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Neighborhood boards seek greater notice for small SMA projects; planning department warns of added delay
Summary
A proposed ordinance to require neighborhood-board notice for minor Special Management Area filings drew split reaction: neighborhood leaders said the extra notice would stop piecemeal projects that avoid scrutiny, while the planning department warned it would more than double processing timelines for small applicants.
A proposed change to the Special Management Area (SMA) process drew debate at the Honolulu City Council over how much public notice and neighborhood-board review should be required for projects currently classified as “minor” SMA applications.
Raquel Achiu, vice chair of the North Shore Neighborhood Board, testified that developers sometimes subdivide or phase projects to avoid SMA major review, using cost/value thresholds to keep individual phases below the major threshold. She told the council that the result can be minimal disclosure to communities and limited review of environmental, cultural and shoreline impacts.
The pr…
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