For Immediate Release: August 9, 2012
PUBLIC LAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION TO HOLD PUBLIC
HEARINGS ON PROPOSED NEW ADMINISTRATIVE RULES
HONOLULU — The Public Land Development Corporation (PLDC) will hold statewide public hearings, starting Monday August 20, for adoption of new Hawai‘i Administrative Rules (HAR) for the PLDC. Some provisions may affect small business.
Lloyd Haraguchi, Executive Director for the PLDC, stated: “The upcoming public hearings are an opportunity to inform the public about the PLDC’s mission, objectives and priorities. We welcome public participation and encourage individuals to utilize this opportunity.”
The proposed adoption of a new Chapter 13-301, HAR, Practice and Procedure establishes operating procedures for the PLDC. It contains general provisions relating to the office location and hours, board meetings, and delegation of authority to the Executive Director; and sets forth procedures for proceedings before the board, contested case hearings, declaratory rulings, and petitions for amendment, adoption, or repeal of administrative rules.
Proposed adoption of a new Chapter13-302, HAR, Public Land Development Program sets forth a procedure for the PLDC to initiate, by itself or with qualified persons, or enter into cooperative agreements with qualified persons for the development or financing of projects that make optimal use of public land for the economic, environmental, and social benefit of the people of Hawai‘i.
Proposed adoption of a new Chapter 13-303, HAR, Project Facility Program establishes a procedure for undertaking and financing any project facility as part of a project. Project facilities include improvements, roads and streets, utility and service corridors, utility lines, water and irrigation systems, lighting systems, security systems, sanitary sewerage systems, and other community facilities where applicable.
Act 55 establishes the PLDC as a State development corporation attached to the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to develop public lands placed under the PLDC jurisdiction, including but not limited to existing open shoreline areas, conservation lands, agricultural lands, and small boat harbors, for commercial purposes to generate revenue for the State.
PLDC is a vehicle and process “to make optimal economic, environmental, and social use of public land,” including public recreation and visitor holiday destinations, through an “appropriate[1] and culturally-sensitive[2]” public land development program.
PLDC has a lot of power over our public lands so please get involved. Act 55 and summary are attached.
Public hearings will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the following times and locations:
HILO: Monday, August 20, at Waiakea High School Cafeteria, 155 West Kawili St., Hilo, HI 96720;
KONA: Tuesday, August 21, at Konawaena High School Cafeteria, 81-1043 Konawaena School Rd., Kealakekua, HI 96750;
MAUI: Friday, August 24, at Maui Waena Intermediate School Cafeteria, 795 Onehe‘e St., Kahului, HI 96732;
MOLOKA‘I: Monday, August 27, at Mitchell Pau‘ole Community Center, 90 Ainoa St., Kaunakakai, HI 96748;
O‘AHU: Wednesday, August 29, at Dept. of Land and Natural Resources, Kalanimoku Building, Land Board Conference Room132, 1151 Punchbowl St., Honolulu, HI 96813; and
KAUA‘I: Friday, August 31, at Elsie H. Wilcox Elementary School, 4319 Hardy St., Lihu‘e, HI 96766.
All interested persons are urged to attend the public hearing to present relevant information and individual opinion for PLDC to consider. Persons unable to attend or wishing to present additional comments may e-mail comments to randal.y.ikeda@hawaii.gov or postmark written testimony by Friday, September 14, 2012 to: PLDC, PO Box 2359, Honolulu, HI 96804. .
Copies for public review are available Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at No. 1 Capitol District, 250 S. Hotel St., Room 501, Honolulu, HI 96813. The public may make written request for a mailed copy by indicating mailing address in correspondence sent to the PLDC address in the preceding paragraph.
Any person requiring a special accommodation (i.e. large print materials, sign language interpreters) should make a request in writing to the PLDC address in the preceding paragraph or by calling 587-0393 (V/T). The request will need to be received at least seven days before the hearing date.
ABOUT PLDC: The Public Land Development Corporation is a state entity created by the Legislature in 2011 to develop state lands and generate revenues for the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Through public-private partnerships, the corporation aims to attract private companies as joint partners in development opportunities.
The corporation was formed after the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1555 which was signed into law as Act 55 by Governor Neil Abercrombie. The corporation is governed by a five-member board of directors. Executive director is Lloyd Haraguchi. Three state agencies are represented on the board either by its director or their designee. The agencies include the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; the Department of Budget and Finance; and the Department of Land and Natural Resources. One member is appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, and one member is appointed by the Senate president.
[gview file=”http://mauitomorrow.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/PLDC-Chapter-13-302-proposed-Developmnet-Program.pdf”]
<a href=”http://mauitomorrow.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/PLDC-act-55.pdf”>Read PLDC Act 55</a>
Simon Russell
Aloha Honorable Chair,
My name is Simon Russell, I live in Ha’iku, it is my honor and privilege to testify here on my own behalf tonight.
You know the mission of the DLNR, but maybe not everyone here does, so I’d like to repeat it for all of our benefit: “Enhance, protect, conserve and manage Hawaii’s unique and limited natural, cultural and historic resources held in public trust for current and future generations of visitors and the people of Hawaii nei in partnership with others from the public and private sectors.”
Some concerns I have about PLDC are:
Ninety-seven percent of the land under DLNR’s control are ceded lands that are supposed to be held in trust by the state. This PLDC feels a little like an end run on the Sovereignty movement to cherry pick prime lands before Hawaiians get it back.
This corporation seems like such a bad idea to me I barely know where to start. Whoever your PR person who gave its name should be let go, as nobody I know wants public lands developed. Another red flag to me is with having a politically appointed committee overseeing a barely regulated profit driven enterprise. It is ripe for corruption and exploitation.
The state is supposed to protect the resources, not auction them off. Hawaii existed for millions of years without people here, and it will be here for millions of years after the people are gone. So why the rush to sell it off ? Because the DLNR has budget problems? That’s because state is mismanaging its money. One example of state fiduciary mismanagement is the Department of Education using half its budget for administration of itself. Not having studied DLNR budget to any great extent, I’m not sure how to make the agency save money, but reducing the bureaucracy and returning to the core mission oI think the PLUC needs to be scrutinized and people need to calm down about the “disrepair” of the state parks, and look to other solutions like using volunteers and other methods of creative financing, rather than selling them off.
A quick recap of the reality of Act 55 establishing the PLDC:
“PLDC projects shall be exempt from all statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any government agency relating to land use, zoning, and construction standards for subdivisions, development, and improvement of land; the construction, improvement, and sale of homes thereon; and special improvement district assessments or requirements” and they pay no state tax, so let’s see, the state wants to sell land to raise funds, but then charge business on those lands no tax, resulting for a total win for those companies that buy the land….genius, sounds like I need to start a business for building hotels on state land.
Please people, get some common sense and practice the state motto of Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono, we all know what that means, and the words corporate profits are not in there, so lets be pono and and preserve the ‘aina, not sell it, because humans don’t need money to survive, but we do need the ‘aina, so I say please; Malama ‘aina don’t
Mahalo
Simon Russell