OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Hawaii County Budget Hearings: DPW, R&D, OSCER, and Planning – April 17, 2026

County Council & Committees — Friday, April 17, 2026
BodyHawaii County, Hawaii
SessionCounty Council & Committees
DateFriday, April 17, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 7:01:21
Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

Welcome back.

0:01

I'm calling this meeting out of recess.

0:04

These are special budget hearings happening all week.

0:07

This is our last day.

0:08

It's Friday.

0:08

Happy Friday to everybody.

0:11

Well, it's RB's one.

0:13

Mr.

0:14

RSL, they are on RD's presentation.

0:18

You can help them backtrack the public works.

0:21

Do you want to do you recess or are we good?

0:30

Joining us this morning is the Department of Public Works.

0:36

Good way to end off and our week here.

0:39

Director Sagawa, when you are ready.

0:42

Please introduce your team, yourself, and then go to your presentation.

0:48

And then after you're done with your presentation, we'll go to questions and we'll run to the budget with you afterwards.

0:54

Okay.

0:54

Thank you for being here this morning.

0:55

Remember to push your green button.

0:57

Green button.

1:00

Good morning, Council members.

1:02

I am Wes Segawa, Director of the Department of Public Works.

1:09

Thank you for giving the Department of Public Works this opportunity to present the department's accomplishments, objectives, highlights, human resource status, budget requests, and initiatives for the upcoming fiscal year 2027.

1:29

As you know, I'm Wes Segawa, the director of the Department of Public Works, and beside me is our business manager, Kelsey Kalua Lewis.

1:39

Good morning.

1:40

Good morning.

1:42

And behind us is our deputy director, Neil Azevedo.

1:48

And next to him is our chiefs, and I'll name them Aaron Spielman, Building Division Chief, Kioni Thompson, Engineering Division Chief, TJ Forsyth, Highway Division Maintenance Maintenance Division Chief, Aaron Takaba Traffic Division, and Lyndon Turner Automotive Division.

2:15

Let's move on to the first slide.

2:17

Next slide.

2:18

DPW's program highlights for fiscal year 2025.

2:25

Does it work?

2:27

Yep.

2:28

Okay.

2:28

2025 included processing and issuing 50% of residential building permit applications within 60 days.

2:39

We completed 66% of building inspection requests within two days after notification.

2:48

We we are completing we completed 26.5 million dollars in federal highway funded construction projects.

2:59

We resurfaced 33.94 road miles island wide, completed 99% of incoming vehicle repair orders, and completed 86% of construction repair orders in-house.

3:22

We completed 100% of all traffic-related preventative maintenance duties, including biannual inspection of signalized intersections, and our annual UPS inspections.

3:39

And finally, the department gave safety training to 205 of our department's employees, and we gave non-safety training to 177 employees.

3:56

Okay.

3:57

We are on slide three.

4:00

Huh?

4:01

Okay.

4:03

All right.

4:03

Well, keeping in our mission, DPW's objectives for the fiscal year 2027 will include enhance customer service, transparency, relationship building, and community engagement.

4:19

We will be cultivating a culture of continuous improvements on residential building permit processing and inspection timelines.

4:30

We'll be advocating efficient efficient delivery and completion of CIP projects for both our building and engineering divisions.

4:40

We'll perform in-house repair and maintenance of all county vehicles and equipment, including welding.

4:51

So within 30 within 30 days, we expect to investigate and process traffic safety complaints and requests from the public.

5:08

Next slide.

5:10

So DPW's accomplishments in fiscal year 2026 so far include being able to issue 87% of residential permit applications within 60 calendar days.

5:27

We launched DPW's countywide automotive work order management system for managing repairs and maintenance of vehicles, equipment, services, and parts.

5:42

We completed three major building projects that included the installation of a temporary air conditioning package system for our public safety complex, reroofing of the Alpuni County building, and temporary cold storage facility for the police department.

6:04

In addition, the DPW completed completed two major engineering projects that included the Lanicaola Street Rehabilitation Project from Kilway Avenue to Manono Street and the Mamalahoa Highway Resurfacing from Kamalani Street to Kalamauca Road.

6:28

We completed construction on Highway 137A 137A from Highway 132 to the Pohoiki Road intersection.

6:41

We installed traffic signals on Waikaloa Road at Paniolo Avenue, and the department installed raised crosswalks, speed tables, flashing crosswalk beacons, and street lights at Kalmana Caves in Hilo.

6:59

We also installed crosswalk beacons, speed tables, and speed hubs at other locations island wide.

7:07

And finally, the department created its own GIS project mapping system for improving collaboration and information sharing within our department.

7:20

Next slide.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Engineering And Infrastructure████████████12%
Personnel Matters████████8%
Economic Development████████8%
Budget Equity Analysis███████7%
Public Engagement██████6%
Energy And Sustainability██████6%
Zoning And Land Use█████5%
Climate Change Adaptation█████5%
Water And Wastewater Management████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Hawaii County Budget Hearings: DPW, R&D, OSCER, and Planning – April 17, 2026

The final day of special budget hearings (Friday, April 17, 2026) featured presentations and council questions for the Department of Public Works (DPW), Research and Development (R&D), the Office of Sustainability, Climate, Equity, and Resilience (OSCER), and the Department of Planning. Discussions covered accomplishments, vacancy challenges, climate resilience, workforce development, and sustainability initiatives.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public testimony was taken during these departmental presentations; the meeting consisted entirely of presentations by department heads followed by council member questions.

Discussion Items

  • DPW (Director Wes Segawa, Deputy Director Neil Azevedo):

    • Presented metrics: 87% of residential permits issued within 60 days, 26.5 million in federal highway projects, 33.94 road miles resurfaced, 205 safety trainings. Noted 71 vacancies across six divisions, with 24 in building, 16 in traffic, and 15 in highway maintenance.
    • Budget request: $31,213,676 general fund (status quo), $62,146,704 highway fund, and beautification fund. Key increases include $400,000 for Coconut Island Bridge and $64,767 for water spigot program.
    • DPW prioritized safety, citing a $800,000 Waikaloa intersection improvement completed in two months.
    • Councilmembers praised DPW's inter-departmental collaboration (e.g., with Parks & Rec) and responsiveness.

  • Research & Development (Director Benson Medina, Deputy Director Dennis Lynn):

    • Budget request: $5,022,391. Highlights: $710,000 awarded to 32 local producers via Malama 'Āina Farmer Program; $478,400 for fentanyl task force; completion of countywide quality-of-life survey; and plans for Project Pālina workforce summit and a Hawaii Island Visitors Emergency System.
    • New initiatives: 500,000 line item for workforce development and event sponsorship; $100,000 for implementing the five-year agrifoods plan; 50,000 for immigration services in West Hawaii.
    • Director Medina emphasized a bottom-up economy and noted that 85% of island businesses have 15 or fewer employees.

  • Office of Sustainability, Climate, Equity, and Resilience (Administrator Laura Acasio):

    • Budget request: $920,549. All seven positions filled (zero vacancies). Accomplishments: distributed over 2,000 native plants via Lāʻau Lōkahi program, collected 712 days of heat data, and completed facilities assessments on 31 priority facilities.
    • Launched a pilot microgrant program for youth (ina-serving groups). Collaborated with DPW on a facilities conditions assessment expected to produce a full report by October 2026.
    • County uses 973 million kilowatts of electricity per year; OSCER is working on energy efficiency and asset management recommendations.

  • Planning (Director Jeff Darrow):

    • Budget: $4.2 million (agency total). 79 positions, 8 vacancies. 2,746 planning intakes processed; 126 complaints investigated. Noted only one planning inspector in Hilo (with that position soon vacant) vs. three in Kona.
    • Priorities: updating the General Plan, implementing Ordinance 2550 (expanding TVR registration to include B&Bs, going live July 1, 2026), and continuing work on the Hilo Community Development Plan (with $100,000 budgeted).
    • Councilmembers flagged low fees (e.g., subdivision application: initial fee plus $25 per lot) and urged a fee review, noting efforts to improve inspector compensation and retention.

Key Outcomes

  • Council voted to forward bills 135 (operating budget) and 136 (capital budget) to the full council for first reading on May 21, 2026. The motion carried with six votes in favor (Councilmembers Inaba, Kierkewicz, and Viegas excused). This allows amendment opportunities at first reading.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome back. I'm calling this meeting out of recess. These are special budget hearings happening all week. This is our last day. It's Friday. Happy Friday to everybody. Well, it's RB's one. Mr. RSL, they are on RD's presentation. You can help them backtrack the public works. Do you want to do you recess or are we good? Joining us this morning is the Department of Public Works. Good way to end off and our week here. Director Sagawa, when you are ready. Please introduce your team, yourself, and then go to your presentation. And then after you're done with your presentation, we'll go to questions and we'll run to the budget with you afterwards. Okay. Thank you for being here this morning. Remember to push your green button. Green button. Good morning, Council members. I am Wes Segawa, Director of the Department of Public Works. Thank you for giving the Department of Public Works this opportunity to present the department's accomplishments, objectives, highlights, human resource status, budget requests, and initiatives for the upcoming fiscal year 2027. As you know, I'm Wes Segawa, the director of the Department of Public Works, and beside me is our business manager, Kelsey Kalua Lewis. Good morning. Good morning. And behind us is our deputy director, Neil Azevedo. And next to him is our chiefs, and I'll name them Aaron Spielman, Building Division Chief, Kioni Thompson, Engineering Division Chief, TJ Forsyth, Highway Division Maintenance Maintenance Division Chief, Aaron Takaba Traffic Division, and Lyndon Turner Automotive Division. Let's move on to the first slide. Next slide. DPW's program highlights for fiscal year 2025. Does it work? Yep. Okay. 2025 included processing and issuing 50% of residential building permit applications within 60 days. We completed 66% of building inspection requests within two days after notification. We we are completing we completed 26.5 million dollars in federal highway funded construction projects. We resurfaced 33.94 road miles island wide, completed 99% of incoming vehicle repair orders, and completed 86% of construction repair orders in-house. We completed 100% of all traffic-related preventative maintenance duties, including biannual inspection of signalized intersections, and our annual UPS inspections. And finally, the department gave safety training to 205 of our department's employees, and we gave non-safety training to 177 employees. Okay. We are on slide three. Huh? Okay. All right. Well, keeping in our mission, DPW's objectives for the fiscal year 2027 will include enhance customer service, transparency, relationship building, and community engagement. We will be cultivating a culture of continuous improvements on residential building permit processing and inspection timelines. We'll be advocating efficient efficient delivery and completion of CIP projects for both our building and engineering divisions. We'll perform in-house repair and maintenance of all county vehicles and equipment, including welding. So within 30 within 30 days, we expect to investigate and process traffic safety complaints and requests from the public.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com