Plans aim to better upper Puna access; Panel proposes next steps for connecting many subdivisions

Members of the ad hoc Committee on Puna Connectivity on Wednesday approved a final planning document that recommends next steps for county actions to improve road access in upper Puna.

The report now will be sent to the County Council for further discussion.

Connectivity between upper Puna’s many subdivisions has been an area of concern for decades, given that each subdivision was constructed separately from one another, with few roads linking the areas. This setup limits access points to Highway 11, a safety issue for residents and emergency vehicles.

“For me, we need proper transportation conduits to get through all of our communities, and that’s what the goal of this connectivity group is,” committee member and County Councilman Daniel Paleka, who represents District 5, said Wednesday.

The group also includes council representatives Greggor Ilagan, Maile David and Dennis “Fresh” Onishi, along with Puna Community Development Plan committee members Marlene Hapai and Patti Pinto. Connectivity also was addressed when the CDP was adopted in 2008.

About 15 people, most members of subdivision community associations or road associations, attended the meeting to weigh in on the draft document.

The document recommends improving two roads — South Lauko Road in Fern Acres and South Oshiro Road in Eden Roc — and connecting them with other streets that in turn link to Highway 11. It also recommends purchasing properties or making easements.

The aim is not a direct corridor through the subdivisions but rather a staggered network of connections, Hapai said.

Ilagan noted there were no recommendations to acquire property via eminent domain.

Several memorandums of understanding between adjacent subdivisions’ community associations will be required to make the connectivity project a reality.

Committee members and residents alike noted that will not be an easy task.

Hannah Hedrick, former member of the Fern Forest Community Association and Puna CDP steering and action committees, said that in many cases there was a disconnect between the subdivision boards and subdivision residents.

“We need to think big and get out of our own communities,” Hedrick said. “We are all one big community.”

“Our community association and the roads association are completely separate,” said Ashley Gagnon of Hawaiian Acres. “You’re going to have to put a lot of effort into communication … some people want the roads to be improved, other people say no. They don’t want anybody going near them.”

“That’s the biggest issue, is getting everyone to agree,” Gagnon said.

“You just described the majority of the associations and the boards,” Ilagan said.

Patrice Macdonald, chairwoman of the Hawaiian Acres connectivity committee, said the ad hoc committee needed to be better about communicating its plans with the associations. She said some proposed connections would not be allowed under Hawaiian Acres’ charter, which does not allow for a central corridor.

Funding for the connectivity project has not yet been fully addressed, although it would come from county resources. Paleka suggested tapping into state and federal resources, as federal funding can help pay for infrastructure such as bridges.

Some associations have already begun road improvements using dues paid by residents.

Earlier this year, Orchidland Estates built up and paved a section of 40th Avenue so it would be not be flooded during the rainy season. The cost was more than $180,000, said Orchidland Community Association secretary Frederic Wirick, who is also secretary of the subdivision’s road maintenance committee.

An additional 650 feet of paving would create a connection between Pohaku Drive and 40th Avenue that could be used for emergency access, he said, but the association ran out of funding.

“We’ve moved forward with what we could do there,” Wirick said.

Email Ivy Ashe at iashe@hawaiitribune-herald.com.