URGENT!!! MAUI BEACH ACTIVITIES NEED YOUR SUPPORT...AGAIN!

[hstwindsurfing]

Important vote this Thursday September 3, 2009 at Parks Committee hearing...
Our Maui County Parks Director has introduced a bill that will cause beach activity permits to expire immediately with any transfer of ownership, other than to a family member. You might ask why... well, we are not sure. It seems to us that transferability encourages solid community relations, proper resource management and investment. It gives reason to foster career instructors, build a good reputation and continually improve our service and instructional techniques. A government that does not allow the transfer of permits actually discourages all of the aforementioned.
While I never built HST with the sole intent to sell it, nor is it for sale at this time, I'd like to think that someday it will continue in the hands of a new owner. This bill affects ALL beach activities on Maui including windsurfing, surfing, kitesurfing, kayaking, snorkeling and scuba. Please ask the Maui council members to kill this ill-advised proposal. To make it easy I'll supply cut and paste addresses and text, but of course your own words would be best. Thank you for all of your support over the 24 years that we've been sharing the sports we love, Alan and Patti Cadiz
P.S. Please copy us at: patti@hstwindsurfing.com Thanks!!!


Please address your comments to all 5 of the voting members of the Maui Parks committee:
jo_anne.johnson@mauicounty.us
gladys.baisa@mauicounty.us
michael.molina@mauicounty.us
joseph.pontanilla@mauicounty.us
Sol.Kahoohalahala@mauicounty.us

RE: EAR-20 COMMERCIAL OCEAN RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY - defining non-transferability of permits

I oppose EAR-20 on the grounds that non-transferability of permits
*discourages proper care for the beach and ocean environment;
*discourages respectful consideration of other beach goers;
*compromises attention to safety;
*discourages investment in quality equipment;
*invites part-time, short-term employment;
and generally will degrade the level of service of beach activity service providers for residents and visitors alike.
Please vote "NO" on this ill advised proposal.
Thank you for your careful consideration.

[hstwindsurfing]

Here's a link to the agenda item announcement:
http://www.co.maui.hi.us/archives/190/090903.pdf

If you could attend to testify or even just fill a seat to show support, we would be very grateful.

Mahalo,
Alan and Patti Cadiz

[hstwindsurfing]

Here's the transmittal of the proposed ordinance:
July 28, 2009
CHARMAINE TAVARES, Mayor
700 Hali'a Nakoa Street Unit 2, Wailuku, Hawaii 96793
TAMARA HORCAJO
Director
ZACHARY Z. HELM
Deputy Director
(808) 270-7230
Fax (808) 270-7934

Honorable Charmaine Tavares
Mayor, County of Maui
200 South High Street
Wailuku, Hawaii 96793
For Transmittal to:
Honorable Danny A. Mateo, Chair
and Members of Maui County Council
200 South High Street
Wailuku, Hawaii 96793
Dear Chair Mateo and Members:
SUBJECT: PROPOSED BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE AMENDING
CHAPTER 13.04, MAUl COUNTY CODE, PERTAINING TO
COMMERCIAL OCEAN RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY
I am transmitting a proposed bill entitled, "A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE
AMENDING CHAPTER 13.04, MAUl COUNTY CODE, PERTAINING TO
COMMERCIAL OCEAN RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY."
The purpose of the proposed bill is to amencl Chapter 13.04, Maui County
Code (MCC), to define "transferability" as. it pertains to Commercial Ocean
Recreational Activity (CORA) permits.
The Department of Parks and Recreation is working towards its mission of
providing safe and satisfying recreational opportunities. The Department has been working continuously to finalize rules and guidelines pertaining to CORA permits. To that end, the term "transferability" is in need of clarification, and this is one of the last steps in the process. Therefore, may I respectfully request that this matter be referred to the appropriate Council committee for review, discussion, and appropriate action.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. Should you have any
questions, please contact me at Ext. 7626.
- TAMARA HORCAJO
Director of Parks & Recreation
xc: Sheri Morrison, Managing Director
Jeffrey Ueoka, Corporation Counsel

ORDINANCE NO.
BILL NO. (2009)

A BILL FOR AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 13.04, MAUl COUNTY
CODE, PERTAINING TO COMMERCIAL OCEAN RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTY OF MAUl:
SECTION 1. Section 13.04.020, Maui County Code, is amended by
repealing the definition of lIocean recreational activityll.
[IIIIOceanrecreational activityll means-engaging in or
providing instruction or guidance regarding the use of
equipment in any pursuit that is primarily conducted in
or on the ocean, including, but not limited to, kayaking,
snorkeling, scuba diving, surfing, kite surfing, and
windsurfing, excluding any pursuit requiring an operator
to hold a license or permit from the State of Hawaii
division of boating and recreation or the United States
Coast Guard. Engaging in and providing instruction or
guidance to any patron regarding the use of equipment in
the same pursuit shall constitute no more than one ocean
recreational activity. II]
SECTION 2. Section 13.04.020, Maui County Code, is amended by
adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted and to read as
follows:
"Reciprocal beneficiaries" means two adults who are parties to a valid reciprocal beneficiary relationship and meet the requisites for a valid reciprocal beneficiary relationship as defined in section 572C-4,
Hawaii Revised Statutes. II
SECTION 3. Section 13.04.300, Maui County Code, is amended to
read as follows:
1113.04.300 Nontransferability. Permits shall not be [nontransferable.] transferable; provided that a permit may be transferred to a spouse, reciprocal beneficiary, or child of the permit holder. Permits transferred to any party other than a spouse, reciprocal beneficiary, or child of the permit holder shall expire automatically upon transfer. The director shall deem the following to be transfers:
~ Transfer of any stock or interest in a corporation or other business entity by the owners of record;
~ Chanqe of partner(s) in a partnership or limited liability partnership;
~ Change of a member or any person holdinq an interest in a limited liability company; and
~ Arrangements where a third party pays a fee to the permit holder for the ability to operate the permit holder's business."
SECTION 4. Material to be repealed is bracketed. New material is underscored. In printing this bill, the County Clerk need not include the brackets, the bracketed material, or the underscoring.
SECTION 5 . approval.
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
This ordinance shall take effect upon its signing.
Deputy Corporation Counsel
County of Maui

[DanWeiss]

Alan: I'm highlighting below the very troubling operative text of the proposed change and will comment on the absurdity of the definition of "transfer."
1. Transfer of any stock or interest in a corporation or other business entity by the owners of record;
2. Chanqe of partner(s) in a partnership or limited liability partnership;
3. Change of a member or any person holdinq an interest in a limited liability company; and
4. Arrangements where a third party pays a fee to the permit holder for the ability to operate the permit holder's business."

Comments:

1. This is very troubling and an example of extreme overreaching by the Parks Director and the Mayor . A transfer of "any stock or interest" is not necessarily indicia of a change of ownership or control. If a corporation issues 100 shares to four people, and one of those shareholders sells or gifts one share to either one of the original four, back to the corporation or to a third party then the proposed amendment would deem that act to be a transfer for purposes of CORA even though at most one percent of the ownership of the corporation can be inferred.

2. Change of partners. While I'm not licensed to practice law in Hawaii, there are many reasons apart from the basic understanding of a change of ownership when a partner may no longer be able to serve and the remaining partners may wish to continue operating the business, such as the incapacity or death of one of the partners. In this case, the county would terminate the permit of the partnership despite the desire of the surviving partners to continue working under the permit.

3. Change of a member or other holding an interest in an LLC. No. 3 is virtually the same as No. 1 but I will add that this clause may cause the proposed law be unenforceable for vagueness and ambiguity. What does "change" mean in the context of an LLC? Does it only apply when a member no longer holds an equity interest in the LLC? Does it apply if an LLC that was manager managed modifies to become a member managed company whereby the new managing member now stands to lose something more than his original investment when, in effect, he is now also a potential creditor of the company?

4. A fee paid to operate permit holder's business. What does this mean? For example, assume you own a company, ABC Watersports, Inc. that operates a retail water sports shop in Kahalui and a windsurfing school at Kanaha. Both the shop and school operate under the ABC Watersports Inc.'s name and trademark. Assume further that the shop generates most the co.'s business income. In this scenario, if I were to pay you a fee to run your retail store in exchange for a percentage of the revenue from retail operations, the proposed language would deem this agreement to be a transfer for purposes of terminating the beach use permit! I might consider challenging this clause as unenforceable as written for vagueness.

If I can be of any further help, please contact me via direct e-mail or by phone at 617.259.0411

Dan Weiss for US Windsurfing

[MCDORO]

I would suppose the rest of the readers of these posts are as mystified as I am.

The Tavares crew essentially closed home rentals on the North Shore a couple of years ago, none of we visitors/renters ever knew the WHY of the action. Now comes HST telling us of yet another controversial pending action, but not bothering to explain the WHY of it...just that it's about to happen. Surely someone reading this will venture an opinion as to WHY the County of Maui seems to act against the interest of North Shore renters, and now North Shore Windsurfing/Kite Boarding businesses.

Kayaking/snorkling/scuba diving/and surfing are sports that do, comparatively, very little $$ business in the in the County of Maui compared to the sailing sports. In actuality, these sports are side venues for the Windsurfing and Kiteboarding shops. It seems to me the target of the negative actions by Mayor Tavares and her staff is the sailing business, and mention of the other sports is a smoke screen.

I'll do what I can, but I would like to know WHY Maui is acting like it is.

I have heard the rental action was an attempt to shift the money from North Shore rentals to the numerous large hotels in Maui...but these were all whispers.

What's going on?

[gerritt]

Tavarez was quoted as saying she wants to keep Hawaii (Maui - I forget exactly which) for Hawaians. Which I read to mean, "Haolee go home." Or, Haolee stay with the other tourists.

It stinks and smacks of racism.

[izitvindi]

I found this interview of Tavares by windsurfing's own Josh Stone interesting...

...ahem...it gives one a taste of the way Hawaii goes about creating new laws...the Hawaiians are tripping all over themselves trying to carve out exception after exception to benefit the locals, but what they end up with is simply BAD LEGISLATION, poorly defined, overreaching, too broad...etc...

Yikes. What a minefield to navigate!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYhoXMextTk

[jp5]

[tsokat]

[acctx]