Meeting Summary of the

Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization

CITIZEN ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Wednesday, June 17, 2009, 3:30 p.m.
Mayor’s Conference Room 301, Honolulu Hale
530 South King Street, Honolulu, Hawaii

Members Present:

NB #34 Makakilo-Kapolei-Honokai Hale	Michael Golojuch, Vice Chair
AARP	Mary Protheroe
American Society of Civil Engineers	Tiffany Hamada
Castle & Cooke Homes Hawaii	Dean Minakami
Citizens for a Fair ADA Ride	Ronald Pike
Committee for Balanced Transportation	Joseph Magaldi
Hawaii Bicycling League	Janice Marsters
Hawaii Centers for Independent Living	Mark Ramoser
Hawaii Teamsters and Allied Workers, Local 996	Michael Costa
Hui Kupuna VIP	Louise Horio
Institute of Transportation Engineers	Steven Yoshida
Interagency COORDINATION Councils	CC Curry
Leeward Oahu Transportation Management Association	Shannon Alivado
NB #01 Hawaii Kai	Greg Knudsen
NB #02 Kuliouou-Kalani Iki	Linda Starr
NB #05 Diamond Head-Kapahulu-Saint Louis Heights	Bert Narita
NB #07 Manoa	Tom Heinrich
NB #08 McCully-Moiliili	Ron Lockwood
NB #10 Makiki-Lower Punchbowl-Tantalus	Charles Carole
NB #13 Downtown	Tom Smyth
NB #18 Aliamanu-Salt Lake-Foster Village	Rachel Glanstein
NB #21 Pearl City	Cruz J. Vina, Jr.
NB #22 Waipahu	Robert Kakalia
NB #23 Ewa	Coby M. Lynn
NB #26 Wahiawa	Joseph Francher
NB #29 Kahaluu	Ken LeVasseur
NB #30 Kaneohe	Wendell Lum
North Shore Chamber of Commerce	Gil Riviere
Tax Foundation of Hawaii	Randall Hiu

Members Absent (Reps):

American Planning Association Hawaii	John Valera
American Society of Landscape Architects	Chris Dacus
E Noa Corporation	Tom Dinell
Eye of the Pacific	Twila Lai
Honolulu Community Action Program	Val Tavai
Land Use Research Foundation	David Arakawa, Chair
League of Women Voters	Jacqueline Parnell
NB #03 Waialae-Kahala	Lester Fukuda
NB #09 Waikiki	Robert Finley
NB #12 Nuuanu-Punchbowl	James Marn
NB #14 Liliha-Alewa-Puunui-Kamehameha Heights	Dale White
NB #20 Aiea	Carl Jacobs
NB #25 Mililani-Waipio-Melemanu	Dick Poirier
NB #35 Mililani Mauka-Launani Valley	Pamela Young
Pacific Resource Partnership	Mike Kido
Waikiki Residents Association	Daisy Murai

Guests Present:

Christine Absher	Citizens for a Fair ADA Ride
Laureen Kukino	Citizens for a Fair ADA Ride
John Kane Gollner	City Councilmember Duke Bainum
Nicholas Poulos	Department of Transportation Services
Kathy Sokugawa	Department of Planning and Permitting
Ian Mulcahey	Gensler London
Mari Kim-Johnson	Gensler San Francisco
Ben Gorospe	Hawaii Department of Transportation
Susan Uejo	HDOT
Pat Lee	Honolulu Rail Transit Project
Cliff Slater	HonoluluTraffic.com
Frank Genadio	Makakilo Resident
Robert Whitaker	Manoa Neighborhood Board #7

OahuMPO Staff Present: Gordon Lum, Randolph Sykes, and Marian Yasuda

Vice Chair Michael Golojuch called the meeting to order at 3:35 p.m. with a quorum (22 member organizations) present.

Vice Chair Golojuch explained that due to a scheduling conflict, the first agenda item needed to be deferred until later in the meeting and asked if there were any objections to taking the agenda out of order. Hearing no objections, the item was deferred.

1. New Business

A. “Amendment to the Bylaws of the CAC”

OahuMPO Executive Director Gordon Lum stated that, at its May 28, 2009 meeting, the Policy Committee did not approve a request to reinstate the memberships of the nine CAC organizations whose memberships were revoked at the May 20, 2009 CAC meeting. Director Lum cited two reasons for denying that request: 1) the nine organizations faced impending probation effective July 1, 2009, and 2) if the organizations were reinstated and the CAC faced the same lack of quorum at this meeting, the organizations would need to be removed once again. Because of that, the Policy Committee asked to see a more permanent solution to this issue.

The Policy Committee action taken requested that the CAC Bylaws be amended to reflect more stringent requirements for organizations that have been removed from the CAC to qualify for reinstatement. He noted that one Policy Committee member suggested that member organizations only be permitted two applications for membership and two revocations before being banned from CAC membership.

Tom Smyth identified the three primary recommendations before the CAC for the propsed Bylaws amendment: 1) there would be separate applications for first-time applicants and for reinstatement applicants; 2) the requirements to apply for reinstatement after revocation would be six attendance credits within a twelve-month period and submittal of application for membership within two months after meeting that requirement; and 3) once an organization has not been able to meet the attendance requirements after their second reinstatement, they would no longer be able to apply for CAC membership.

Discussion Highlights:

· In response to a question by Wendell Lum: Mr. Smyth explained that representatives of organizations need not be official members of that organization, but must be an appointed or approved delegate.

· Charles Carole stated his objection to the permanent ban of an organization that had been previously removed twice from the CAC. He said that the banning of citizen organizations from participating is wrong.

· Tom Heinrich felt that the neighborhood boards have unique properties and memberships as opposed to other organizations in the CAC. He supported a higher threshold for reinstatement to the CAC after removal. He suggested a moratorium period following multiple revocations might be considered.

· Janice Marsters stated that the CAC should be an open and collaborative organization that should encourage as much communication as possible. She is concerned about the loss of inclusion.

· Director Lum noted that the CAC is subject to the quorum requirements of the Sunshine Law Part II as a default, because there is no statute defining quorum for the CAC. The Policy Committee has identified their desires for the CAC Bylaws and they are reflected in the proposed amendment. However, if the CAC has concerns regarding certain aspects of the proposed amendment, that perspective should be presented to the Policy Committee for their consideration.

· Ron Pike stated that eliminating organizations would be wrong and punitive.

· Joe Francher stated that denying participation of neighborhood boards would disenfranchise entire communities. He suggested the Policy Committee review each reinstatement on a case-by-case basis.

· Mr. Heinrich questioned whether any of the revoked member organizations would have attended this meeting, as was the concern of the Policy Committee. He advocated not supporting the language in the proposed Bylaws amendment and allowing the Policy Committee to evaluate each organization individually.

Mr. Smyth moved and Cruz Vina, Jr., seconded that the proposed Bylaws amendment be approved by the CAC.

The sections with substantive changes proposed in the Bylaws amendment are:

A. Eligibility Requirements

1. To assure that organizations interested in applying for membership for the first time are committed to attending CAC meetings, such an organization shall earn at least four attendance credits within the twelve months prior to submitting a membership application.

2. Organizations applying for reinstatement following their removal from the CAC shall earn at least six attendance credits within the twelve months prior to submitting a membership reinstatement application.

3. Attendance credits earned during an organization’s active membership shall not be applied toward reinstatement attendance requirements.

C. Membership Requests

1. Each organization seeking initial CAC membership shall submit to OahuMPO an official OahuMPO CAC Initial Membership Application form (provided by the OahuMPO staff). This form shall be accompanied by a cover letter printed on the organization’s official letterhead, signed and dated by its presiding officer or authorized representative.

2. The completed initial application and cover letter must be sent to the OahuMPO office within two months of earning four OahuMPO attendance credits. The organization’s appointment to the CAC shall become effective immediately following the Policy Committee’s approval of said request.

3. Each organization seeking reinstatement as a CAC member shall submit to OahuMPO an official OahuMPO Membership Reinstatement Application form (provided by the OahuMPO staff). This form shall be accompanied by a cover letter printed on the organization’s official letterhead, signed and dated by its presiding officer or authorized representative.

4. The completed Membership Reinstatement Application form and cover letter must be sent to the OahuMPO office within two months of earning six attendance credits. The organizations’ reinstatement to the CAC membership shall become effective immediately following the Policy Committee’s approval of the request.

Discussion:

· Mr. Heinrich offered an amendment to the motion on the table to delete III.C.4 from the bylaws amendment: Effective July 1, 2009, organizations shall not be allowed to seek future reinstatement into the CAC after failing to maintain their membership following their first reinstatement. Bert Narita seconded the amendment.

· Mary Protheroe expressed that amending the bylaws is an important action and felt that the CAC should have time to consider the amendment.

· Mr. Smyth stated that the significant change proposed in the friendly amendment is a higher threshold for organizations seeking reinstatement to the CAC.

· Mr. Heinrich spoke in support of the amended motion which addresses the attendance requirement and does not include a longer period of disqualification.

The amendment to the motion passed with one opposed (Curry).

The motion passed with two opposed (Curry and Marsters).

Vice Chair Golojuch stated that this proposed amendment will go before the Policy Committee for their consideration.

Director Lum stated that he will take the actions of the CAC to the Policy Committee.

1.B. Request to CAC by Aliamanu-Salt Lake-Foster Village Neighborhood Board (NB) #18 for the addition of the Salt Lake Boulevard Widening Project to the Recommendations for the FYs 2011-2014 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).

Vice Chair Golojuch introduced Rachel Glanstein to present a request from the Aliamanu-Salt Lake-Foster Village NB #18.

Ms. Glanstein moved and Linda Starr seconded that the OahuMPO’s CAC approve the addition of the Salt Lake Boulevard Widening Project to the CAC Recommendations on the FYs 2011-2014 TIP and transmit the addendum to the Policy Committee for their consideration.

Ms. Glanstein stated that their NB Chair will also submit this recommendation to the City Council and all appropriate agencies.

Discussion Highlights:

· In response to a question by Mr. Francher: Ms. Glanstein stated that the $30 million funding for this project was included in the FYs 2008-2011 TIP.

· In response to a question by Bert Narita: Ms. Glanstein stated that the 1.5 mile segment for widening goes from Puuloa Road to the shopping center. The City Council has $6 million in their budget for planning and design of this project.

· Director Lum stated that the City Council will be identifying monies for the planning and design of this project. The estimated construction costs of this project could be as high as $60 million. Oahu receives about $12 million in surface transportation funds (STP) annually; so, federal funding for this project might translate to 5 years of the City’s entire yearly STP funding allotment.

· Ms. Glanstein stated that the last construction cost estimate was $30 million and that construction costs are currently declining.

· Director Lum stated that the CAC members do not need to consider the funding for or costs of the project in order to consider it a priority for inclusion into the list of recommended projects for the FYs 2011-2014 TIP. Because cost constraints were not a consideration in the development and approval of the existing CAC project list and actual funding levels were not known, this project should also not be subject to cost constraints. The CAC should determine if this project is a priority for consideration by the City.

The motion passed with one opposed (W. Lum).

2. Approval of the March 18, April 15, and May 20, 2009 Meeting Minutes (This item was taken out of order)

Hearing no corrections, the March 18, 2009 minutes were approved by unanimous consent.

Hearing no corrections, the April 15, 2009 minutes were approved by unanimous consent.

Hearing no corrections, the May 20, 2009 minutes were approved by unanimous consent.

1.C. “Transit-Oriented Development: Opportunities and Challenges”

Vice Chair Golojuch introduced Kathy Sokugawa, Department of Planning and Permitting, who introduced Ian Mulcahey, principal of Gensler London, and Mari Kim-Johnson of Gensler San Francisco Planning and Urban Design.

Mr. Mulcahey spoke about the struggle of moving people efficiently and comfortably without destroying the essence of the place in which we live. With each transit project around the world, there is always concern about new technologies and changes that come with implementation of those technologies. The very people who raise the most opposition to transit may end up being its biggest supporters. Mr. Mulcahey will be discussing these issues and, specifically, transit-oriented development at the City’s Transit Symposium on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at the Neal Blaisdell Center.

Discussion Highlights:

· In response to a question by Mr. Smyth: Mr. Mulcahey stated that Honolulu’s system is likely to be the longest system within the same jurisdiction.

· In response to a question by Ms. Starr: Mr. Mulcahey said that this new system will not be producing the noise that is associated with older steel-on-steel technology. The engineering is improved and very precise, which keeps the noise at a minimum.

· In response to a question by Mr. Francher: Mr. Mulcahey feels that Oahu has sufficient density to support transit-oriented development around the transit stations. Oahu’s challenges will be dealing with existing zoning codes and plans that were produced for communities prior to transit.

· Ms. Sokugawa stated that the stations are being designed with comfort stations included.

· Pat Lee announced a series of community meetings on the transit stations, starting in Waipahu and Kapolei, and continuing eastward as the plans progress.

3. Other Business

There was no other business.

4. OahuMPO Meeting Highlights - Policy Committee & Technical Advisory Committee

Ms. Yasuda announced the following:

· The next meeting of the Policy Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, July 7, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. at the Hawaii State Capitol conference room 309. The agenda for that meeting has not yet been finalized. The agenda is expected to include, at a minimum, Revision #13 to the FYs 2008-2011 TIP and the election of officers for the FY 2010.

· The next meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, July 1, 2009 at 1:00 p.m. in the Department of Transportation 5th floor conference room. At that meeting, it is anticipated that they will:

o Elect officers for FY 2010, and

o Make a recommendation on Revision #13 to the FYs 2008-2011 TIP.

5. Announcements

Mr. Heinrich announced a joint meeting of the McCully-Moiliili, Makiki-Tantalus, and Manoa neighborhood boards on Tuesday, June 23, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Central Union Church Parish Hall to hear the long-range development plan of the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children, and an update on the State Department of Transportation’s potential “H-1 Eastbound, Punahou Street On-Ramp” project.

Ms. Protheroe extended an invitation to the AARP breakfast meeting on July 8, 2009 at the Ala Moana Hotel. The national AARP expert on Complete Streets will be speaking on “Planning Complete Streets for an Aging America”.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:53 p.m.