NORTH KOHALA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLAN ADVISORY GROUP
DATE: Monday, July 6th, 2026, 4:30 pm
PLACE: Kohala Senior Center (behind the statue)
AGENDA
CALL TO ORDER – Please put all cell phones on silent mode.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
PUBLIC COMMENTs ON AGENDA ITEMS: Members of the public are welcome and are invited to speak to any items on the agenda. Public comments and input are welcome at designated periods at the beginning and end of each meeting. People may, however, speak during AG discussions, if the situation warrants. Please raise a hand to be recognized. Comments should be limited to three (3) minutes in length per agenda item, subject to the discretion of the chair. We typically have a lot of information to get through, so please respect everyone’s time. The chair may table lengthy discussions to be continued after the meeting officially closes. Recommendations for agenda additions for the next meeting should be made during the input session at the meeting end.
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING.
SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
Affordable Housing
Kohala Community Land Trust: KCLT is a non-profit governed by the community that is working to keep the housing stock in Kohala out of the market economy through deed restrictions and other mechanisms. We encourage all Kohala residents over 18 to join the KCLT membership base. Since the governance structure is a classic membership-governed organization, the voting members must be residents of Kohala, and 6 of the 9-member board,must be residents. Beth Robinson will serve as Interim Executive Director for the KCLT to plan and budget for the upcoming year. Her term will likely conclude in October.
There will be 3 upcoming workshops for existing homeowners and 1 for buyer readiness for prospective buyers.
The next meeting will be July 8th, 9 am at Pomaika’i Café.
Agriculture
Feedback for the regional food summit @ the Hub Barn. The summit’s purpose: to share the County’s draft Five-Year Agri-Food and Community Food Security Plan, gather community feedback, and hear from local practitioners and producers. This is the first of six regional summits being held island-wide, culminating in an Island-Wide Food Summit on August 14–15 (Honokaa and Waimea).
Five-year agri-food system plan
The County is finalizing its first agri-food and community food security plan since 2010, developed in partnership with the Hamakua Institute and The Food Basket. The plan covers all nine districts of Hawaiʻi Island and is grounded in seven guiding principles: biocultural stewardship, cultural heritage and sense of place, producer and practitioner-centered solutions, equity and inclusion, circular and regenerative economy, resilience and adaptation, and community food security.
Core components include 9 district snapshots, 46 issue briefs across key topic areas (products, markets, inputs, infrastructure, and food security), system-level themes to guide collective advocacy, approximately 250 community-led actions being finalized, and a resource/service provider directory. Implementation is intended to be community-led with county support, overseen by a Mayor’s Agri-Food System Plan Task Force currently being developed.
Community members can provide feedback by visiting the Plan Index via this link:
https://canva.link/planindex, read individual issue briefs, and submitt responses via the linked Google Form. The plan is expected to be ready for the Island-Wide Food Summit on August 14–15 (Honokāʻa and Waimea).
Kohala Food Hub — progress update. Established in 2019 as a HIP Ag project, the Kohala Food Hub became an autonomous 501(c)(3) in 2024 and is based in Hāwī. Key 2025 milestones: pounds of local food distributed more than doubled year over year (consistent trajectory since launch), $734,000 paid directly to producers, 750+ families received food at no cost, 125% revenue growth, 160% increase in SNAP spending, and 100+ volunteers engaged. The Hub sources from approximately 200 producers island-wide and offers 500+ local products through its weekly online market. It was the first food hub in the state to accept SNAP EBT online, with Double Up Food Bucks discounts (50% off local produce) available to EBT customers across 10 North Hawaiʻi pickup locations. Current food access programs include Farm to Family, Kaukau for Keiki, Umeke Pono, and Veggie RX, with weekly volunteer opportunities.
Next meeting July 30th, 5 pm at the Resource Center office.
Community Access (see maps on last page for locations)
Pololu Lookout: Legislature has appropriated a grant to Na Ala Hele for Pololu trail restoration.
Next meeting Aug 6th, 4:30pm Senior Center.
Growth Management
Old Coast Guard Road. Toni is trying to meet with David Tarnas and Tim Richards to get help with the State to repair and County to steward. Ho’ola has received a $325k grant-in-aid to design and improve the old Coast Guard facility. Toni and Amoo Ching are working on easement access from the red cinder road to access the building.
Pololu Valley lookout. The legislature has budgeted a $1 million CIP to start improvements.
Hawinani. Discussion re: Kamuela Plunkett Abstract and how great it would be to have this replicated in North Kohala. Toni mentioned students who mentored under Fred Cachola who might want to take this up on some scale. How to identify them?
New issues:
General Plan (original, not the abbreviated 79 page one) has advanced from committee to the full Council.
Discussion with Karl about building permits/shed permits for Ag land
Container open house at the Aloha / HCFCU intersection . Developer is Mike Kier, cost $60-90k. They are built from used refrigeration containers.
Next meeting is July 8th, 5pm, Senior Center.
Culture & History Advisory Group (KCHAG).
Did not meet in June. Working on reorganization.
Next meeting will probably be July 13th.
Health and Wellness/WRK
Did not meet in June.
Next meeting July 18th, 4:00pm. Senior Center.
Utilities
Regular meeting.
Microgrid Project- The date for the tour of the HECO Operations Center remains in flux – stay tuned for further updates.
Beers Road- Toni reported that it appears that the Department of Transportation will resurface Beers Road even though the new water line has not been installed.
WaiHome- Barbara reported that WaiHome will make a site visit to her property on June 25.
Special meeting with Richard Horn (windmill site owner)
HELCO is apparently looking again at running a redundant line for Kohala power back-up. It is supposed to parallel the highway west toward Opolu and then up and parallel to the present line along the Mountain Road (but at a distance preventing them both from going down by a falling tree). Might this be a better alternative than the battery backup system? Power interruptions as they upgrade the present line may well last 8 hours each day!
Why did the state pause for so long (or just stop) on the Upolu ag. well project? Apparently 6” pipe is piled out there but no installation on the horizon.
Richard also mentioned a new project of his: a macnut shell gasification plant in Kawaihae that is both scalable and dispatchable (it can be downsized to fit the macnut supply and can be dialed up or down to meet demand…unlike solar or wind). Solves the macnut waste problem and supplies power.
West Hawaii Today has an article on the dropping of federal and state solar power tax credits that encourage homeowners to install solar. The solar industry is more than a little worried.
Next meeting is July 15th, 3:30pm Senior Center.
Parks, Roads, Erosion Control and View-planes (PREV)
Did not meet in June.
The high- and elementary school drop-off and pick-up congestion proposal has been postponed until the new HS principal arrives and is made aware of the issue.
Next meeting is July 15th, 5:00pm Senior Center.
NEW BUSINESS:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Back to School Bash July 25 10am – 2pm @ the KHS Football field
- Info session at the NKCRC office with a representative of Pili Nā Moku, the University of Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College . Tentatively – on July 25th from 9:30 am – 10:30 am. About a funding opportunity to support community-led efforts that care for ʻāina, strengthen cultural and ecological stewardship, and build resilient communities across Hawaiʻi. Focused on five moku and hui moku: Kona, Kauaʻi; Waiʻanae, Oʻahu; Molokaʻi; Central Maui; and Kohala, Hawaiʻi Island. Up to $1.4 million is available per moku/hui moku to support projects that reflect community-identified priorities and advance long-term resilience.
- Rep. Hustace, Senator Richards and Representative Tarnas will be holding a community meeting at the Intergenerational Center to provide legislative updates. Monday, July 20 beginning at 5:30pm
- Kohala Resilience Fair on Saturday, August 29. This is in partnership with Hawaiian Electric, Civil Defense, and the Kohala Resilience Hub.
Report From Our Council Representative, James Hustace.
- Bill 169 – Committee (7/7); refines PONC acquisition timeline and reassessment
- Bill 170 – Committee (7/7); defines data centers and distinguishes from data processing centers
- Bill 157 – Council (7/8); establishes a disaster recovery program.
- Bill 163 – Council (7/8); establishes an Aina Kūpuna real property tax program.
- Bill 164 – Council (7/8); proposes Council confirmation for Housing administrator.
- Bill 165 – Council (7/8); initiates charter amendment regarding PONC maintenance fund.
- Bill 152 – Council (7/8); initiates charter amendment regarding County Auditor staffing authority.
PUBLIC INPUT AND AGENDA SUGGESTIONS FOR THE NEXT MEETING
The Next Advisory Group Meeting will be held on Monday, August 3rd,4:30pm, Senior Center.
Adjournment
NOTICE: The purpose of the public hearings is to afford all interested persons a reasonable opportunity to be heard on the above items. They may also bring up another item for consideration by the AG. A person wishing to submit written testimony may email winterj@whitman.edu.
John Winter, Chair NORTH KOHALA CDP ADVISORY GROUP
