The General Plan Update process is an effort to focus on whether Kauai’s land use laws, principally the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, will effectively serve the public interest in the circumstances which are expected in the years ahead. The process, under
The General Plan Update process is an effort to focus on whether Kauai’s land
use laws, principally the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, will effectively
serve the public interest in the circumstances which are expected in the years
ahead.
The process, under the direction of the Planning Department and
assisted by advice from the Citizens Advisory Committee and retained
consultants, ongoing for nearly two years, is nearing completion. Much of the
effort has been to gauge citizens’ attitudes on cultural and economic issues
which exist or may arise.
Relatively little attention has been given to
whether the existing laws and practices are well suited for our community’s
needs.
The Update process contemplates that a report which presumably
incorporates agreed findings and recommendations will be issued by the Planning
Director.
The report will be subject to public hearings by the Planning
Commission and the County Council and potential modification before final
adoption by the Council.
The future impact of the Council action will
largely depend on whether the ordinance enacted contains specific terms or mere
guidelines as experience shows that the latter will frequently be ignored.
The recent case of the proposed development by A&B at Kukui’ula in
the Po’ipu area illustrates a deficiency in our current procedures. (Other
similar cases have occurred and will occur).
Testimony on this project
disclosed that it was opposed by most of the citizens affected by it.
However, the developer shrewdly sped the approval process to completion by the
Planning Commission and the County Council before it would be affected by any
provisions arising from the current Plan Update.
Although the project was
reduced in scope, the Council approval was given without popular backing.
Action by our elected and appointed governmental officials without public
support is an abuse of our representative systems of government.
Developers are normally well financed, opportunistic and persistent. They will
urge that their projects are beneficial and will provide jobs and increase
property tax revenues.
Opposition by individuals at hearings is apt to be
limited and poorly organized.
The developer’s contentions have had a
continuing history of being persuasive to governmental bodies.
The remedy
that should be considered to prevent major developments occurring when they do
not enjoy public support is to require voter input in an election as part of
the approval process.
Such a requirement would encourage developers to
enlist resident input and acceptance of their project and would effectively
deter projects which could not attract public approval.
The criteria to be
used to determine when the election requirement would be applied and its
procedures, would need to be worked out, but the proposed course would be a
strong tool to prevent unwanted development and to preserve the features of
Kaua’i we all appreciate.
Your support for this concept and your comments
are invited.
Walter Lewis
Princeville
