LIHU’E — The county Planning Commission officially accepted the resignation of Planning Director Ian Costa during its regular meeting Tuesday at the Mo‘ikeha Building. “I have a lot of respect for Ian and the work he has done,” Mayor Bernard
LIHU’E — The county Planning Commission officially accepted the resignation of Planning Director Ian Costa during its regular meeting Tuesday at the Mo‘ikeha Building.
“I have a lot of respect for Ian and the work he has done,” Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. told the commission. “He was a big part of our team … I’ve offered him a position in our cabinet and he has accepted, but I can’t comment on that right now.”
The commission then, without discussion, unanimously accepted Carvalho’s recommendation to appoint Deputy County Attorney Michael Dahilig as interim planning director. There were no other recommendations for the appointment.
Before the meeting began, Costa said he was “asked to step down and go over to Parks (and Recreation) as deputy director.”
Costa added that he was proud of what he accomplished as planning director.
“I pushed to update all of the development plans that haven’t been updated in 30 years,” he said. “I’m not sure why all of the previous mayors never made it a priority, but I did.”
Planning Commission Chair Caven Raco said the mayor has “a different vision” for the county, but declined to go into details about Costa’s resignation.
County spokeswoman Mary Daubert said last week that Carvalho is in the process of “putting together a team that will help him fulfill his vision for Kaua‘i for the next four years.” She said the mayor will be making an announcement on who the new team members are before the inauguration Dec. 1.
Carvalho said given Dahilig’s background in planning and law, he is confident in his ability to address land-use issues while temporarily serving as planning director.
Dahilig is a University of Hawai‘i student at-large regent and serves on the boards of the UH Manoa Campus Center and the Kaua‘i Filipino Chamber of Commerce.
A few Kaua‘i residents, including Glenn Mickens and former council candidate Ken Taylor, came forward to comment and raise questions about the commission’s decision to place Dahilig in the position of planning director rather than the deputy planning director, Imai Aiu.
They also questioned why the commission is allowing the mayor to dictate who heads the department. The commission has the hiring and firing power for that position. Responses were not provided to their queries.
The Parks and Recreation Department could not be reached for comment by press time.
In other business, the commission approved the use permit request of Outfitters Kaua‘i for the operation of outdoor recreational activities and the construction of recreation facilities, including six additional zip-line stations approximately a quarter mile east of the intersection of Kipu and Aakukui roads and affecting an area of approximately five acres.
The outdoor-recreation tour company has operated for years without a use permit from the county, however, the company didn’t appear to have been doing anything illegal because the county Planning Department until recently never required them to obtain one.
Rick Haviland, owner of Outfitters Kaua‘i, told the commission that the location of the zip lines is in an area that is essentially unusable for other purposes and that by expanding his business, he would be creating new jobs.
The commission asked why he was choosing to expand his business as this time. Haviland said it was necessary to remain competitive.
In testimony before the commission, Cheryl Obatake said the site’s historical significance should be considered rather than just “economic conditions.”
Haviland was visibly pleased with the commission’s decision to approve his request, but declined to comment.
