03-15-2006, 10:48 AM
Yes, Cathy, most, if not all, of the big subdivisions in Puna are zoned AG. I have a vegetable garden, but that is probably not what the original framers of the zoning laws had in mind. When all us folks actually started building and living on these lots in Puna, it must have been a total suprise to the County politicians. Now they are proposing impact fees to compensate the County for their neglect of basic services all these years. It is amazing that those of us in these "substandard subdivisions" (the County officials use that term frequently) pay the same property taxes as folks in Hilo and get so little in return. The only area of poor service which the politicians have even tried to rationalize is water, which they say is self funded and not supported by property tax. Oh yeah, the roads are "private" so they don't have to worry about that. I wonder why nobody has filed a class action suit to demand equal treatment for Puna and other areas??? The impact fees are just a smoke screen to divert attention from the real issue of neglect of a growing population of residents. Housing is already priced beyond the reach of many working local people, so how is this going to help? Geez, do I sound militant, or what?