From now on, developers who
want to build a subdivision or condominiums will first have to prove to Maui County
they have a long-term source of water.
Council OKs "show me the water" bill
reprinted courtesy Maui News 12/10/07
WAILUKU – From now on, developers who want to build a subdivision or condominiums will first have to prove to Maui County they have a long-term source of water.
Council Member Michelle Anderson’s “show me the water” bill passed the Maui County Council unanimously Friday afternoon, with two members, Michael Victorino and Riki Hokama, excused.
The bill will take effect when approved by Mayor Charmaine Tavares. With water director Jeff Eng supporting the bill, she is expected to sign it.
“We have to face the reality of what’s in front of us,” Anderson said. “We need to conserve water and be protective of our current users.”
Developers, including A&B Properties Inc. and KSD Hawaii, have been outspoken critics of the ordinance. Dennis Boehlje of Betsill Brothers Construction called it a de facto moratorium on housing.
“We are left to conclude that projects which we have worked on for years, and upon which we have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars planning and engineering, may not come to fruition,” Boehlje wrote in council testimony.
Anderson thanked her colleagues Friday, saying it’s been a three-year fight to get the measure passed.
“We have told people repeatedly that we are in a crisis, and this provides us with direction and way of being more accountable,” Council Member Danny Mateo said Friday.
The ordinance says that an applicant for a land-use approval must identify a long-term supply of water that must be supported with substantial evidence, including a water quality assessment verified by the county water director.
A subdivision is defined as lands divided into two or more lots intended for sale and construction.
Former Council Member Dain Kane introduced the original bill, which was modeled after a similar law on the books in California. Proponents have noted that the law has not slowed down development in California.
Maui’s language has been tweaked since it was last before the council’s Water Resources Committee. It no longer requires the 20-year guarantee of a water supply, which Anderson called confusing, or an exemption for affordable housing.
The ordinance does exempt family subdivisions, building permits that do not require additional water services and resubdivisions that do not provide new lots.
Water director Eng called the ordinance a wonderful tool and significant step toward getting Maui’s water shortfall under control.
Despite all the recent rain, Maui remains in a drought and mandatory 10 percent water restrictions are still in place Upcountry.
Eng and Anderson said the ordinance closes a long-standing loophole for developers that holds the county responsible for providing water service.
A developer could go through the entire process of planning a housing subdivision, sell the lots and build all the infrastructure without guaranteeing home buyers that they would have a water meter from the county, Anderson said. To avoid lawsuits, that would force the county into approving water meters it can’t really afford to support, she said.
David Goode, president of KSD Hawaii, took issue with the provision that requires developers to get a reservation for a county water meter before they can submit their final plats. He called it unrealistic since the reservations are good for only up to three years and it takes two years just to get construction plans reviewed by the county.
Developers also have complained that the ordinance will halt some much-needed new construction.
“We do not have a moratorium, but since 2003 we’ve been warning them that meters may not be available in the future,” Eng said. “It (the ordinance) makes a lot of sense to me. We should have done this a long time ago.”
Anderson called the complaints “bogus” and disproved during the long review process.
Eng pointed out that the law allows developers to create their own water source as long as it is sustainable, complies with Department of Health standards and meets county engineering standards.
Chris Hamilton can be
reached at chamilton@mauinews.com
reprinted courtesy Maui News 12/10/07
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