county council attempting 2 remove farmers' rights

[southwind]

Aloha Friends and Neighbors,

Some of you now know my plight with a control-freak neighbor who is using their political influence through district 6 councilman Guy Enriques to remove land owner rights and civil liberties by attempting to illegally gate and privatize a public road that accesses my property as well as others. This is a blatant example of political favoritism and corruption. There are other issues involved including closing off of deeded Hawaiian grave site and ancient trail access as well as obstructing crime investigation for crop theft and violence.

I understand that some of you are reluctant to get involved for fear of retribution, but if we don't band together to rid of corruption, it will spread because we allow it. It's already in our neighborhood. Will you wait until it comes knocking at your own door? We need to demand the freedom to pursue and attain peace & happiness, our birth right. We need to demand fair representation. My correspondences with Mr. Enriques can be viewed at: http://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/pe...reedom4all Please sign the petition and forward it widely.

Also, Mr. Enriques' resolution for illegal privatization will come before county council for hearing on 8/17, 9am at the Kona Sheraton Keahou (info. below). I need your support. Please bring the masses together to oppose this wrong. Our collective voices must be heard. I know it's a long distance for most folks and I'd like to arrange carpooling. Let me know if you need a ride or if you can offer rides. Many mahalos.

Peace...
Teri

"You have nothing to fear but fear itself" Franklin D. Roosevelt
"But the greatest danger of all would be to do nothing." John F. Kennedy

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Finance Committee meeting at 9 AM. Tuesday, August 17th, 2010. Meeting is at Kona Sheraton Keahou, or can be attended via videoconference in the Hilo Hawai‘i County Building Council Chambers. 3 minutes testimony per person, sign up begins at 8:45

Written testimony may be submitted in advance, if you cannot attend. Written testimony can also be submitted in addition to oral testimony. counciltestimony@co.hawaii.hi.us

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This is my letter to the 9 council people:

Re: Illegal attempt to privatize Old Gov’t Rd. (Kamaoa Rd.) in Ka’u

I was apprised of the resolution to sell a public road on the Committee hearing Tuesday, August 17, and am disappointed by councilman Guy Enriques’ continued efforts to pursue illegal privatization of the Old Gov’t Rd. in Ka’u in favor of a selective party. While our country is facing difficult times and food shortages prevail, instead of supporting small farmers to produce food, Mr. Enriques instead chooses to harass them by withholding water, demanding permits for chicken coops, and closing off road access.

Knowing that this road is currently actively utilized: acts as access to other land-locked properties; is right of way to dedicated ancient grave sites and Hawaiian trails; crime scene of a currently investigated assault/battery case, the aggressor being Mr. Enriques’ political supporter; path to an on going investigation of crop theft of a neighboring farm, possibly by the same Enriques political supporter; accessed by farmers to their home/land/farm; Mr. Enriques’ resolution can be interpreted to be willful with malicious intent to remove civil liberties and to support criminal activities behind the illegally locked gate.

It is the position of the community at large that privatization of the Old Gov’t Rd. merely legitimizes the illegal gating of the road by special interests and in no way serves the greater good of the citizens of Hawaii County. It is the position of this landowner/farmer who utilizes said road to access my abutting farm/home, that an actively used public road cannot be abandoned nor sold. I vehemently oppose its illegal abandonment and sale.

Enclosed, please find partial petition lists to oppose privatization signed by the community, along with deeded rights of access to graves. Phone numbers have been covered to prevent Mr. Enriques from calling these petitioners and harassing/intimidating them, as he had done. If this resolution is on the agenda on 8/17/10, members of the community will be present to give opposing testimonial. As there will be time lost from work, fuel cost, etc…please give an address and contact name where we can submit our expenditure for reimbursement.

I know you will do the right thing and vote with your heart.

[Bob Orts]

Can you post a link to a map that shows the property (road) in question? This way people can evaluate the information themselves.

I also suggest you go easy on the hate rhetoric, its one heck of a turn off and makes the cause look like a bunch of loonies. Stick to facts and only facts, not political or personal commentary.

ETA:
O.K., after reviewing the appropriate legal documents, where does it state that landowners will no longer have access to the road? The first step is the official abandoning of the road by the County. The second is the sale (not an issue in the upcoming vote). From those documents, it's clear this is at the request of multiple landowners. From those same documents, it's clear the road will remain for use by all property owners. From the documents, the primary concern is criminal activity by non landowners against the land owners.

It sounds like the landowners of the adjacent properties are asking for the ability to continue locking access to prevent people from entering the area to commit crimes. It also sounds like the purcahse will be via some form of landowner association. But, the rights of all the landowners to use the road will remain intact.

I don’t think the land sale issue is being portrayed correctly, at least not according to the official legal documents.

[Kapohocat]

I would be surprised if this passed as it would set a precedent for something that the county is trying to not do - i.e gate roads.

Hawaiian Acres and Ainaloa tried bringing back the gates and it did not work. People are always in a dither over Kapoho Beach Lots Rd and the gate.

I would write to the council people and use some of those examples. In fact look what happened to the gate on the private road of Ainaloa Blvd / and the "connector road" to Nine Road in Hi Acres.

The precedent is actually for the opposite to happen, and road remain open, especially if the county already owns them.

Also when writing your letter address it to Planning Commission, attention chair ( i do not remember who it is right now), reference the request # (there should have been a item # on the letter you received - you did receive a letter correct? They probably needed to notify all land owners within a certain # of feet of the subject's boundary line - on something like this probably 500 ft).

Make your letter look professional, clear and concise, no personal attacks. And remain calm at the meeting. Go talk to your neighbors and get their written testimony also - send it in a packet registered mail to the Planning Commission about a week ahead of time so the clerk has time to make copies. Have copies on hand with you at the meeting (1 for each commissioner just in case they did not get copied). Get your ducks in a row ahead of time.

There is also the option of getting an attorney to represent the side that doesnt want the gate - someone like Tom Yeh who deals with commission issues often might be a good choice.

[Seeb]

Southwind - i have been seeing a lot of new I.D.s show up all raging on this council person.
but if what your saying about the road is true it is a takeing, and you mite want to talk to these people http://www.inversecondemnation.com/

[Bob Orts]

The county isn't taking any private property. they are considering selling county owned land classified a remnant roadway to the adjacent landowners.

[Seeb]

If whatever they do blocks someone’s access to their land - it’s a taking

[Seeb]

There are different kinds of taking other than straight eminent domain

[southwind]

Bob,

What appropriate legal documents are you referring to? Are you saying that you condone gating public roads?! To clarify, this is NOT a remnant road, NOT an abandoned road. It is a public road currently utilized as access to my home! Criminal activity was indeed committed...by the aggressive neighbor who assaulted and battered a farmer for using the road to access his leased land. There were multiple accounts of harassment and intimidation by these neighbors who refer to the public road as their "drive way". Everything is documented. If indeed "the rights of all the landowners to use the road will remain intact" I wouldn't be here appealing to the community to ask the county to leave access to my home alone.

[southwind]

Seeb,

Thanks for your referral. I will look into http://www.inversecondemnation.com/

You are correct. This is an illegal taking.

[Bob Orts]

quote:

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Originally posted by Seeb

If whatever they do blocks someone’s access to their land - it’s a taking

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Did you read the documents? It specifically states that the road will be for use and maintained as access by all landowners abutting the road. So where is the taking?

Southwind, out of curiosity, do you know who requested the sale of the land as a private road with access to only the abutting landowners? There has been allegations of who is behind this, but considering that the county's two biggest land owners are abutting the road, and they appear to be the ones complaining the most about illegal trespassing and criminal damages, and since they have been part of this process in other districts of the county, and since they both have funds to purchase and maintain the property according to the guidelines, and they know the legal establishing of that road as a private ROW for all landowners whould stop the fighting, do you know for a fact that they weren't the ones who made the request?