Kaua‘i County officials are planning to hire an open space/public access specialist as part of a county plan to acquire lands to preserve public access for future generations of residents and visitors. The person to be hired will work with
Kaua‘i County officials are planning to hire an open space/public access specialist as part of a county plan to acquire lands to preserve public access for future generations of residents and visitors.
The person to be hired will work with a new commission established to help develop a process with input from the community to identify sites and prioritize sites for acquisition and protection.
The process would be applied to public access, open space, historic or culturally important land, significant habitats and watershed lands.
The open space/public access specialist will be hired on a one-year contract, and will be an exempt/non-civil service employee.
County officials sought an individual who had a combination of education and experience that was equivalent to a college degree in planning, resource management and conservation.
Candidates also had to have worked in a related field and had four years of research, analytical and community planning experience.
The county set a Monday, April 19 deadline for receiving job applications. Representatives from the county’s Department of Personnel Services were not immediately available to comment on how many people applied for the job.
The position was approved by members of the Kaua‘i County Council in January of this year. The salary for the job ranges between $42,180 and $51,114, and will be covered by money from the county general fund for now.
The hiring of the specialist is tied to legislation that was approved by members of the Kaua‘i County Council and signed into law by Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste on Dec. 15, 2003.
The legislation established a county fund, and called for administering it to protect public access, open space and natural resources on Kaua‘i. It uses a percentage of real property taxes set aside each year for funding land acquisition.
Conservation groups and their supporters sought adoption of the legislation as a way to protect access for future generations of Kauaians.
Intensified interest in protecting public access came about after new landowners closed access to beaches and mountains, citing a need for privacy and a protection against liability.
State lessees also have put up fencing around new cattle pastures or farms on state lands on Kaua‘i.
The land that has been acquired by private property owners or is now leased by the state to farmers was once owned or leased by sugar plantations.
Related to the protection of public access, the nine-member commission created through legislation by the council is to develop a yearly list of priority projects.
The projects will very likely involve acquisition of land or easements over private properties.
Kaua‘i County Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura offered detailed plans before the county fund was established by law. Yukimura enlisted the aid of public-land-trust interests, and called for listing and prioritizing of projects and public hearings.
The county fund that would allow for identification and funding of projects was established through a county charter amendment that was approved by voters in 2002.
The measure annually earmarks 1/2 of 1 percent of the certified property-tax revenues for the county fund.
So far, $237,650 has been collected in the fund. The amount of additional funds for the county fund should be known by Saturday, May 1, when the real property tax revenues for the fiscal year 2004-2005 will be certified by the county.
Staff Writer Lester Chang may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or lchang@pulitzer.net.
