the Department of Finance? I am sure we will have you up when the ACFR comes up. Thank you very much. Is there anyone in the audience or on Zoom wishing to testify? Seeing none, I will call the meeting back to order. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting was called back to order, and proceeded as follows: Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any further discussion? The motion to receive C 2023-19 for the record was then put, and unanimously carried. Council Chair Rapozo: Motion carried. Next item, please. C 2023-20 Communication (12/09/2022) from the Executive on Aging, requesting Council approval to receive and expend a total of $143,000.00 in State General Funds for Fiscal Year 2023, and to indemnify the State Executive Office on COUNCIL MEETING 4 JANUARY 11, 2023 Aging; funds will be used for staff development, outreach, awareness, marketing, education, and collaboration with the No Wrong Door (NWD) Network. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to approve C 2023-20, seconded by Councilmember Cowden. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion? Is there anyone from the public or on Zoom wishing to testify? There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to approve C 2023-20 was then put, and unanimously carried. Council Chair Rapozo: Motion carried. Next item, please. C 2023-21 Communication (12/29/2022) from the Housing Director, requesting Council approval to indemnify the State of Hawai`i in connection to the receipt and expenditure of $800,000.00 in transit oriented development Capital Improvement Project (CIP) planning funds from the State Office of Planning and Sustainable Development previously approved by the Council on November 2, 2022. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to approve C 2023-21, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion or public testimony? Councilmember Cowden: Are we not going to hear anything about it? I guess not. Okay. Council Chair Rapozo: You folks had a lengthy discussion on this back in November. From what I understand this is just the indemnification for the State. Councilmember Carvalho: Yes. Councilmember Cowden: Okay. Good. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to approve C 2023-21 was then put, and unanimously carried. COUNCIL MEETING 5 JANUARY 11, 2023 Council Chair Rapozo: Motion carried. Next item, please. C 2023-22 Communication (12/30/2022) from the Chief of Police, requesting Council approval of the provisions contained in Sections 7(f)(iv) and 7(k)(Indemnification) of a Lease Agreement between the County of Kaua`i and the Kaua`i Philippine Cultural Center, for the purposes of a variety of Kaua`i Police Activities League youth activities including, but not limited to, sports, recreation, team building, education, etcetera, located at Tax Map Key No. (4) 3-3-00:043 (por.). Councilmember Kuali`i moved to approve C 2023-22, seconded by Councilmember Cowden. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion? Councilmember Cowden: Can we hear from the Chief of Police, first? Council Chair Rapozo: Sure. Councilmember Cowden: Because it is hard to discuss it if we do not know. Council Chair Rapozo: I will suspend the rules. Chief? There being no objections, the rules were suspended. TODD G. RAYBUCK, Chief of Police: Aloha, Chair, good morning. Good morning, Members of the Council. First, thank you for the opportunity to speak this morning on Kaua`i Police Activities League (K-PAL) and Happy New Year, everyone. I think this is the first time I have seen you since the new year. This morning we are here to ask for your indemnification for a lease that the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) is signing with the Kaua`i Philippine Cultural Center for the use of K-PAL activities. I would like to first thank Mayor Kawakami. He was the one who assisted us in securing the funding for this lease and those funds were approved by this body. So without the combined efforts of both of you, we would not be here today with this opportunity, that I think is an excellent opportunity for us to finally secure a centralized location for K-PAL activities here in Lihu`e. An overview is as you know, many of you, K-PAL was operated out of the Vidinha Stadium for many years. It was about a two thousand five hundred (2,500) square foot metal shed that is not really metal anymore. I think the paint is holding that thing together. It was not safe for us to continue to utilize it for activities. We were able to utilize space at Kukui Grove for a short time. Acting Assistant Chief Ozaki and his team did an exemplary work in building that place out with boxing rings and everything—it was incredible. Unfortunately, that was short-lived as that lease was temporary in nature. Ever COUNCIL MEETING 6 JANUARY 11, 2023 since, we have been trying to locate and identify a permanent location in Lihu`e that would allow us to have centralized K-PAL activities. I want to also thank Wade Lord and Michael Contrades. Both of them scoured all around Lihu`e looking for locations for us. They identified a couple of places. Unfortunately, for various reasons those places did not work out for us. This partnership with the Kaua`i Philippine Cultural Center, I think is going to benefit us very well. Not only does it give us a dedicated two thousand eight hundred (2,800) square feet area to build-out for our needs for sports, it also, not included in the cost of the lease, allows for basketball courts for us to be able to host basketball activities as well. This is a great opportunity for us. We are currently engaged in K-PAL boxing right now out at the Mahelona K-PAL site, and we have boxing coming on line soon in Hanapepe, and hopefully here in Lihu`e, too, at the new facility. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: I really appreciate when we use that facility. Just so the public knows what to expect when they go in, you will have a boxing ring set up, sometimes—they have different rooms, is it going to be something...how often is it going to be utilized? I want to give the public an opportunity to hear the great programs that you do. It is impressive and a good demonstration to the community. So, are you going to do boxing in and basketball in that building? Chief Raybuck: Wrestling. I will make room for Acting Assistant Chief and K-PAL guru Mark Ozaki. Councilmember Cowden: Yes, just so we can hear what it is. MARK T. OZAKI, Acting Assistant Chief: Good morning, everyone. For the record, Acting Assistant Chief Mark Ozaki. To answer your question, Councilmember Cowden, if you have been to the Philippine Cultural Center, you know there is a big, beautiful hall with restrooms and a kitchen, and to the left are the side rooms, that we will be utilizing. We are going to be renting facilities in the side rooms. We will not be having a ring in the middle of the hall. Councilmember Cowden: I figured it would be probably one of the side rooms, but I wondered if it was going to be a place, where when we set it up, that it is consistently there for wrestling and boxing, and you do not have to take it down and set it up every day. Mr. Ozaki: It will be permanently set up. We are still in the planning phases of how we want that place to look. We want it to look neat and nice, so we would be respectful to the Philippine Cultural Center—they are allowing us to be there for a really good price, by the way. They want to support the community just as much as we do, so it is a really good collaboration. There are two (2) rooms, COUNCIL MEETING 7 JANUARY 11, 2023 and we are looking at one side, as of right now, being used for physical fitness such as boxing, body weight, some band work, a place to do general exercise, and on the other side we want to put mats, so it would be multiuse with wrestling, jiu-jitsu, but you can also do yoga, gymnastics, cheerleading, so the mats are diverse. The mats are not just used for wrestling or only for sports, sometimes we use those just to sit down and if we have classroom work or we have to do something on the mat, we just sit on the mat and circle up. It will be multi-use. It would be permanent, where we do not have to set up and breakdown every day. We will clean-up every day, but we do not want to have to set up and breakdown every day. It will be a work in progress. We are going to have a great place, but we want to do a little bit of planning and organizing. Councilmember Cowden: I would imagine some of this is going to be after school, right? Are you going to put any soundproofing on the wall in between? I know when I am in a meeting in those other rooms, and Zoom is going on in the main hall, it is an interesting meeting where we are kind of yelling at each other. There really is not a lot of soundproofing between those walls. We might want to be welcoming guests for the long-term, so we might want to look at what we can do to soften the sound between boxing activities and where you have a bunch of robust cheerleading and things like that. That way we stay a welcomed asset in the building. I am excited to hear that there is plenty of room and that is great. Thank you. Mr. Ozaki: That is a great suggestion. We will definitely look into that. Our programs are primarily designed for afterschool hours, probably not during normal business hours and on the weekends. We have an agreement that if there is a function going on, we are not going to be there. It is a good collaboration and partnership, and we will be respectful and mindful of those in the community. Councilmember Cowden: Soundproofing might be really helpful, because I am there a lot of times in the evenings and there are all different types of hours, and so it is actually great if there is potential to use it on the weekends or other times, because we are really looking for supporting our kids outside of the school hours, particularly. Thank you very much. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember DeCosta. Councilmember DeCosta: I think you missed someone when you were giving your appreciation. You missed yourself. I want to personally thank you for putting energy into K-PAL, because I remember first meeting you and, on the floor, I was a little difficult and I got emotional because Mark knows the impact K-PAL has had on one of my sons. By the way Mark, my son is six (6) feet tall, one hundred eighty (180) pounds, and he is going to graduate from Seattle University with a degree in nursing, so he is doing well. I would like to thank you, Chief. You came and understood the culture that is important to Hawai`i. K-PAL raises a lot of COUNCIL MEETING 8 JANUARY 11, 2023 children, so thank you. Mr. Ozaki, I am thinking about a fundraiser. None of these people know that back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, we were boxing partners, me and Mark. Maybe an expedition—Councilmember against the Acting Assistant Chief, and maybe we will make some money to support the program. Council Chair Rapozo: We need to frame a question, so let me ask you a question, Mark, do you want to take him on? Mr. Ozaki: I think we still need him on the Council... Councilmember DeCosta: He was way better than I way back when, and he is still better than I am now. Bless you both. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Bulosan. Councilmember Bulosan: I am completely excited for this. On the K-PAL side and to see that service in the community again in a facility that would be able to allow our kids and families the services that we need, especially during this time with the rise of cost of everything. Families are struggling to figure out how to look for childcare services and get the experiences for their kids to grow and be healthy, so this is fantastic. Just to see it at a place where it has been a long time coming. I know the Filipino community had this vision, have worked on this for years, and they have a really clear set of having a place for all. To have K-PAL there is just a long time coming. I am sure it is a huge sigh of relief for the entire community and for the K-PAL program to get launched in the space that has been wanting this to happen. Just really quickly, can you provide us a timeline of signing the lease and starting services? Mr. Ozaki: I believe we are in the process of... Chief Raybuck: I signed it. Mr. Ozaki: It is signed already. Now it is just a matter of meeting with the organization and finalizing some terms, and then we will look for some funding. We probably need to purchase some new equipment. We want to do it sooner than later. Realistically, I am thinking March. We will try to do a "kick-off' and invite all of you and the Mayor to attend. We want it to be nice and presentable. Councilmember Bulosan: Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Carvalho. Councilmember Carvalho: I totally support K-PAL and all the work that you are doing. One suggestion is that you can add wrestling, too, instead of boxing... COUNCIL MEETING 9 JANUARY 11, 2023 Councilmember Cowden: He is. Councilmember Carvalho: Is the Mahelona site still there and is it going to be specifically for boxing? Mr. Ozaki: Even that is multiuse. We have wrestling going on, we still have wrestling mats there. It is just that it has been three (3) years since we officially was able to "kick-off' K-PAL and the Kapa'a boxing coaches were the first to come forth and say, "Let us get started." So, we started with that, but we have a meeting next week with some wrestling and jiu-jitsu coaches, and then we are going to move forward. That is where we used to do cheerleading and gymnastics, even dance and hip hop dancing, so we have big plans. We want to get back to where we were or even better than before. Councilmember Carvalho: Chief mentioned the Hanapepe site. Mr. Ozaki: Yes. Councilmember Carvalho: Okay. I wanted to get the entire picture clear for everyone. Good job. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Kuali`i. Councilmember Kuali`i: Because I am a numbers person and we have budget coming up in a couple of weeks, Chief, you had said something about the Mayor providing funds. Can you tell us about that? How much funds, where did it come from, and tell us the term of the lease; for how many years, and then how you anticipate paying for it going forward? Chief Raybuck: Thank you for that question. Yes, you are the numbers person, so I am ready with the numbers. It is a three-year lease. The first lease is six thousand four hundred eighty dollars ($6,480) a month. It is way below commercial rate for the square footage that we have, especially considering that the three (3)basketball courts are not included in that and there is no camp. Then it goes up to six thousand six hundred nine dollars and sixty cents ($6,609.60) for the second year, and six thousand seven hundred forty-one dollars and seventy-nine cents ($6,741.79) for the third year. We have the right to renegotiate and extend the lease. The funds that are being used for this currently will not be in my budget, because they are American Rescue Plan (ARPA) funds. If you recall, this Council approved the Mayor's request to expend three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in ARPA funds for K-PAL and youth activities. That is where these funds are coming from. In three (3) years, hopefully, if things continue to move forward, we will be able to have a line item in our budget that provides consistent dedicated funding to support our youth activities. COUNCIL MEETING 10 JANUARY 11, 2023 Council Chair Rapozo, the Presiding Officer, relinquished Chairmanship to Councilmember Kuali`i. (Council Chair Rapozo was noted as not present.) Councilmember Kuali`i: The initial funding that you are talking about, will that cover the improvements that you plan to make as well? Chief Raybuck: I do not know if we can expend those funds specifically for the build-outs, so probably not. Councilmember Kuali`i: Should we expect you to be coming to us in budget for funds for that purpose? Chief Raybuck: I do not have anything currently in my budget for that. I would have to go back and look at what we can spend money on and how. Councilmember Kuali`i: Or also budget savings, because we are about halfway through the year and I am sure you can look back and find savings that can be transferred. Chief Raybuck: Correct. That might be a potential for us. You may see me, if there is an opportunity for us to have funds and expend funds for those purposes. Councilmember Kuali`i: Thank you. Councilmember DeCosta. Councilmember DeCosta: It looks like you could use some future funding, so we may have to organize a fundraiser, Chief. Mr. Ozaki, like the senior softball where the Mayor gets to throw the first pitch, I am thinking the Council should throw the first punch. I am just teasing. I am honored to hear what you have brought. I am floored by the community commitment. Thank you. Councilmember Kuali`i: Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: Just to make sure I heard it correctly. The ARPA funds are not only paying for three (3) years of rent, but they are also going to pay for all the equipment that we are going to need? Chief Raybuck: No, I would have to go back. First, the majority of the ARPA funds would be expended by this three-year lease. There may be a little bit of funding left over, I have not done the math, but predominately the majority of those funds will be expended by this lease. For the equipment and the build-outs, I am not a legal person that can interpret how you can spend federal COUNCIL MEETING 11 JANUARY 11, 2023 money, and so I cannot tell you whether or not any of those remaining funds will be able to be utilized for that. The great news is that a lot of the resources that K-PAL has and that has put in a lot of the time and effort to build this out, has come from the support of the community and sweat equity by so many people in K-PAL and this community that have stepped up. When we built-out, and when I say "we" it was not "we," it was the gentleman next to me and his team, when they built-out Kukui Grove and you walked in there, if any of you have walked in there, I got"chicken skin" right now—it was so incredibly impressive. The majority of that was sweat equity, their hearts, their hard work, and in many cases their personal funds to purchase the necessary materials to build that out. I am confident that we will find ways to make ends meet. (Council Chair Rapozo was noted as present.) Councilmember Kuali`i returned Chairmanship to Council Chair Rapozo. Councilmember Cowden: Okay. I was really excited with that place in Kukui Grove, because what we were having the big problem with was fighting on the streets, in the parks, and everyone fighting and hurting each other out there. It was a really good way to redirect that energy in a safe and positive way. Big "yays" on that. I was a gymnast, so I am thinking about all those mats. Do we have some existing equipment that we will be able to move over, and that has not been sitting in a musty storage? Chief Raybuck: We have taken good care of our equipment and so it has been stored properly and it is there for us to use. Councilmember Cowden: Okay, well yay, it is all great. Thank you so much. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Is there anyone else? I apologize for having to step out, but the old building at the stadium, is that going to be demolished? Chief Raybuck: Yes, we received some funding recently. Back in 2017, there was a plan to demolish that building and potentially build a dedicated K-PAL facility there. We recently received some funds from the Office of the Mayor to proceed with the demolition of that building and then potentially look at the opportunity for us to bring those plans back to life to see if there is a potential for us to find funding and/or move forward in building a dedicated K-PAL facility on County property that would be our property. Council Chair Rapozo: Will that building be used? COUNCIL MEETING 12 JANUARY 11, 2023 Chief Raybuck: No. It cannot be. Council Chair Rapozo: I know. My concern is safety, because that building is a safety hazard. Chief Raybuck: Yes, we do not use it for the keiki anymore. I agree. Sometimes we put police officers in there. Council Chair Rapozo: I know... Chief Raybuck: And you know it is a dangerous job. Council Chair Rapozo: Yes, okay, got it. Thank you. Are there any further questions for KPD? Thank you. Is there anyone in the audience wishing to testify? Mr. Hart. BRUCE HART: For the record, Bruce Hart. I would just like to thank the Chief and Acting Assistant Chief Ozaki. I think the K-PAL program is something that we can do to help support our youth. I would like to thank the Mayor and the Council for supporting this. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Is there anyone else? There being no further public testimony, the meeting was called back to order, and proceeded as follows: Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any further discussion? Councilmember Evslin. Councilmember Evslin: Thank you, Chief Raybuck and Acting Assistant Chief Ozaki for your work on getting it started. To echo what Councilmember DeCosta said, yes, he was a little "punchy" on the floor at one point about K-PAL, but for a good reason. I think it is such an important program to make sure that it is up and running. We suffer on Kaua`i from the lack of healthy afterschool activities. When I was growing up, I was...I think our paddling program might have gotten some funding through K-PAL at some point, because at one time we were all sporting K-PAL t-shirts. For years, I had sleeveless t-shirts showing off my skinny arms, proudly with my K-PAL shirt, but I know you have supported a variety of afterschool activities in the past and hope to, as you said Mr. Ozaki, get that rolling as it was. It is especially great to hear that the Mahelona and the Hanapepe facilities may see some use again. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Cowden. COUNCIL MEETING 13 JANUARY 11, 2023 Councilmember Cowden: I would like to really thank the Philippine Cultural Center and the Filipino community. I think this is really an excellent location, right there in a concentration of areas. Some of that fighting that I saw during a police ride-along situation, that was really coming out of Kapa'a Middle School. We are right next door there. It is a really great place for redirected energy and I just want to take this moment, I believe Mr. Ozaki, you started K-PAL, is that correct? I want to acknowledge that upstream work of police activity, because this is an example of proactive servicing and protecting, creating good relationships between our emerging youth and public safety. Excellent. Thanking the Filipino community in general for doing what their vision was, which was to support all aspects. I think we can say that boxing is part of the Filipino culture, right? They have some really excellent boxers out of that country. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember DeCosta. Councilmember DeCosta: I am going to reiterate what I just said, and Pacquiao, actually...I wanted to help you out there. Councilmember Cowden: That is who I was thinking about. Councilmember DeCosta: I want to thank all the coaches that went through KPAL. I remember when you started, I was one of your first coaches. Should we tell them that I had the most winning record over fifteen (15) years? I want you folks to know that when I first started, my receiver, who was only six (6) years old at the time, his name was Kahanu Davis. Today, he was signed to play for a Utah Utes, Division 1 in Utah. I possibly will see him playing on Sundays, because he is that good. He was a receiver and today, he is a receiver. Thank you, Mark, for giving us the chance to be involved with K-PAL, from coaches and to our children. It is a good cause. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Kuali`i. Councilmember Kuali`i: Mahalo nui loa to everyone involved with moving this forward. I think it is critically important and I am excited that having bigger, beautiful, new facilities means you will probably be able to bring in more students. It is a great location, right next to the middle school there, the pool, which other people will be using as well. What I especially appreciate about KPAL is that you provide this service, these activities to our disadvantaged, low-income families. I know when I grew up, we did not have money for private gymnastics classes, piano lessons, or any of those sorts of things, so the fact that things are connected to school activities and K-PAL and that it is free, or at a very minimal cost, I think is really important. I am always here to support that. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Carvalho. COUNCIL MEETING 14 JANUARY 11, 2023 Councilmember Carvalho: I want to mahalo you and the Philippine Cultural Center for providing this venue and opportunity. It is really good to hear the circle, if you will, it will potentially go back to County property and we can make that work. In the meantime, this is where we are at, but the bigger picture would be back at the stadium and looking at the athletic facility, if you will, and more opportunities there. Mahalo for the direction and leadership and taking care of our youth. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Bulosan. Councilmember Bulosan: I want to echo everyone's comments and acknowledge the years of volunteerism and the community coming together to make the space possible. That Cultural Center is through a lot of dedication and service. Also, K-PAL, all the time and energy just the community coming together. It gives me hope for what we can do, not just us as a community, but also for the future that is coming up. I am excited for them to be in the programs that you will be providing. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Mahalo. K-PAL has been around for a while. Mark, you have done so much. You made the program for what it is today. This County and the State supported and made possible, the Cultural Center and the YMCA, both entities. If not for the County and the State, those two (2) facilities probably would not be there today. It is nice to see us having some help from them. Hopefully with the YMCA pool right there, maybe K-PAL can at some point expand to swimming. I do not know if that is part of their thing, but as Council Vice Chair Kuali`i said, the school, the "YMCA," and the Philippine Cultural Center, a lot of opportunities. Thank you. With that... Councilmember Kuali`i: Can I say one more thing? Council Chair Rapozo: Absolutely. Councilmember Kuali`i: Just because I heard you thank the County. I think it is important that we also thank Grove Farm, because land availability right in Lihu`e Town is hard to come by and to have an organization that supports our community in a way that Grove Farm does and makes land available for a decent price, I think that is really important, too. We would like to see them do more of that. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. The motion to approve C 2023-22 was then put, and unanimously carried. Council Chair Rapozo: Motion carried. Next item, please. COUNCIL MEETING 15 JANUARY 11, 2023 CLAIMS: C 2023-23 Communication (12/07/2022) from the County Clerk, transmitting a claim filed against the County of Kaua`i by Carolina Booth, for personal injuries, medical bills, and loss of income, pursuant to Section 23.06, Charter of the County of Kaua`i. C 2023-24 Communication (12/13/2022) from the County Clerk, transmitting a claim filed against the County of Kaua`i by Brigid McBride, for vehicle damage, pursuant to Section 23.06, Charter of the County of Kaua`i. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to refer C 2023-23 and C 2023-24 to the Office of the County Attorney for disposition and/or report back to the Council, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion? Is there any public testimony? When is the next update for us in Executive Session? Is that still done every quarter? Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Yes, at the next Council Meeting. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to refer C 2023-23 and C 2023-24 to the Office of the County Attorney for disposition and/or report back to the Council was then put, and unanimously carried. Council Chair Rapozo: The motion is carried. Next item, please. RESOLUTIONS: Resolution No. 2023-19 — RESOLUTION CONFIRMING COUNCIL APPOINTMENT TO THE KAUAI HISTORIC PRESERVATION REVIEW COMMISSION (Victoria Wichman—Archeology) Councilmember Kuali`i moved for adoption of Resolution No. 2023-19, seconded by Councilmember Cowden. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any further discussion? Is there any public testimony? If not, roll call. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: COUNCIL MEETING 16 JANUARY 11, 2023 The motion for adoption of Resolution No. 2023-19 was then put, and carried by the following vote: FOR ADOPTION: Bulosan, Carvalho, Cowden, DeCosta, Evslin, Kuali`i, Rapozo TOTAL— 7, AGAINST ADOPTION: None TOTAL — 0, EXCUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL — 0, RECUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL — 0. JADE K. FOUNTAIN-TANIGAWA, County Clerk: Seven (7) ayes. Council Chair Rapozo: Next item, please. Resolution No. 2023-20 — RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING LOCAL UNIONS AND NON-UNION COMPANIES TO CREATE A MANAGEMENT STYLE TRAINING PROGRAM TO PROMOTE KAMA`AINA TO BECOME TOP-LEVEL ADMINISTRATORS Councilmember Kuali`i moved for adoption of Resolution No. 2023-20, seconded by Councilmember Carvalho. Council Chair Rapozo: This was introduced by Councilmember DeCosta and Councilmember Carvalho, so go ahead and share your...I am not sure who wants to start. We will have you explain the Resolution and then I will ask for public testimony. Councilmember DeCosta: I want to read the top part of the Resolution and I want to thank Legislative Assistant Allison Okasaki for taking the lead and helping us on this. "Resolution Encouraging Local Unions And Non-Union Companies To Create A Management Style Training Program To Promote Kama`aina To Become Top-Level Administrators." We would like to give the definition of kama aina, so everyone understands. Kama aina, someone who is culturally and traditionally immersed into the lifestyle of Hawai`i, in the workforce and in leadership positions within the company that they are. We felt that it was time to promote our kama aina to become top-level administrators within our organizations, businesses, unions, and non-unions here on Kaua`i. We have seen administrator positions come into Hawai`i, deal with the expensive cost of housing, deal with the hardship of being away from their families on the mainland, experiencing a different type of lifestyle, culture, and tradition, and sometime picking up and moving back to where they came from. If, we, as a company: union, non-union, and private, spend funding to relocate someone to be a top-level administrator, and within a year or two, they leave, it is a financial burden. My partner, Councilmember Carvalho and myself, took it upon us to try and encourage this type of organizational program to promote. I want to give a little bit of leverage before I turn it back over to you, Council Chair Rapozo. Our Department of Education (DOE) has a really good program and I want to let you know that our prior Kaua`i Superintendent Bill Arakaki gave written testimony, a gentleman who was my mentor when I was a teacher and he was the principal, but he was a teacher out of college, a football and track coach, a vice COUNCIL MEETING 17 JANUARY 11, 2023 principal, and went through the training program that our DOE has in place. The DOE, statewide has a training program where teachers, kama aina teachers, can go through this program, get an accredited degree from either Chaminade University of Honolulu or the University of Hawai`i at Manoa (UH), depending who we are using at time. They are put into an apprentice program in a school, under a principal and they practice a vice principal role for about a year or a year and one-half. After about eighteen (18) months, if they meet all the criteria, they are put into a school to become a principal under the advisement of our Kaua`i Superintendent, currently his name is Daniel Hamada. Then they become a full-fledge executor of the school, that is called a Principal. We took that role model that we already have in place, and we are encouraging everyone to use that. I will turn that over to you now, Councilmember Carvalho. Councilmember Carvalho: For me, encouraging, empowering, collaborating, and really looking at opportunities for people to come back and be part of the exciting community. I had opportunities to talk to many different people in our community and we have gone through so much in the last couple years, so this is just an opportunity, a venue, and a chance to encourage the kama aina to step up. We are not telling you that you have to do this, but we are encouraging people in the unions, the non-unions, and everyone to come to the plate and step up, see what kind of opportunities we can provide for our kama aina. It is not saying we are closing the door to everyone, but we are opening the door and giving an opportunity for our local kama aina, if you will, to have a chance and look at different opportunities whether it be business, government, et cetera. That is where I am coming from. We were talking about, Councilmember DeCosta and I, how to make sure the message is clear. I have talked to several unions, and they are open. It is not telling you have to do this, but we are encouraging them to look at opportunities for our people. I know a lot of families have moved away and gotten employment here and there, but for Kaua`i, for our home, I think with this Resolution and just getting the message out is very important. Collaboration, empowerment, and of course encouragement—I think that is the big part of it. That is where I am coming from with this Resolution. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Councilmember Kuali`i. Councilmember Kuali`i: You used the phrase "local unions and non-union companies," but are you not in essence, all employers, all types of entities or organizations, including non-profits? Okay. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: I was a little confused when I read the Resolution. At one level, I do not want to say it seems so obvious and that this is what we should be doing, but this is what we should be doing. I am trying to figure out why are we not doing it? I know at least three (3) of us were in the same class of Leadership Kaua`i and then you were in it, right? Councilmember Evslin, were you in that? So, that is an example of something that is good. When we are directing this at our elected officials, are we meaning for this to apply mostly to the public sector or are we sharing this with the Chamber? The private sector is where I see it a little bit COUNCIL MEETING 18 JANUARY 11, 2023 more of an issue, but were you thinking mostly public sector, like the government workers? Councilmember DeCosta: This will address everyone. You are either a union or a non-union company. This is addressing everyone. To make it clear to you, yes, I have not been in former Councilmember Mason Chock's Leadership Kaua`i, but I was there as a guest speaker and that is an excellent program. A lot of companies, non-union/union do not see that as enough of a certification to be a top-level executive. They want you to have a master's degree of some sort in administration to move up. For example, right now, our current position to hire an Assistant Chief to Chief Raybuck is open and a requirement is to have a bachelor's degree. How we do give the opportunity to our people, union or non-union, to get that bachelor's or master's degree? If I look across Kaua`i right now and I name some top-level executors, Kaua`i Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC), where did that top-level executor come from? If I go to our Police Department or our Fire Department, where did the top-level executors come from? If I go to Wilcox Medical Center, where did that top-level executor come from? It is time to give our kama aina a chance, and if you read kama aina, it basically means "immersed in culture and traditions." Let me share with you something important that I picked up today. When that gentleman you called the Pastor stood up and left, I saw Police Chief Raybuck hug him good-bye, and not a handshake. That is something you learn in Hawai`i. That is not something you learn in the states. In the states, you learn to handshake. I am crediting the Chief with learning our culture here and that was something I picked up on. We have a unique culture here. We do things a little different. When your top-level executor is immersed in it, he or she is a better manager of that business and the comradery, and the workmanship is at a higher quality. Thank you. Councilmember Carvalho: We have had people who came from afar and they just adapted well, but there are opportunities too for...this is what this Resolution is for, it is open to all. Giving that little extra opportunity for people in these levels to get to that. It is not saying no, it is saying this is an opportunity to come and be part of a chance to get to the top-level positions. That is where we are coming from. We are not saying one over the other. Council Chair Rapozo: Go ahead. Councilmember Cowden: I am in full support of the idea that when we have people who are making decisions that they know the difference between Waimea or Wailua, or it is not just a town that starts with the letter "K." It is a lot when you cannot even pronounce the names of the areas when someone is beginning. I recognize that. When I was reading it, I asked myself, how do we implement this? How do we make this a reality? I think it is very important, including in the visitor industry. At the government level, we have this salary inversion program. That is why it is easier to get someone from somewhere else, because they get their retirement from the other department they worked in and then they can take the lower pay. That is one of those big barriers that happens because when we are looking to pull someone from within, they can get let go, they no longer have their union or their contract environments, they get paid less. So, this is the painful thing that we COUNCIL MEETING 19 JANUARY 11, 2023 face constantly. That is one of the big barriers that we need to figure out how to overcome. Council Chair Rapozo: Are there any further questions for the introducers? If not, is there anyone in the public or on Zoom wishing to testify? There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting was called back to order, and proceeded as follows: Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: I want to honor what does work. I do think Leadership Kaua`i—it was a worthwhile effort. Those youth programs, Kaua`i Resilience Program, et cetera, there are a lot of youth programs. We just had K-PAL, where we are building relationships is an essential part of good leadership and understanding how to connect the dots. I want to honor growing our own teachers. That is a very strong effort to even bring people back in those discussions, how do we find people who have a grandmother who is going to let them live with then, so they can afford to live there, because that is pretty much almost what it takes to work even department level jobs. They are living with family members—no shame in that, but it is so expensive living here. I also want to honor Kaua`i Community College (KCC) because they have their nursing, culinary, hospitality programs, et cetera, but I they do a great job. Also, working with UH as a cohort where people can do remote learning; the Office of Continuing Education and Training, so I want to acknowledge that while we are setting a template saying it is important that we are building localized leaders, kama aina leaders, that there are places that people can, if they are a business listening, there are places we can develop that. I even want to acknowledge a little bit with Kauai Community Correctional Center (KCCC). When they have the little portables there and people go and work in the community, they are able to save some of that money so when they get out, they can start. That "building leadership" and skill development begins from childhood, begins from hardship, and all the way up. I know this is about top-level leadership and I totally support that goal. I was just trying to figure out what we can do to create that. I guess this is just a directional statement, policy statement saying please move in that direction, to create the management-style, so maybe if we are talking...I am asking, I guess, to the visitor industry. That they make sure...that is where I see a lot gets pulled in from somewhere else. When they are creating it...I guess it is discussion and not a question. Thank you. I agree and there are barriers that need to be overcome. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there anyone else? Councilmember Bulosan. Councilmember Bulosan: I appreciate your efforts in creating this Resolution and doing the leg-work to look at the landscape of what is going on and really understanding that at the top-level we need that support to get to that next level in a program for any industry. If you are looking at all the industries on Kaua`i, a lot do not have programs where kama aina can get that training, so that they can serve that community at a higher level. I am excited that this will encourage all the COUNCIL MEETING 20 JANUARY 11, 2023 industries to look at that whether they are union or non-union, that includes non- profits and private companies. When we grow our own, we know that it allows us to have a better serving top-level administrator that really fully understands the needs of our community. The intangibles, right, the little things that you never think they would understand, but they did because they were raised in this certain area and they found out that information, just because they were a part of the community. It really helps when that top-level person can have that grassroots experience and then go through a program. I hope this encourages deeply all of our administrators out there and program developers to look at these things, because as we move forward into the future, this is the step that we need to take as a community in order to preserve our community and make sure we move forward healthily together. Thank you so much for doing this again. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. Is there anyone else? Councilmember Kuali`i. Councilmember Kuali`i: Mahalo nui loa to Councilmember DeCosta and Councilmember Carvalho. For me, this is about diversity, equity, and inclusion. That has to be at the very top of the minds of employers. I think this first whereas sums it all up, and most importantly, and I wanted to repeat it as well, "WHEREAS, it brings value to local businesses and the community to have diversity, including kama aina, who are culturally and traditionally immersed into the lifestyle of Hawai`i, in the workforce and in leadership positions." I think that sums it all up and I think it is really important. It is always important too, to remind ourselves and to remind people this is what we should be striving for. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there anyone else? Councilmember DeCosta. Councilmember DeCosta: I would like to close by thanking my colleagues for being so receptive and sharing the deep support. Councilmember Cowden gave a really good example, because she mentioned KCC and our nursing program. We are nationally ranked, possibly number one in the country for turning out the best nurses. But when I look at how many of our nurses go from being a nurse and specialized nurse to becoming a top-level executor, I do not see that happening. I do not see our local men and women being that top-level executor. I think this is a strong message. The time is now that we promote and give our people a chance in a program, a training program, so that they can work towards that leadership role. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there anyone else? Councilmember Evslin. Councilmember Evslin: I agree with everything that has been said. I appreciate the introducers for your work here and I just want to highlight that as you said Councilmember DeCosta, it is not just about promoting the idea of promoting from within, it is also about setting up a structured management program within organizations, which is not necessarily easy to do; it is a lot of work. I think it is an COUNCIL MEETING 21 JANUARY 11, 2023 important concept. Borrowing this idea, someone else recently told me that it is so hard for people within an existing organization to be seen as sort of an aside. You are applying for a leadership position there and you get looked over because the people are always looking for someone from the outside to come in and save the organization. We see this happening so often in Hawai`i where people come in from the outside, and sometimes they do a great job, but often times they live here for a few years, they struggle because families are on the mainland, housing is expensive, and then they move away. The organization is stuck in the cycle of always trying to find people to come back. For all the reasons that has been said, it is so important that we not only look from within, but set up that structured program to promote people from within. Thank you. Council Chair Rapozo: Councilmember Cowden. Councilmember Cowden: I have a follow-up on that, too. I really want to speak to the community at-large and the kama aina, it is important for people to believe in themselves and to empower themselves, and to reach. Because we have a cultural difference and so in the continental United States, the dominant culture there puts so much pressure on ambition. Where I think in our culture we put pressure, we do not put pressure, what we honor is values and connection. Connection, humility, and patience are high values in here, and so compared to the dominate culture, it is not surprising that sometimes the other group posed is stronger. I hired hundreds of employees in my past and managed them. I found that I would have ten (10) to one (1) people coming from the continental United States applying, fresh from baggage claim versus people who lived here. I always tried to have fifty/fifty (50/50) and that was hard to do, so I had to recruit; go out and talk to people in to working for me. We need to be able to help recruit our people to say, "We need you," and to believe in themselves and to reach up just a little bit harder. I do not want to wash away the best of our culture that I felt that I was saying with humility, patience, and valuing connections and integrity...I do not want to say other people do not have integrity, but humility and patience—I would not say is the dominate culture. I can say that because I was raised in the dominate culture. Those are two (2) qualities that are not encouraged to have. There is a lot of move against but thank you again for putting emphasis on how important it is that we home grow our leadership. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there anyone else? Thank you. It is a shame that you have to do a resolution for this, because it is something that we should be doing anyway. I look back forty (40) years ago, I joined the Air National Guard to get a tuition waiver so I could attend college, because I could not afford to afford even a community college. When I got into the Kauai Police Department, even if the union contract said that the department would make education accessible to the officers, so they can grow, because of the size of our Department and the lack of manpower, it could not be done. There was an opportunity. All my years in the military, there COUNCIL MEETING 22 JANUARY 11, 2023 were no obstacles to getting trained in leadership, access to correspondence courses were free, getting accepted into the community college of the Air Force—free. You do not move in the military unless you get these additional training courses completed and it is free. Today's world with the available resources, because of the internet, which we did not have back then, I do not understand why corporate leaders would not want to have an educated, trained workforce, and get them ready for the next step. While we are talking about all the companies, I think we should start here at the County, and even here at the Council Services Division, giving our employees that opportunity to expand their knowledge. Online courses now are not that expensive and keep your work staff energized and excited because they are learning. There is a lot of work that needs done and I think there is a false impression or perception that all of those people on the mainland with the nice resumes are going to, like you said, "save the organization." The National Football League (NFL) says that all the time. They bring in a coach and say, "He is going to come in..." and a season and a half later, he is fired because he cannot get enough wins. We see that time and time again here in Hawaii, people come—they basically"snake oil salesman" to the human resources (HR) people and they tell everyone how wonderful they are and the next thing you know they cannot adapt to the culture. When we bring that recruit in, that new employee, why would we not want to get them trained up to become a leader one day? Why do we need a resolution? I appreciate you both. It is really keeping the awareness out to the public, company business owners, corporate people, and government leaders—our best resources are our employees. Let us help them succeed. Easier said than done, as Councilmember Evslin said. With that, the motion is to approve. The motion for adoption of Resolution No. 2023-20 was then put, and carried by the following vote: FOR ADOPTION: Bulosan, Carvalho, Cowden, DeCosta, Evslin, Kualii, Rapozo TOTAL– 7, AGAINST ADOPTION: None TOTAL– 0, EXCUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL – 0, RECUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL – 0. Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Seven (7) ayes. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you very much. That ends the public part of our agenda. Can we get the County Attorney up? Is the County Attorney present? EXECUTIVE SESSION: ES-1088 Pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes Sections 92-4, 92-5(a)(2), 92-5(a)(4), and Kauai County Charter Section 3.07(E), the Office of the County Attorney on behalf of the Council, requests an Executive Session to enable Council to COUNCIL MEETING 23 JANUARY 11, 2023 consult regarding the evaluation of employees of the Council Services Division of the Office of the County Clerk and to consult with the Council's legal counsel. This briefing and consultation involves consideration of the powers, duties, privileges, immunities, and/or liabilities of the Council and the County as they relate to this agenda item. Councilmember Kuali`i moved to convene in Executive Session for ES-1088, seconded by Councilmember Cowden. Council Chair Rapozo: Is there any discussion or public testimony? Seeing none. Roll call. There being no one present to provide testimony, the meeting proceeded as follows: The motion to convene in Executive Session for ES-1088 was then put, and carried by the following vote: FOR APPROVAL: Bulosan, Carvalho, Cowden, DeCosta, Evslin, Kuali`i, Rapozo TOTAL— 7, AGAINST APPROVAL: None TOTAL— 0, EXCUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL— 0, RECUSED & NOT VOTING: None TOTAL— 0. Ms. Fountain-Tanigawa: Seven (7) ayes. Council Chair Rapozo: Thank you. With that, the Council Meeting is adjourned. ADJOURNMENT. There being no further business, the Council Meeting adjourned at 9:34 a.m. c____Res ectfully submitted, ziv JADE OUNTAIN-TANIGAWA County Clerk :dmc