Nā Ala HeleHawaiʻi Island Advisory Council Minutes
Approved: June 16, 2022
Revised:
MEETING DATE: April 20, 2022
PLACE: Remote Zoom Conference Call/Video
Voting Members Present:

Riley Smith – Chairman, Terrence Noda – Vice
Chairman, David Rietow – Secretary, Christopher
Seymour, Roger Kanealii Jr. (Maha), Nani Pogline,
Chuck Flaharty

Voting Members Absent Excused:

Jeffrey Yamauchi, Kawehi Ryder

Voting Members Absent Unexcused:(none)

Invited Guest:(none)

Public:Abraham Antonio, John Howerton, Loke Davis,
Debora Chang, Bill Shontell

Ex-Officio:

Jackson of NAH, Rick Gmirkin of Ala Kahakai
National Historic Trails(none)

Ex-Officio Absent:
I.
II.
III.

Call to Order (6:00 pm) Meeting was run by Riley Smith
REVIEW and APPROVE MINUTES OF February 23, 2022.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY (Three minutes maximum).
1. Deborah Changea. Kaupakuea, Pepeʻekeo (#16 Tracking Tool). Deborah asked the council
to consider sending a letter to the County of Hawaii for information thatwill hopefully get this access jumpstarted. A letter was co-drafted
between Deborah and Nani.
b. Honomū Public Access (#New Tracking Tool). This is in regards to aquitclaim that was approved by BLNR in January 2022. The quitclaim toDivision of Forestry and Wildlife • Department of Land and Natural Resources • 1151 Punchbowl Street, Room 224 • Honolulu, Hawai‘I 96813

IV.

the County of Hawaii a portion of the old Honomū Homestead Road andenable the eventual access to the Hilo Forest Reserve. The quitclaim hasno timeline when this must be done.
c. Mahalo to Riley.
2. Abraham – GMAC supports the Kaupakuea
UNFINISHED BUSINESS/COMMITTEE REPORTS
A. Nā Ala Hele Program update (Jackson)
1. Program Trails updatesa. Kaulana Manu – No update on the bird survey.
b. Pololūi. The HTA funding plus private donations will carry the trail
steward program through August 22. There is an Economic
Development grant that will extend the program an additional
18 month and expand upon it as well. An additional Economic
Development grant application is in the works to extend thisfurther.
i. Nani asked if with Waipiʻo Valley closed has there been
any increase in visitors. Jackson said he did not know
but that it has been averaging between 600-700 visitors
per day.
ii. No update on the land consolidation.
c. Muliwai Trail/Waimanu Campgrounds
i. No update on the Waipiʻo Valley road closure.
ii. Trail and campgrounds remain closed.
iii. Maintenance trip planned for May 9th – 13th.
iv. Carpenters trip planned for May 23rd to complete the toilet
replacement.
d. Puna Trail
i. Increased use of trail to access Hāʻena Beach. Working with thecommunity & Shipman to resolve the issues associated with theincrease. Lots of people riding their ATV on the trail. The trail ishistorical and the ATV damage it.
e. Interpretive Signage – HTA has funded new interpretive signage at alltrails.
f. Kūlanihākoʻi Mountain Bike Park (Chris)i. New ADA slab poured
ii. New interpretive signiii. Herbicide the trails 3 weeks ago
iv. Road into the quarry is improvedg. Upper Waiākea ATV & Dirt Bike Riding Area (Terrence)i. High winds and dry conditions caused about 20 trees to fall andneed to be removed. This impacted about 15 miles of trail.
ii. Ridership continues to be high due to online signup.
iii. There has been an increase of illegal dumping to contend with.
iv. Have not had the opportunity to get up to Mauna Kea to workon the signage.
2. Historic Trails Update

a. Māmalahoa Trial – continue to work with department of highways andcommunity decedent groups in regards to mitigation of the Queen
Kaahumanu Hwy widening that damaged the trail. Contractor has
cleared the trail of vegetation from Kealakehe Parkway almost to Hale
Māka‘i PL.
3. Access updatesa. Kaupakuea Access to Hilo Forest Reserve (Nani). Nani summarized adraft letter that she and Debbie collaborated on directed to the county
planning department. The letter is asking the county direction what are
the hold ups and actions needed to push through developing the publicaccess to the Hilo Forest Reserve. The letter distributed to the council
members is not the latest draft and Nani asked to differ this till the next
meeting.
b. Honomū Access to the Forest Reserve (Nani). Nani summarized a draft
letter that she and Debbie collaborated on directed to Chairperson ofHawaii State Department of Land and Natural Resources. The letter is insupport and requests that the Stella May Swain Trust, “Applicant” berequired to clear the “Access Road Lot 1.148-Acres” as a term andcondition of the above-referenced quitclaim.
i. Riley asked Debbie if the subdivision has been given final
approval. Debbie said the subdivision was approved a long timeago. The letter asks for clarification of the terms of thequitclaim. One of which is the public access.
ii. Riley asked for a motion. Nani motioned that the council send
the letter to the Chairperson of Hawaii State Department of Land
and Natural Resources. Terrence second the motion.
iii. The council went into discussion.
i. Jackson suggested that the letter be sent to the county
since it is a county road and that a subcommittee be
formed to follow up.
ii. Nani asked if it could be sent to both the county andcommittee Chairperson of Hawaii State Department ofLand and Natural Resources. Jackson said yes.
iii. Debbie agreed and clarified that the letter could be sent
to the Chairperson of DLNR and should be directed tothe county Department of Public Works Director. A copy
could be sent to the county Department of planningdepartment.
iv. Abraham who represents Hawaii County GameManagement Advisory Council (GMAC) asked if
someone could come to their next meeting and do apresentation.
v. Riley summarized the changes to the letter and asked
for a vote. Jackson did a rollcall and all were in favored.
Motion passed.
4. Administrative Tasks update. No update
5. Other NAH program updates.

V.

a. currently down to 1 crew member in Waimea and 1 in Hilo.
B. Budget/Legislative Update (Nā Ala Hele staff). No update
C. Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail Update (Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail staff). NoupdateD. Subcommittee Reports:
1. OHV Subcommittee (Terrence Noda, John Howerton).
a. Terrence reported significant increase in ridership on R1, Waimea side,and cinder pit. The parking lot is typically full and the majority is fromKona. This increase is directly related to the counties recent strict
enforcement of no OHV on Mana Road.
b. John Howerton agreed that something needs to be done sooner thanlater.
c. Jackson, Terrence, and John to coordinate a visit to the proposed sites.
E. Information/Update: Tracking Tool (Jeff Yamauchi). Jeff could not attend the meeting.
1. #22 Kohala Kai. Chuck asked if there was any update. Rick reported that there
has been recent activity with National Historic Trails and they have been in touchwith the owner in hopes of creating a conservation easement.
2. #6 & #24 Hōkūli`a Trails and Kuamo`o Battleground. Chuck asked if these are tobecome program trails. Jackson said yes. They are working on paperwork
requirements. Rick added that there is an independent volunteer trail crew
maintaining these trails.
3. Riley said that if anyone has anything to clarify or add they should email it toJackson who will forward it onto Jeff.
F. Ka‘uwehu (aka “Narnia”) (Nani). Nani not interested in pursuing the subject further.
G. E-bikes.
1. Terrence asked Jackson if they intend to incorporate Ebikes into the revised NAH
guidelines. Jackson said yes.
2. Chris agreed and suggested that Class 1 be allowed on trails that currently allow
bikes and Class 2&3 be allowed on OHV trails.
3. The council had an active discussion.
H. Council Member Concerns
1. Terrence commended DOFA for the quality of trail maintenance given thepandemic and budget shortfalls.
2. Nani asked that Waipiʻo Valley closure stay on the agenda and possibly drafting
another letter asking for clarity of future use.
3. Nani mentioned that the hunter’s access behind Volcano Solid Waste Transfer
Station has been block by the county. She asked that this be put on the agenda.
4. Chuck would like to invite county council member Heather Kimble to the next
meeting to speak on the Waipiʻo Valley closure. Riley suggested that Heatherput something down in writing so the council members know in advance what
she will speak of.
5. Terrence suggested that we change the agenda topic from Waipiʻo Valley Roadto Waimanu Valley Access since that is a program trail.
I. Council member trail experience forum
1. Terrence hiked the Tantalus trail on Oahu and shared his experience.
NEW BUSINESS
A. Letter of support for Waimanu caretaker homestead on DHHL lands (Kawehi). Kawehi

VI.

could not attend the meeting. This will be forwarded as an agenda for the next meeting.
B. Resignation of Riley Smith from Na Ala Hele Advisory Council. Riley had previously sentout a letter of resignation to the advisory council.
C. Election of Council Officers.
1. Chair. Riley nominated Terrence as the next council Chair and Chris second thenomination. Riley invited other council members who wished to fill the role of
Chair to step forward. A discussion was had. Jackson did a rollcall vote. All werein favor of Terrence as new Chair.
2. Vice Chair. Terrence invited other council members who wished to fill the role ofVice Chair to step forward. Chuck nominated Nani as Vice Chair and David, Mahasecond the nomination. The council had a discussion. Jackson did a rollcall vote.
All were in favor of Nani as Vice Chair.
D. Set next meeting agenda. Jackson invited members to email him with any agenda items.
E. Set next meeting date. June 16th at 6:00PM in person in Hilo and Zoom.
ADJOURNMENT. Chuck motioned to adjourn and Maha second. Meeting was adjourned at
7:53PM.

ADA
AMP
BIISC
BLNR
CIP
DHHL
DLNR
DOCARE
DOFAW
DOT
GPS
GMA
GMAC
HDOT
KCRA
KRDC
KSBE
NAH
NAHA
NARS
NELHA
NRCS
OCCL
OGR
PONC
QLT
ROD

Americans with Disability Act.
Area Management Plan
Big Island Invasive Species Committee
Board of Land and Natural Resources
Capital Improvement Program
Department of Hawai’ian Home Lands
Department of Land and Natural Resources
Division of Conservation and Resources
Enforcement
Department of Forestry and Wildlife
Department of Transportation
Global Positioning Satellite
Game Management Area
Game Management Advisory Council
Hawaii Department of Transportation
Kohala Coast Resort Association
Keauhou Resort Development Corp
Kamehameha School Bishop Estate
Na Ala HeleNa Ala Hele Advisory (committee)
Natural Area Reserve System
National Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority
Natural Resources Conservation Service
Office of Conservation and Coast Land
Old Government Road
Public Access, Open Space and NaturalResources Preservation Commission
Queen Liliʻuokalani Trust
Rapid Ohia DeathROHVASHPD

Recreational Off Highway Vehicle Association.
State of Hawaiʻi Historic Preservation Division
Na Ala Hele
Hawai’i Island Advisory Council

I.

Public Testimony:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

f.

II.

Those providing testimony at our meetings are guests of our Council. They are not Council members.
They are invited to provide testimony. However, they do not have the right to question us,
participate in our meeting, nor dialogue as we discuss our agenda.
Shall be limited to 3 minutes, for each person.
Written copies of testimony should be provided and included in the Minutes of meeting.
Oral testimony must be provided in person.
Testimony for a person that is not present can be turned into the Secretary for inclusion within theMinutes. It cannot be read at the meetings, as we will not have the opportunity to question theauthor. Electronic submittal of testimony will be allowed if provided to DOFAW 12 calendar days
prior to meeting date. Otherwise, hard copies may be distributed at meeting.
If testimony is being provided on behalf of an organization, it is required that the Board of Directorsof the organization or a majority of the members of the organization must have voted in favor of thetestimony. If this has not occurred, then it must be considered as solely the opinion of the person
providing the testimony.

Agendized presentations to the Council:a.
b.

r5/22/13

Time allowed for presentations is 10 minutes.
It is likely that the Council will ask questions after the presentation is made. This Q&A period may
continue for 10 – 15 minutes, at the discretion of the Chair of the Council.