MAUI PLANNING COMMISSION Approved: 5/12/09 REGULAR MINUTES FEBRUARY 24, 2009 A. CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Maui Planning Commission was called to order by Chairperson Jonathan Starr at approximately 8:30 a.m., Tuesday, February 24, 2009, Planning Conference Room, First Floor, Kalana Pakui Building, 250 South High Street, Wailuku, Maui. A quorum of the Commission was present. (See Record of Attendance.) Mr. Starr: Welcome to the Maui Planning Commission meeting of February 24, 2009. I want to thank everyone for joining us today. We have with us so far and we will have some more commissioners as time goes on. Commissioner Kent Hiranaga, Commissioner Bruce U’u. We have Corp. Counsel who today is representing the interests and duties of the Maui Planning Commission, Mike Hopper. I’m Chair, Jonathan Starr. We have Director of Planning, Jeffrey Hunt. We have Commissioner Donna Domingo and Commissioner Dr. William Iaconetti. We have secretary to the Commission, Carolyn Takayama-Corden. We have Mike Miyamoto, Deputy Public Works Director, Kathleen Aoki, the Deputy Director of Planning. We have a number of our great planners who do all the hard work today, Paul Fasi is here, Robyn Loudermilk, Danny Dias and Jeff Dack, anyone else back there? But anyway, we will proceed with our agenda today. Members of the public will have two different opportunities to testify on agenda items, certainly public hearing items in particular. They can either testify before we begin the first agenda item which will be in a couple of minutes that way if they have to leave, you can’t wait around they can testify, we’ll have their comments and they can move along or stay if they wish or they can wait until we’re actually on each individual agenda item and after the description and presentation of the item, we will accept public testimony before we do any decision making. So you can pick one or the other. We ask that testimony be kept as short as possible, under three minutes in any case because we do have a full agenda and it should be an interesting and very full meeting today. One comment about the agenda, in addition to the hearing items and discussion items we have a special presentation that will be done regarding matters related to cultural resources, burials, artifacts and so on and that will be presented by Kahu Charlie Maxwell, who’s the Chairman of the Burial Council, Hinano Rodrigues from SHPD, the Historic Preservation Division and Stan Solamillo, who’s the cultural resources planner, who staffs Cultural Resources Commission. Those three agencies handle most of issues regarding cultural aspects and artifacts and burials. And I know we’ve, I, for one, am often confused over which agency we should be hearing from or referring something to, this should help clear it up. So we’re looking to do that about 11:00. I’m not sure how the first several items on our agenda will go, but I do ask for your forbearance if we need to move things around so we can have that presentation and we are appreciative of Uncle Charlie Maxwell and Hinano Rodrigues. Had a busy schedule and they were able to come in about 11:00 and they’ll be here a little later. Without further ado we’ll move onto public testimony. I do have some sign ups so far and I’ll go down the list and thank everyone for coming and for offering to share your manao. The following individuals testified at the beginning of the meeting: Mr. Fred Rugge - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Maui Planning Commission Approved: 5/12/09 Minutes - February 24, 2009 Page 2 Mr. Sam Araki - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Mr. Dick Mayer - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Mr. Dick Mayer - Item B-1, Kahului Airport Parking Lot Expansion and Airport Access Road, SMA Mr. Mitch Gagerberg - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Mr. Paul Logue - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Mr. Jimmy Rust - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Ms. Irene Bowie - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Mr. Michael Kovich - Item C-1, Draft EIS for the Proposed Puunani Subdivision, EAC 2006/0022 Their testimony can be found under the item on which they testified. Mr. Starr: Anyone else wishing to offer testimony who hasn’t already testified? Okay, not seeing any at the initial portion of the meeting is now done. Anyone wishing to testify on an item can testify before decision making on that item when the item comes before us. We’ll now move along to our first item and to introduce that item I turn it over to our honorable Director of Planning, Mr. Jeffrey Hunt. Take it away. Mr. Hunt: Thank you Chair. Your first item today involves the State Department of Transportation, Airports Division requesting a Special Management Area Use Permit for the proposed Kahului Airport Parking Lot expansion and airport access road from Hana Highway to Kahului Airport project at TMK 3-8-001: portion of 019 and 3-8-001: 123 and 38-001: 239 and 3-8-079: portion of 21 and portion of 999 in Kahului. The file number is SM1 2008/0022 and Paul Fasi is the planner assigned to this project. B. PUBLIC HEARINGS (Action to be taken after each public hearing item.) 1. STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, AIRPORTS DIVISION requesting a Special Management Area Use Permit for the proposed Kahului Airport Parking Lot Expansion and Airport Access Road from Hana Highway to Kahului Airport Project at TMK: 3-8-001: 019 (por.), 3-8-001: 123, 3-8-001: 239, 3-8-079: 021 (por.) and 999 (por.), Kahului, Island of Maui. (SM1 2008/0022) (P. Fasi) Mr. Paul Fasi: Thank you and good morning. This matter arises from an application for a Special Management Area Use Permit filed on October 27, 2008. The State of Hawaii, Department of Transportation, Airports Division proposes to expand the existing parking lot at the Kahului Airport and to create a new access road from Keolani Place and the Airport Loop Road to Hana Highway. Implementation of the proposed parking lot expansion will result in approximately 1,900 additional parking spaces. Work associated with the expansion of the parking lot will also include grading, utilities relocation and related site work and also perhaps not mentioned in the applicant’s or the department’s report is a water feature at the entrance to the airport. The project will be done in two phases. Actually done in four phases, Phase 1, 1A, 2 and 2B. There are two departments involved in this project, the Airports Division and the Highways Division. Phase 1 in speaking in general terms is the airport expansion parking lot and Phase 2 consists of basically the highway from Puunene to Hana Highway. Maui Planning Commission Approved: 5/12/09 Minutes - February 24, 2009 Page 3 The Airports Division will cover the parking lot expansion and the Highways Division will cover the connecting highway from Puunene to Hana Highway. There is a slight modification to the phasing of this project and you’ll see it during the applicant’s presentation. It is that the airport parking lot road will fall short of reaching the Hana Highway and so from that section that’s incomplete to the Hana Highway and crossing Hana Highway and going over to Puunene will be completed by the Highways Division. You probably want to ask the State of Hawaii, Department of Transportation, Highways Division if they plan to phase these two phases concurrently at the same time. It’s still unclear whether or not the two phases will be started concurrently and end concurrently. It should be noted that the portion of the airport access road between the section of the highway that is going to be falling short of Hana Highway to Puunene is not within the SMA. Basically the Highways Division’s portion of the project is not within the SMA. The project did have two reviews at the Urban Design Review Board. On February 10th, the Urban Design Review Board had four conditions. This is Exhibit 4A in the department’s report. They basically had some issues with the proposed light pole height. They wanted to have it reduced to about 15 feet and that the light fixture itself, the design of it be changed to a more contemporary design that’s more befitting the contemporary architecture of the airport. Also included or not included in the department’s report and we are still a little unclear on is the underpass section of the highway to the airport. There will be an underpass just before the airport so we want to see the presentation on that portion of the highway. The other item of concern that you want to know is the non potable irrigation water supply from HC&S, the proposed water supply from HC&S. There is no firm commitment that the Planning Department is aware of from HC&S to provide non potable water for the irrigation. I would like to turn it over to the applicant and have them do their presentation. A picture is worth a thousand words. I think a lot of these things can be cleared up once you get a visual picture of what is being proposed.