General Sustainability

"Take Care of the Residents and the Land First, Then Tourism Will Come"

kauaibrad — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 13:24:51 -0800

Excellent article:

From: http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/11/16/news/kauai_news/doc491fd91...

"A template for Lihu‘e tomorrow"
Visiting architects offer plan for sustainable town
By Luke Shanahan and Michael Levine - The Garden Island
Published: Sunday, November 16, 2008

"Community leaders and concerned citizens this week welcomed a team of architects from around the country for a workshop on sustainable design ideas for Lihu‘e, with three days of work summed up in a presentation Friday evening at the Kaua‘i Veterans Center.

The Sustainable Design Assessment Team program, which aims to provide broad assessments to help frame future policies and sustainability solutions, featured presentations on five main areas — land use and smart growth, transportation and transit, housing affordability, economic development and renewable energy — in setting up a “template for Lihu‘e’s tomorrow.”

Over three days, SDAT members, working in conjunction with the American Institute of Architects and traveling to Kaua‘i from as far away as New York and Washington, D.C., spoke with community members to get up to speed on design and development issues particular to the island in general, and the Lihu‘e area, specifically from the Wailua River to the Tree Tunnel road.

Kauai General Plan Strengthened by Kauai Voters

kauaibrad — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 19:28:24 -0800

Kauai General Plan Strengthened by Kauai Voters

The CRG group did a great job with this. See attached comment below for a complete list of participants in this campaign. Politicians at all levels should take note, these people and their larger group of thousands of friends are capable of anything they set their minds to. Carl gives a good interview below:

http://kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/11/12/news/kauai_news/doc491a7bef711...
"General Plan gets teeth"
By Nathan Eagle - The Garden Island - November 12, 2008

"Speaking loud and clear with their ballots, Kaua‘i voters last week told county government that they want the General Plan to be more than a guiding document collecting dust on shelves.

By a nearly two-to-one margin, voters said “Yes” to a County Charter amendment that will limit the development of hotels, timeshares and vacation rentals to a prescribed growth rate.

As newly elected officials prepare to implement the law, expected to go into effect Dec. 4, questions continue to arise over the “devil in the details.” While the intent of responsible growth remains clear, concerns have been voiced publicly and privately over legal and logistical aspects.

“A lot of people are tired of irresponsible government,” said Carl Imparato, one of some 100 residents who worked to put the amendment on the ballot through a citizens’ petition and then campaigned behind it. “They want the plan to be more than a vision; they want it to be a reality.”

It’s Time to Implement Kaua‘i’s General Plan

kauaibrad — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 02:20:20 -0700

http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/10/30/opinion/kauai/doc490958711...

"It’s time to implement Kaua‘i’s General Plan"
By David Dinner October 30, 2008

"Eight years ago, after two years of effort, dozens of meetings and extensive public input, the County Council adopted the Kaua’i General Plan. The General Plan provides a 20-year vision for Kaua‘i. It is intended to serve as a roadmap for future development on Kaua‘i and as a guide for county government’s actions, including the issuance of development permits. It balances Kaua‘i’s need for jobs and economic development with protection of Kaua‘i’s environment, cultures and quality of life.

The County Charter requires the council to periodically adopt and update the General Plan, but it does not require that the council make sure that the General Plan’s vision becomes reality. Now, the lack of that formal requirement would not be a problem if the County Planning Commission — the body that grants development permits — used the General Plan to guide its decision-making.

Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. Under the high growth scenario of the General Plan, a need was projected for 2,500 additional tourist accommodation units (hotels, timeshares, resort condominiums and the like) over the 20 year period 2000-2020. That’s 1,000 additional units over eight years. But over the past eight years, the Planning Commission has allowed the construction of more than 4,000 new tourist accommodations.

Resort Permits Reauthorized

kauaibrad — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 01:36:24 -0700

http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/10/29/news/kauai_news/doc4908114...

"Resort permits reauthorized"
By Michael Levine - The Garden Island October 29, 2008

"The county Planning Commission yesterday voted in support of court-mandated amendments to the permits for a pair of planned Waipouli resorts, in the process reauthorizing the projects despite opposition from concerned community members and even some commissioners.

A September ruling by 5th Circuit Judge Kathleen Watanabe struck down three conditions that she deemed had been unconstitutionally imposed by county officials last year on the 20-acre Coconut Beach Resort and 12-acre Coconut Plantation Village.

Those conditions, among 19 that were tacked onto the projects’ applications, essentially required the developers to contribute millions of dollars toward infrastructure improvements such as upgrades to roads and water treatment facilities.

Letters from both Wailua-Kapa‘a Neighborhood Association Board Chair Rayne Regush and the Sierra Club Kaua‘i Group Executive Committee member Judy Dalton argue that even with the amended conditions, the scope of the projects should trigger environmental assessments.

Kauai Letters in Support of JoAnn Yukimura Oct. 29th

kauaibrad — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:22:46 -0700

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/10/29/opinion/letters_to_the_edi...
Letters for Wednesday, October 29, 2008

"Bernard versus JoAnn"

"By all accounts Bernard is a very nice person: warm and friendly. I would love to see him continue the fine job he is doing with our county Parks and Recreation Department. I would love to see him keep improving the system.

Kaua‘i is faced with many pressing issues right now. Two that have some focus for me are energy and solid waste.

As a founding member of Apollo Kaua‘i, with a mission to promote energy efficiency and conservation and the use of appropriate renewable energy resources, JoAnn Yukimura has been involved and searching for solutions these last three years.

She understands the urgency and has worked towards a solar hot water mandate for new construction. She had the vision back in the ‘90s to create the Kaua‘i Bus. I have not seen Bernard involved at all in the conversation or take the time to attend the most recent outstanding two-day energy conference, even when he was officially running for office. JoAnn was there.

On the issue of solid waste, JoAnn has worked diligently alongside Zero Waste Kaua‘i to promote an aggressive recycling effort to make an immediate reduction in our over-flowing landfill and to promote the reuse of the many valuable resources that gets shipped here.

Vote YES on the Charter Amendment to Implement the Kaua’i General Plan

kauaibrad — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:29:56 -0700

"Protect Kaua’i’s environment, jobs, economy, and future."

Vote YES on the Charter Amendment to Implement the Kaua’i
General Plan (the last Charter Amendment on the ballot).

Eight years ago, the Kaua’i County Council adopted the Kaua’i General Plan, a roadmap for future development on Kaua’i. But County government has completely ignored the Plan: over the past 8 years, the Planning Commission has approved tourist units (such as hotels, resort condominiums and timeshare units) at a pace 4-to-6 times the growth rates envisioned in the General Plan.

Ignoring the General Plan is creating enormous impacts on Kaua’i: loss of open space along our shorelines; overloaded infrastructure; traffic and highway congestion; overcrowding at parks and beaches; unsustainable demands for groundwater, wastewater treatment, landfills, energy resources and emergency services; and the loss of Kauai’s character, pace and quality of life.

Compared to steady, well-paced growth, overly-rapid growth hurts the economy. The local construction industry is harmed because much of the new construction is done by workers who are brought in during the building boom; but after the boom busts, there are few jobs left for local workers. Overly-rapid growth also means that Kaua’i needs to import many new service industry workers to meet the demand (increasing the shortage of affordable housing); but overbuilding ultimately leads to low hotel occupancy rates, so during periods of economic stress, tourist industry workers see reduced work hours, pay cuts and job losses.

An 'Economic Tsunami' you say?

kauaibrad — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 18:55:44 -0700

An 'Economic Tsunami'?

Recently politicians (Bernard Carvalho) and policy makers (Alan Greenspan) have used the fearful word 'tsunami' to describe the economy.

This conjured up images in my mind (around Hilo Bay) from when the last real tsunamis also hit Kauai in 1946 and 1957, both significantly affecting Kauai.

If that metaphor is to be used, it should be looked at what happens when a tsunami actually hits. At first, the severity of the situation is not readily apparent as the water recedes and reveals fish for easy catchings. I can certainly imagine an inexperienced politician, quick to react, making similar such policy mistakes in trying to quickly react to a 'economic tsunami.'

Both of the real tsunami's that hit Kauai in the past century came in multiple waves lasting over an extended period of time. The full effects were not known or understood until well into the disaster.

What is happening with the economy now is not known nor understood even by those, like Alan Greenspan recently admitted, who oversaw its creation and escalation under a Republican Administration.

When voting for a local elected official who will need to lead during these times of complex economic events, it is important to choose the candidate who is personally intelligent, experienced, and versatile enough to handle the complex and shifting problems that the island will face in the years ahead.

Wailua’s New Environmental Education Center

andrea — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:59:17 -0700

Start: Oct 25 2008 - 2:00pm

End: Oct 25 2008 - 4:00pm

Timezone: Etc/GMT-10

WAILUA-KAPA‘A NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

OCTOBER MEETING – SATURDAY 25th from 2-4 PM
Kapa‘a Library Meeting Room

Gregory Dunn, Hawaii Nature Center
“Wailua’s New Environmental Education Center”

The W-KNA monthly meeting will feature guest speaker Gregory Dunn discussing the Hawaii Nature Center’s plans to create an environmental education and recreation center at Wailua Reservoir. Awarded the contract by Department of Land & Natural Resources, 10 acres of former agricultural land on the northeast edge of the reservoir will be developed for recreational fresh water fishing, an interpretive center and equipment rental concession for school groups and visitors. The state will also establish a water bird sanctuary in one area of the reservoir. Bring your questions! The business portion of the meeting will provide updates on local issues and allow time to hear new concerns.

Meetings are free and open to the public from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Kapa‘a Library Meeting Room.

For more information, contact Sid Jackson at 821-2837.

Suggesting ‘retreat’ for beach conservation

andrea — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:49:45 -0700

Suggesting ‘retreat’ for beach conservation
http://kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/10/24/news/kauai_news/doc490183211aa...

By Michael Levine - The Garden Island
Published: Friday, October 24, 2008 12:12 AM HST
With rising and warming seas accelerating natural erosion of Hawai‘i’s many beaches and placing coastal infrastructure at risk, experts representing the University of Hawai‘i and the state government said yesterday that improved resource management was needed to maintain the lifeblood of the islands’ already-struggling tourism industry.

In the last of five presentations that comprised an afternoon seminar at the Kaua‘i War Memorial Convention Hall, Samuel Lemmo of the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands said the long-term mitigation options basically came down to fight or flight.

Examples of resisting the forces of nature include proposals to truck “millions of cubic yards” of sand to Ha‘ena, a plan that Lemmo categorized as impractical and unlikely, and the use of revetments to protect near-ocean infrastructure, such as Kaumuali‘i Highway in Kekaha.

The alternative, simply, is retreat.

“Just get away from the beach. ... Just pick up and leave,” Lemmo said by way of advice. “At the end of the day, that’s what needs to happen to protect these areas.”

Earlier, a quartet of University of Hawai‘i coastal geologists explained the factors that are setting up what Lemmo described as a “paradigm shift” on the thinking pertaining to erosion.

JoAnn Yukimura: Proven Leadership for Kaua'i

kauaibrad — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:57:36 -0700

http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2008/10/22/opinion/letters_to_the_edi...

"Proven leadership for Kaua‘i"

"Kaua‘i has always seemed poised to become a truly magnificent place, not for preserving its legendary natural beauty, but by becoming a model for humans living sustainably with the land.

JoAnn Yukimura is a candidate who will move Kaua‘i forward. She has such a profound vision for this place, for making it a model community where we all can live and prosper. She has dedicated her life to this pursuit through the easy and difficult times. Her passion for the island and its people is evident to all who meet her. She is so involved in so many activities it sometimes appears there must be two of her on-island. She does not just “talk story,” she is part of the story. When she brings people together she always makes sure that diametrically opposed views are represented. She helps them realize the important features of each other’s views and then together they create a collaborative response. Most of the times, all are satisfied, but sometimes, like the TVR (transient vacation rental) bill, lingering resentment remains. (She is still working on getting amendments to this bill passed for agricultural lands.)

I find in these cases, people do not realize the effort JoAnn puts in behind the scene to get a compromise that is better than what is initially offered.