NAWILIWILI — Waimea residents and an attorney representing a family which has Kaua‘i roots dating to 1898 are involved in a battle to decide whether the family has rights to develop a piece of land sitting on a flood zone
NAWILIWILI — Waimea residents and an attorney representing a family which has Kaua‘i roots dating to 1898 are involved in a battle to decide whether the family has rights to develop a piece of land sitting on a flood zone close to Waimea River.
The residents are saying that once the approximately one acre piece of land is developed and paved, flood waters will rise even more than what they already do, damaging their homes.
The attorney, on the other hand, denies the claims and says it’s just not fair that the Ahko family doesn’t get the same residential land designation everyone else in the surrounding area does.
“In 2006 this once forested land was backhoed barren as a preview to a petition for change in zoning,” Waimea resident Julia McGovern told Kaua‘i County Council members last Wednesday in Nawiliwili.
The petition was later withdrawn, said McGovern, adding that the property had been zoned to open district because it has always been a place for waters to rise and recede.
The Ahko family, through attorney Walton Hong, is now again asking for a rezoning. Hong disagreed with McGovern’s comments, saying the county had changed the land designation years ago to open space because it had plans to build a park there.
Those plans have long been abandoned, said Hong. Now the family plans to develop the land and build houses there.
Heavy rains and back-flow from Waimea River cause the Keali‘i Ditch to overflow, said McGovern, adding that the soil in the Ahko property is an essential grid space to ameliorate flooding on surrounding properties.
Other residents followed up McGovern’s comments. Each showed concern that the development would create additional flooding problems in their homes. Many told stories of flooding between two and four feet damaging their homes.
“Yes, the land is in the flood zone, but so are the surrounding lots, many of which have been developed into homes,” said Hong, adding that many of the developed lots are closer to Waimea River than the one belonging to the Ahko family.
“Being within the flood zone does not preclude you from building, you only need to take extra precautions in the design and construction of the dwelling, in a matter that is required by law,” he said.
Hong also said the Kaua‘i General Plan proposes that the area be a residential district.
Action was deferred April 21, and the Planning Committee deferred it once more. Chair Jay Furfaro said he’ll take a field trip to the area sometime next week to better assess the situation.
After the session, outside the Council Chambers, Waimea residents informally told Hong that they wanted to make sure their properties wouldn’t face additional flooding when the Ahko property is developed.
Hong said that most of the Ahko property sits slightly higher than surrounding properties, so it would not change the scenario. Plus, if the Ahko family built provisions to divert water flow out of their property and into their neighbors’, the family could face lawsuits.
• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@kauaipubco.com.
