Scope of land development agency draws concern

A state official says an agency intended to allow development of public lands won’t have "land-grabbing power," opposed by environmentalists and Hawaiian rights groups.

"It’s subject to whatever the land-holding department gives them," Morris Atta, special projects coordinator for the Department of Land and Natural Resources, said after an informational briefing held Thursday at the state Capitol. Atta is drafting rules for the newly created Public Land Development Corp.

The quasi-public agency was created to develop and generate revenue from public land controlled by the Department of Land and Natural Resources, and would allow homes, hotels, harbor facilities, office buildings and other commercial ventures to be pursued in partnership with private developers.

But DLNR could take control of public lands held by the Department of Education, Hawaii Community Development Authority, Agribusiness Development Corp., University of Hawaii and Department of Transportation and lands belonging to all counties.

Atta helped brief a joint meeting Thursday of the Senate Committee on Water, Land and Housing; the House Committee on Water, Land and Ocean Resources; and the public. He told the committees that the corporation presents a unique challenge "because of the broad directive of this entity" versus specific missions of various development corporations created in the past.

The corporation has come under substantial public criticism from various sectors, including environmentalists and Hawaiian rights groups fearing the corporation will seek public-private investments for development of conservation and ceded lands, which fall under the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Labor unions have expressed safety concerns because the corporation is exempt from state and local construction standards.

The law creating the Public Land Development Corp. says the corporation, with some exception, is "exempt from all statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any government agency relating to special improvement district assessments or requirements, land use, zoning, construction standards for subdivisions, development and improvement of land; and the construction, improvement and sales of homes thereon; provided that the land planning activities of the corporation shall be coordinated with the county planning departments and the county land use plans, policies and ordinances."

The corporation, created by Senate Bill 1555, allows it to identify public lands suitable for redevelopment, administer marketing analysis to determine revenue-generating programs, enter into public-private agreements to redevelop the lands and provide leadership for the redevelopment, financing, improvement or enhancement of redevelopment opportunities.

The governor signed the bill into law in May, and it is known as Act 55.

Atta, who has monitored the mounting public criticism, said there are false expectations and a lot of misinformation concerning the corporation. He said there are sufficient controls in place and enough community activists to prevent the corporation from "steamroll(ing) the opposition" on projects with serious community concerns.

"If you look at the track record of all these specialized development agencies, with few exceptions, none of them have been really successful," he said.

Developer Stanford Carr said he was excited about the possibilities the new corporation opens up for development, and foresees being able to develop properties within the urban core.

State Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, who heads the Senate Committee on Water, Land and Housing, questioned Atta on whether the corporation would eliminate the need for other development corporations. Atta said unless a thorough analysis is done, he could not say.

The Public Land Development Corp. board will evaluate the applications of 18 qualified candidates for executive director and narrow it down to three to five by Tuesday, its next meeting.

The attorney general’s office will give an opinion that the board will not be allowed to make public the 18 candidates’ names, said Guy Kaulukukui, corporation board member and first deputy director of DLNR.

State Sen. Cynthia Thielen questioned whether it was the same attorney general’s opinion that made potential judges’ names closed to the public, and said she was uncomfortable with it since it involves the public and public lands.

Dela Cruz said he was disappointed that the corporation’s board has only met once in August. The deadline for the applications for the executive director was Sept. 6, and "it’s now Oct. 6. Nothing has been done for one whole month. … I just want you to figure out how to fix it."