*** Update! By a unanimous vote, the monster houses will be stopped, but it will take some time before the details are worked out and it becomes law. We are all so happy, and it was Trevor Ozawa who really started the ball rolling because so many people in his district called and begged for help.
Aunty recently got an update about the bill to stop the monster houses. The council might vote and decide on zoning and permitting criteria this Wednesday, December 6 at City Hall. The agenda is a pretty full one, so the Resolution 17-276, CD1 pertaining to the monster houses will probably be discussed a little later, perhaps even after the lunch break. The meeting begins at 10:00 am, and live feed can be accessed on the Honolulu.gov website, under the “event calendar”, click on the “City Council – Live meetings”. This will allow viewers to see the actual meeting in real time and get a better idea of when the resolution 17-276 will actually be heard.
Written testimonies can be submitted online. Oral testimonies (1 minute in length) can be done by either registering online, at the door, or after others have testified about their opinions about monster houses, yea or nay.
Here is some info that Aunty received about the process:
Councilmember asked that I send you a copy of Resolution 17-276, CD1 relating to monster homes. This resolution will be up for adoption at this week’s December 6th Council meeting at Honolulu Hale. We anticipate that this resolution will be adopted by the City Council and will require the Department of Planning and Permitting to start the review process on the bill attached to the resolution.
We hope that you will be able to come down to Honolulu Hale to testify in person, but if you are unable to do so, please submit written testimony. I have provided the link to both the resolution and Council agenda for your reference. The resolution is listed on page 17.
Resolution 17-276, CD1: http://www4.honolulu.gov/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-201637/Replacement%20sheet.pdf
Council Agenda: http://www4.honolulu.gov/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-201875/120617%20Council%20Agenda.pdf
Here are the instructions on how to register to speak and/or submit written testimony;
SPEAKER REGISTRATION
Persons wishing to testify are requested to register by 10 a.m. as follows:
a. On-Line at http://www.honolulu.gov/ccl-testimony-form.html;
b. By faxing to 768-3826 your name, phone number and subject matter;
c. By filling out the registration form in person; or
d. By calling 768-3819 or 768-3814.
Persons who have not registered to testify by 10 a.m. will be given an opportunity to speak on an item following oral testimonies of the registered speakers. Each speaker shall not have anyone else read their statement and is limited to:
a. three-minute presentation on Public Hearing, New Business and Sunshined items;
b. one-minute presentation on all other items.
WRITTEN TESTIMONY
Written testimony may be faxed to 768-3826 or transmitted via the internet at http://www.honolulu.gov/ccl-testimony-form.html for distribution at the meeting.
If submitted, written testimonies, including the testifier’s address, e-mail address and phone number, may be posted by the City Clerk and available to the public on the City’s DocuShare Website.
Thank you for your support.
Let’s show up or send in testimonies to preserve our neighborhoods! The last time Aunty went to testify, she was only 1 of 2 local people – outnumbered 10 to 1 by foreign builders, investors, and their support groups. Let’s stop the monsters BEFORE they take over, okay? Please?
Thanking you in advance,
Aunty
Thanks for doing this, Aunty! Good luck today!
Thanks Jalna, it WILL happen! It will just take a while to figure out all the details, but it WILL happen!
If people claim that they need such big houses for relatives, perhaps you could suggest that if they need big houses with that many bedrooms, then there should be one off-street parking stall for every bedroom, and ask the Council to modify its zoning code to require that the parking be provided, on-site, for each and every bedroom. That would prevent a lot of these monstrosities from being constructed.
So very true. However, the acting director of the Planning and Permitting Department testified that rather than limit the number of bedrooms, limit the size (though the size she recommended was still too big, imo) and not limit by number of wet bars. She went on to say that if they limit the number of wet bars, then you limit the homeowner from putting in laundry rooms.
I wanted to jump up and ask, “how many laundry rooms does a home need?”
I totally agree with you – that there should be one parking per bedroom. Hopefully there are others in the audience or submitting written testimony that also feel that way and write in. Mahalo for your suggestion!
Hi Aunty,
We saw the article about these gargantuan home in the newspaper. I can’t believe they can have so many bedrooms in one house. It’s seriously like a hotel. It’s crazy.
It IS crazy. I liked Councilman Ikaika Anderson’s comment at last month’s meeting saying that if these people build apartment type homes, then they should be doing that in apartment zoned districts, NOT single family home districts.
The problem is, they have been getting away with it, knowing how to submit for permits, and the planning and permit department has been allowing that to happen because they say it is legal and allowable. Meanwhile, the local people are told that they have to stay within certain envelope restrictions and have one parking per bedroom.
The rules HAVE to change. Our neighborhoods are being changed slowly and horribly, like a disease.