05-02-2011, 12:11 PM
quote:
Originally posted by DanielP
If a signalised intersection was constructed and paid for by KTA and the store was located a block from 130 with a shopping center (Village Center) with proper infrastructure (roads,pavement,water,etc.) How would that be a bad thing?
Should all of the residents between Keeau and Pahoa have to drive to one or the other to shop? Try to imagine this when the lots are built-out, or even half built-out.
If KTA was considering building in one of the designated village centers (such as the Orchidland Drive village center area) it wouldn't be a bad thing. But that's not what the developer is planning. He wants to create a new de facto village center on the main highway.
One concern is that if KTA is built at Auli'i and 130, then it and the developed area on Orchidland Drive would serve as bookends that would foster further commercialized development in between -- in effect creating a strip mall extending from Orchidland Drive to Auli'i. This is counter to what is envisioned by the CDP.
Many Orchidland residents are also concerned that we will be responsible for the increased road maintenance costs that will ensue from all the cars traveling into and through Orchidland to get to the KTA, which is a real concern since we are not able to properly maintain our roads as is. My understanding is that Auli'i is eventually envisioned to be a "right in, right out" only road, which means KTA shoppers wishing to head back towards Hilo would circle back behind the store onto 35th (a gravel road), and then down Orchidland. Until a light is installed at Orchidland Drive (in my lifetime? we'll see...), this means an increased backup of cars trying to thread the needle of cross traffic to enter 130. If you've tried to turn left from Orchidland to 130 recently, you know how difficult and dangerous this can be.
As I understand it, it is generally assumed that most/a significant percentage of the customer base for this store would be coming from HPP, so they would be crossing 130 and heading towards Pahoa, making it even more difficult to get out of Orchidland onto 130 (the KTA light would not be much help in this regard, since it it at the far end of Orchidland).
If KTA were to locate in one of the designated development areas (such as within HPP) many of these issues wouldn't be issues. But as the developer noted, this would entail a significant cost increase for construction, since a water main would need to be installed to bring county water into any site off the main highway. That's not something they are interested in at this point.