A small parcel at the northeast corner of the Hoea Road/Akoni Pule Highway intersection is raising big concerns from those worried about a rezoning request for a food truck lot that some fear will cause increased traffic at the gateway to the historic North Kohala village of Ka‘auhuhu.
Dwayne Cravalho, the owner of the triangular 7,544-square-foot lot at 55-497 Hoea Road, wants to change the zoning from agriculture 20-acres to village commercial. After push-back from the community, Cravalho agreed to eliminate outdoor dining tables and chairs and portable toilets from his plan, among other concessions.
“We tried to address the commission’s concerns as well as the concerns of the community,” said planning consultant Daryn Arai on behalf of Cravalho. “He tried to reach out to the community members that had the concerns to arrive at mutual solutions.”
But those compromises, and a favorable recommendation from the Planning Department, weren’t enough Thursday to persuade the Leeward Planning Commission to send a positive recommendation for approval to the County Council.
Chairman Michael Vitousek noted that the rezoning would allow a variety of uses, which he thought was in keeping with the immediate area, where adjacent properties are primarily zoned commercial.
“Once the zoning is changed, that opens it up to other possible uses and the question to me is what the most appropriate zoning for this particular piece of property,” Vitousek said. “Look at surrounding zoning and it is comparable to what is being proposed here.”
The commission, short three members and realizing it was stuck on a 3-1 vote that would have sent a negative recommendation, postponed action for the second time to give the applicant more time to talk with the community and in particular, the North Kohala Community Development Plan Action Committee.
“I thought it was good that you went back and you re-looked at everything and came forward with a new proposal,” said Commissioner Barbara DeFranco, making a motion to approve the application. “I see that you’re trying to go forward with something.”
Community concerns about the continued loss of agriculture land in North Kohala might seem misplaced with such a small lot, said Commissioner Clement Kanuha. If the property were larger, he might share that concern.
“It’s such a small area in food sustainability, it’s such a small piece of the puzzle there,” Kanuha said, adding that the town did need more food options. “It does give the opportunity for a small local operator to sustain itself in the community. … I like to see locals succeed.”
Commissioner Mahina Paishon-Duarte, the apparent lone dissenter, resisted efforts by fellow commissioners to push her to a yes vote.
“I’m not trying to be stubborn about this at all,” Paishon-Duarte said. “I do believe the applicant would benefit from more time for more community outreach. … I fear if this is not addressed it would cause unnecessary conflict and tension within the community.”
