Ka`u News Briefs Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015

This morning, Ka`u's County Council member Maile David joined crew members making Ka`alaiki Road safer to use when Hwy 11 is closed. Photo from Office of Maile David

EDMUND C. OLSON TRUST II and Hawai`i Department of Land & Natural Resources are establishing a public access route to the Ka`u Forest Reserve.

The public vehicular access route will soon be established along three miles of road along the lower boundary of the forest reserve that spans over 61,000 acres on the southeastern slopes of Mauna Loa. It will make areas of the reserve more accessible for public use, which includes hunting, recreational opportunities, cultural uses, personal gathering and educational programs and activities.

More access to Ka`u Forest Reserve for hunting
and other activities is on its way. Map from DLNR

To be known as the Olson Forest Access, establishment of this route was accomplished through a collaborative effort by the Ka`u community, local hunters, private landowners, public land managers and natural resource conservation partners.
The route was formally agreed to on June 22, when Olson signed a memorandum of agreement with DLNR Chair Suzanne Case to establish it over lands owned by the Edmund C. Olson Trust II.
DLNR’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife won competitive grants to establish the public access route from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Improvement Program and the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Hunting Heritage Partnership.
Other key partners who will be involved include Hawai`i Department of Agriculture, Kuahiwi Contractors, Three Mountain Alliance Watershed Partnership, The Nature Conservancy; Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and the County of Hawai`i Game Management Advisory Commission.
These partners will install fencing, signage and roadway improvements along the public access route and provide ongoing maintenance in accordance with the MOA.
The public will be able to use the access after DOFAW secures access over the initial segment of the route from DLNR’s Land Division and after project partners complete planned infrastructure improvements.
A permit will not be required for entry; however, DLNR rules may require a permit or license for certain activities within the forest reserve. For more information about the Olson Forest Access, including volunteer opportunities, contact Nohea Ka`awa, at 808-333-7497.

Providing public access is called for in DLNR’s Ka`u Forest Reserve Management Plan (2012) which can be found at http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/forestry/files/2013/02/Kau_FR_Mgnt_Plan_2012.pdf. To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Crew members fill potholes on Ka`alaiki Road.
Photo from Office of Maile David

CREWS ARE REPAIRING KA`ALAIKI ROAD. Residents and visitors use the upper road when Hwy 11 is closed, which happened again this week when flash floods closed the highway between Na`alehu and Pahala.

Ka`u's County Council member Maile David provided money from contingency funds to help with the repairs.

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HAWAI`I COUNTY HAS BEGUN TO EXPEDITE some building permits. Tom Callis, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, reported that new processes and additional staff are cutting wait times. Review of building permits now begins at the Planning Department instead of Public Works, and applications are pre-screened to see which ones can be approved quickly.

Public Works Director Warren Lee, speaking to members of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hawai`i, said that for applications found to be easy, such as some home additions and solar panels, the goal is to complete the review within two days. Two weeks is the goal for intermediate ones. Complex, faulty or incomplete applications could take up to 48 days to review.

Hurricane Ignacio could impact Hawai`i next week.
Map from NOAA

“People shouldn’t be frustrated for the time it takes for different county agencies to talk to each other,” Mayor Billy Kenoi told Callis.

See hawaiitribune-herald.com.

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HURRICANE IGNACIO IS NOW IN THE CENTRAL PACIFIC and 1,150 miles east-southeast of South Point. As of 11 a.m., the eighth tropical cyclone in the Central Pacific for this season is expected to reach Hawai`i Monday evening. According to Central Pacific Hurricane Center, the storm will become a major hurricane with winds higher than 110 miles per hour before weakening. However, it will still have hurricane force winds when in the vicinity of Hawai`i.

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THIRTY METER TELESCOPE is on Hawai`i Supreme Court’s docket today. The case challenges the building permit issued by the state to build the telescope on conservation land. Appellants are Mauna Kea Anaina Hou, Clarence Kukauakahi Ching, Flores-Case `Ohana, Deborah J. Ward, Paul K. Neves, and Kahea: The Hawaiian Environmental Alliance. They filed the case against the state Board of Land and Natural Resourcese, Department Of Land and Natural Resources, Suzanne Case, in her official capacity as chair of the BLNR and Director of DLNR, and University of Hawai`i at Hilo.

Hawai`i Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments in a case contesting
construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope.

The circuit court previously affirmed BLNR’s issuance of the permit. According to court documents, appellants appealed the circuit court’s decision to the Intermediate Court of Appeals, arguing that the trial court was wrong and reversibly erred when it found that BLNR’s approval of a Conservation District Use Permit prior to the contested case hearing did not warrant reversal; the circuit court was wrong and reversibly erred by affirming BLNR’s approval of University of Hawai`i-Hilo’s CDUA and the reliable, probative and substantial evidence failed to support the findings and conclusions that the eight criteria of applicable Hawai`i Administrative Rules were met and such conclusions were wrong; the circuit court was wrong and reversibly erred when it found that the CDUP was subject to a sufficient management plan; and the circuit court was wrong and BLNR failed to meet its legal and constitutional obligations in properly identifying and determining the scope of the valued, cultural, historical and natural resources in the petition area; in determining the impact on these resources by the proposed land use in the conservation district; and in failing to take feasible actions to protect such resources by improperly delegating its duties and obligations.

Before the ICA issued an opinion, appellants applied for transfer of this case to the case to the Supreme Court, and the court accepted.

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George Szigeti

JULY WAS THE STRONGEST MONTH for visitor arrivals on record, bringing 816,345 visitors (+5.6 percent) to the state, who contributed $1.4 billion (+4.0 percent) in spending. This helped to push spending to $9 billion (+3.6 percent) for the first seven months of the year, contributing $958.17 million in state tax revenue, an increase of 3.6 percent percent year-over-year.

“The growth we have been experiencing is keeping us on track for another milestone year for Hawaii's visitor industry,” said George Szigeti, President and CEO of Hawai`i Tourism Authority. “While the growth is not as significant as in previous years, we are still projecting to reach new records in spending and arrivals for 2015.
“While our U.S. West and Oceania markets have been doing particularly well, we remain cognizant of global economic uncertainty as we move forward. A slowing of China’s economy and fluctuations in the domestic and international stock markets, coupled with the strengthening of the U.S. dollar, could impact both our domestic and international visitor arrivals and spending trends. We continue to work with our global market contractors to adjust our marketing efforts in response to these economic factors.”

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Ka`u `Ohana Band members come from throughout the district,
Photo from Lisa Archuletta

KA`U `OHANA BAND PLAYS at Ocean View Swap Meet Saturday, Sept. 12 from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The band is comprised of musicians 14 years of age to over 80 with instruments ranging from flute, clarinet, oboe and trumpet, to rain stick, drums, a siren and a thunder machine.
The `Ohana Band is conducted by Lisa Archuletta, of Ocean View, who conducts the West Hawai`i County Band. Those interested in joining can come to Ocean View Community Center on Fridays from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Holiday season concerts are planned. Call 808-936-3849.

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ALOHA FRIDAY PRESENTS lei making with Kaipo AhChong from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN KA`U is the topic when Ka`u Community Development Plan’s Steering Committee meets Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. The public is invited and welcome to provide testimony.
More information about the Ka`u CDP is available at kaucdp.info.

THE SUMMER JAZZ IN THE FOREST concert series concludes on Saturday with special guest Pauline Wilson joining Jr. Volcano Choy and the VAC Jazz Ensemble.

Wilson is a Grammy Award-winning vocalist whose sultry voice has been heard alongside many of jazz’s greats. In 1979, she received a Grammy Award for her duet, Friends, with Goerge Benton on the In Harmony album.
Wine and Beer is available for attendees to enjoy before and after the concert, and an area has been set aside for dancing,
Two shows are offered, with a matinee at 4:30 p.m. and an evening performance at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the matinee are $15 for VAC members and $20 for non-members. For the evening show, prices increase by $5.
See volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-8222.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

BUSINESS SPACE IS AVAILABLE for rent at the open location where Kama`aina Kuts and Styles by Elise are located in Na`alehu. Call Corrine at 937-1840 for more information.