(BIVN) – Commissioners last week delayed making any recommendations on a developer request to alter the conditions for the planned Wailani Development in Hilo.

Members of the surrounding community spoke in opposition to the large, Komahana Street development at a February 7 Windward Planning Commission hearing.

The 171-acre Wailani Project District – located on the mauka side of Komohana near Waianuenue Avenue – was approved in 2010. At the time, the project was going to consist of a mixed-use community to include a medical office campus, commercial space, a business park, up to 333 senior housing units, up to 90 multiple-family residential units, up to 95 single-family residential lots, approximately 6.9 acres of active recreational open space, and approximately 19 acres of passive open space including walking and bicycling paths and the Puʻu Honu cinder cone.

“Wailani Development LLC is basically Dr. Peter Matsuura, his wife and the rest of his family,” said planning consultant Sidney Fuke. “Basically, it was his vision.”

“The thought was, he’d like to have like some sort of a medical kind of activity, commercial activity,” Fuke said. “His family lives in that quadrant of Hilo – where i live as well – commercial activities are kinda underserved. Most of the major commercial areas are situated downtown.”

Nearby residents say they weren’t given enough time to look over the materials, or the planning director recommendations, before the hearing.

Among the requested condition changes: Reduce the maximum commercial Area from 480,000 to 420,000 square feet, modify the master plan amendment process, delete the underground utility requirement, modify the construction / completion requirement for the Ponahawai Street Extension, modify wastewater requirements, modify the curb, gutter, and sidewalk requirement, and waive the Fair Share requirement, among others.

One of those proposed condition changes – to increase the maximum residential units from 518 to 700 – did not sit well with commissioner Donald Ikeda. “I have a hard time accepting the change,” Ikeda said, concerned over the density increase.

“To compensate for the additional residential density,” Fuke said, “we’re going to reduce the commercial area, as well.”

A handful of residents spoke against the development. “I have opposed this project area since it first began as University Terrace in 2004,” testified Cheryl Reis, who lives nearby, “and have the same repeated concerns for the Wailani project to a much greater degree. Area residents on upper Punahele Street previously signed a petition also opposing the University Terrace project.”

“Wailani project wants to build 700 residential units, close to the 750 requested in the original University Terrace proposal,” Reis said. “At two vehicles per household, or roughly 1,400 vehicle round trips a day, adding 200 miscellaneous trips for visitors, you could have 1,700 vehicle trips for residential areas only. Commercial will add that to that total, depending on the business.”

Other testifiers had concerns about access for emergency vehicles, the above ground utilities and lack of sidewalks, and storm runoff.

“November 21, 2000, a great wall of water washed over this property,” said Claudia Rohr, asking for more environmental review. “This is a sensitive area of high concern of flood water. If you guys make a mistake and approve development that goes against the principals of the FEMA program, our county can loose its FEMA program.”

“The project district allows us to take a look at a project from a much more holistic point of view,” reasoned planning director Michael Yee. “From a larger planning point of view, you want to create density in areas near town. We’re trying to avert the flow of density into sprawl into other parts of the island. So, here’s an opportunity to actually create density in Hilo, which there’s not a ton of opportunities left to do that. We can create a walkable community here.”