Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste has forwarded to members of the County Council for consideration proposed ordinances which would require developers to provide public access to and along shorelines. In 2001, while he was a councilmember, Baptiste introduced the existing ordinance,
Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste has forwarded to members of the County Council for consideration proposed ordinances which would require developers to provide public access to and along shorelines.
In 2001, while he was a councilmember, Baptiste introduced the existing ordinance, which requires developers of larger subdivisions to provide access mauka and makai. The ordinance requires developers of subdivisions consisting of six or more lots to dedicate pedestrian accesses from highways or streets to coastal shorelines or to recreational areas through existing mountain trails.
The lateral-access bills sent to members of the County Council will strengthen even more public access to resources, he said.
“This is another tool that the county can use to provide access to beachgoers along our beautiful shorelines,” said Baptiste.
The mayor said that while this requirement is sometimes made of developers on an individual basis, it is not a routine requirement in the granting of permits for development. The adoption of the ordinances would make lateral-access requirements automatic for those wanting to develop in areas adjacent to shorelines.
“Until now, lateral-access requirements have been made on an application-by-application basis,” Baptiste said. “These ordinances put the requirement in place, and ensure the continuity of lateral-access requirements as we move forward, regardless of how the membership on decision-making bodies changes.
“This new proposal seeks to broaden Ordinance 777 by now requiring developers to ‘connect the dots,'” the mayor continued. “Under this new proposal, not only will beach-goers be able to get to the beach, but they will also be able to walk safely along the coastal areas.”
Similar concerns were shared on the state level, and a related bill was introduced at the state Legislature by state Rep. Ezra Kanoho, D-East and South Kaua‘i. House Bill 1442 encourages each county to adopt ordinances that “shall require a subdivider or developer, as a condition precedent to final approval of a subdivision, to connect existing accesses to the shoreline with lateral public access along the shoreline.”
Access to coastlines is a right, and is deserved, said Baptiste. Passage of a lateral-access ordinance would reinforce Baptiste’s vision for a lei of access around the entire island of Kaua‘i, he said.
“We are taking steps to realize this vision of permanent access to our natural resources, including our beaches and coastlines,” said Baptiste.
