MINUTES
KAUA'I / NI'IHAU ISLANDS BURIAL COUNCIL MEETING

DATE: TUESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2003
TIME: 9:00 A.M.
PLACE: KAUA'I COUNTY, COUNCIL CHAMBERS
5396 RICE STREET
LIHU'E, HAWAI'I 96766

ATTENDANCE:

MEMBERS:

La France Kapaka-Arboleda, Chair
Donna Kaliko Santos
Presley Wann
Bruce Robinson
Kalani Fronda
Michael Furukawa
Tom Shigemoto

STAFF:

Kana`i Kapeliela, Historic Sites Specialist
Mary Carney Perzinski, Historic Sites Specialist
Nancy McMahon, Kaua`i Island Archaeologist

GUESTS:

Jim Powell
Ben Welborn

ABSENT:

Grace Kamai (excused)
John Kruse (excused)
Catherine Pfeffer (unexcused)

I. OPENING REMARKS

Chairperson La France Kapaka-Arboleda (Arboleda) calls meeting to order at 9:15 AM. A pule is offered by Kaliko Santos (Santos).

II. APPROVAL OF APRIL 8, 2003, MEETING MINUTES

A motion is made to accept the minutes of April 8, 2003. (Shigemoto/Furukawa)

Corrections are as follows:

Page 2, under Approval of March 4, 2003 Meeting Minutes, Mauiki should read Mahuiki.

Page 2, under page 9, last paragraph, Huilia should read Huleia.

The motion is amended to include the Council's corrections to the April 8, 2003 Meeting minutes. (Shigemoto/Furukawa)

VOTE: ALL IN FAVOR.

III. BUSINESS

A. BROWNING FAMILY RESIDENCE, H_'ENA, HANALEI DISTRICT, KAUA'I

Information / Recommendation: Review of project for burial concerns. CDUA permit consultation.

Nancy McMahon (McMahon) says that this item is on the agenda because the property owner is applying for a CDUA (Conservation District Use Application). An archaeological assessment was done on the property by Tom Dye who determined that archaeological testing was not warranted. OHA disagreed and believes testing should occur because of the high likelihood of encountering burials in the Ha`ena area.

Ben Welborn (Welborn) says he became involved after Tom Dye completed his assessment. The assessment was based upon previous archaeological research. OHA asked Welborn to attend today's meeting to get input from the Burial Council. The CDUA is expected within the next couple of months. Welborn passes out maps provided by Tom Dye showing burial distribution of the Ha`ena area to the Council. Welborn says that burials have been identified more recently that are not accounted for on the maps. The Historic Preservation Division recommends a monitoring plan, which is currently underway, monitoring during ground disturbance and in the event of a burial is found, a burial treatment plan. OHA also recommended a cultural monitor during ground disturbance and that the residence be situated further mauka. Welborn says that it is a flat property with no dunes and may have been leveled in the past, therefore moving the house 100 yards further inland may not be warranted. Welborn further explains the burial distribution maps.

McMahon points out more inaccuracies on the burial distribution maps. McMahon says that Dye only looked at inventory surveys for his assessment and did not look at the SHPD's inadvertent discovery file.

Arboleda says that a sand dune is on the mauka side of the road (near the current project area) and is full of burials.

Welborn shows the Council photographs of the subject property to show how flat the parcel is. Welborn says he can't tell if the parcel had been graded or flattened by a tsunami. Because the house will be in the tsunami district, the excavation for the foundation of the house will be substantial.

McMahon says that the Oahu SHPD library is not up to date so Dye may have missed some other archaeological survey reports. McMahon estimates that the majority of the parcels towards Ha`ena Point have been surveyed.

Arboleda recommends that the footprint for the house be excavated and if something is found, they stop work and come before the council with a burial treatment plan, then construction could begin again.

McMahon says that was discussed, but because the assessment was already approved, it would be hard to ask for an inventory survey after the fact. So the SHPD went ahead and recommended monitoring.

Arboleda suggests that OHA provide a name of a possible cultural monitor from the Ha`ena area, because cultural monitors are out of the Council's purview.

Presley Wann says the Council has to be careful on the conditions placed on the property owners by the Burial Council. Wann says that the process is becoming too complicated. The building is easy to adjust and monitoring should occur during construction, or the inventory survey should just focus on the area to be impacted.

McMahon says that if burials are found during monitoring and not during the inventory survey, then the burials are under the jurisdiction of the Division, not the Burial Council. Another problem with monitoring is that burials are found by backhoe, not hand excavation. The assessment was done last year, before the house plans were completed.

The continuing discussion covers different scenarios for monitoring, required testing, cost to the homeowner for archaeological work and the integrity of archaeological and construction firms.

Welborn says it may be in the best interest of the homeowner to pay more for a thorough inventory survey so that the construction process won't be delayed, which would and save the homeowner more money in the long run.

Shigemoto says that the process should be the same for everyone.

A motion is made to adopt the recommendation of the State Historic Preservation Division in this particular case. (Shigemoto/Furukawa).

Presley Wann recuses himself from this vote because of a conflict of interest.

VOTE: 6 IN FAVOR, 1 RECUSAL (Wann)

B. WALLI PROPERTY ARCHAEOLOGICAL MONITORING AND BURIAL TREATMENT PLAN, WAINIHA, HALELE'A DISTRICT, KAUA'I (TMK: 5-8-009:017)

Information / Recommendation: Discussion and update regarding addition of archaeological monitoring plan to approved 1998 burial treatment plan, recent inadvertent discoveries.

McMahon says that in this case the inventory survey was completed many years ago by Cultural Surveys Hawai`i. The property owner is building three structures. Previously disturbed human remains were found in a deposit during the inventory survey. They were left in place. Kala`au Wahilani, a former employee of the Burial Sites Program, was involved in this case. Last month during monitoring, more bone fragments and an in situ burial was found. Subsequently, a third burial was found. The second in situ burial was within the grid for the lateral footings. The owner said that the burial could be left in place within the foundation grid. The leach field had already been put in; no burials were found. A third burial was found during the excavation and was heavily disturbed. The decision made was to reinter the disturbed burial with the in situ burial. The burial treatment plan was written in 1998.

Arboleda suggests having a line in the burial treatment plans stating a time limitation and after that another review is required every 5 or so years. Laws change and excavation techniques change.

McMahon says that the rules and regulations would need to be rewritten.

Kapeliela says that there is no law that requires a burial treatment plan. There are cases that the developer runs out of money after a burial is found and it is just left. The Maui Island Burial Council requests to be notified of any burial found during an inventory survey immediately.

C. "SUMMARY OF THE TREATMENT OF BURIALS AT SITE 671 LOCATED AT TMK: 5-3-03:14 IN KALIHIWAI AHUPUA'A, HANALEI DISTRICT, ISLAND OF KAUA'I" (BOTHMAN CASE)

Information / Recommendation: CDUA permit consultation.

McMahon says that the Bothmans have reapplied for the CDUA permit. The burials have been disinterred and reinterred in the crypt. The monitoring plan has been submitted and approved by SHPD.

Welborn says this is just a follow-up for the Council and to bring closure to the case.

Arboleda says that the Bothmans are nice people and Ben Welborn did a great job at helping the Bothmans get through the process.

D. SUMMARY AND STATUS OF KNOWN ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORK BEING DONE ON KAUA'I CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

Information / Recommendation: Project updates.

Sandwich Isles Communication Project

McMahon says that Cultural Surveys Hawaii conducted testing at the proposed marine cable landing site on DHHL land and found nothing. The rest of the project is being monitored by SCS.

Jim Powell says the land cable is expected to be completed by October.

A&B Properties

McMahon says that an inventory survey was conducted by Cultural Surveys Hawaii on a 34-acre property. No surface features were found. Subsurface testing was not requested by the SHPD because most of it was pasture and plantation land. The land will be subdivided for development.

Kiahuna

McMahon says that the land is owned by Moana Corporation. More archaeological work will need to be done once the permits are acquired. There are four preserve areas on the property.

Kukuilua

McMahon says that A&B finished data recovery for five sites in the Kukuilua area. One of the sites is a cave site. An agriculture site is also on the property. No burials were found.

Brennecke Beach Park

McMahon says the County is going to undertake surveying the land behind Brennecke Beach Park.

Poipulani Project

McMahon says that there is an application for a subdivision and the sites will need to be resurveyed. Some of the sites were bulldozed when it was first inventoried because people didn't understand the boundaries of the sites.

Tape 2, Side A

Kalalau Burials

McMahon says that the Kalalau burials will be restabilized and some will be reinterred as well.

E. BURIAL COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP

Information / Recommendation: Discussion, recommendations, and updates regarding burial council membership.

Mary Carney Perzinski says that Nathan Napoka has returned to the Division and has been assigned two tasks: assist with the list of Burial Council Member appointees and work on reinterments. There are 5 Kaua`i/Ni`ihau Island Burial Council vacancies as of June 30, 2003. Catherine Hamm Young Pfeffer's status on the Council may be in jeopardy for unexcused absences and for not signing vital paperwork to serve on the Council.

Kapeliela says that Nathan Napoka is back as the History and Culture Branch Chief. Holly McEldowney is the Acting Administrator and Sara Collins is the Acting Archaeology Branch Chief.

Perzinski says that the new SHPD Administrator is to be named September 1st.

McMahon says the draft archaeology rules have not yet been signed by the Governor because of the backlog on the other islands. The way the rules are written is that all of the backlog will be automatically approved.

F. CASE UPDATES AND INADVERTENT DISCOVERIES

Information: Discussion of recent inadvertent discoveries and other staff updates regarding ongoing matters which include, but are not limited to cases such as Ke_lia DHHL inadvertent discoveries, Anahola DHHL inadvertent discoveries, DHHL inadvertent discovery procedures, PMRF EA/EIS, County grading and grubbing ordinances, County Kapa'a bike path MOA, Reinterment options with State Parks Division, Meeting of burial council chairs, Missing signs at Palik_ Point (Donkey Beach), etc.

Palik_ Point (Donkey Beach)

McMahon says that signs on Donkey Beach have been removed by someone and need to be replaced. The Burial Council would like the signs to be replaced with the same language.

SHPD Correspondence

McMahon briefly goes through the correspondence letters in the Councils packets.

Councilmember Mike Furukawa leaves the meeting at 11:00 AM, quorum is maintained.

'Anini Beach

McMahon says that there was an inadvertent discovery of remains which will be reinterred once construction is completed.

Jim Powell says that nothing else was found. The reinterments will not be able to occur for a year because construction is going on all over the project site. Powell says that the iwi are secured in the trailer.

Arboleda says that she knows of a family burial site on the mauka side of the road along the ditch line. There was also a Mormon church there with a graveyard.

Bike Path Kealia

McMahon says there is a Memorandum of Agreement between the SHPD, Accounting and Public Works and OHA for the Kealia bike path. The State and County has signed the MOA; OHA has not yet signed. Federal funding is being used for the path that extends from Kealia to Kapa`a. Inventory survey was done and one burial was found. A monitoring plan is being developed for the restrooms and infrastructure.

Arboleda says she believes that OHA has signed off on the MOA.

Arboleda says she is still working on selecting reinterment sites for each `ahupua`a for the burials encountered during public utility projects before her term expires.

DHHL

McMahon says she has tried to have DHHL meet the Council for consultation.

Kapeliela says SHPD was supposed to have a meeting with DHHL to discuss inadvertent procedures in July, but on June 30th, Kai Markell lost his job temporarily until mid-July. The meeting was cancelled until Kai Markell was reinstated. Kapeliela says another meeting is planned in two weeks.

Arboleda says she would like to be included in the DHHL/SHPD discussion. Arboleda says she is willing to help with the paperwork. It is not an issue of money for DHHL, its about getting the community involved in the process.

IV. ANNOUNCEMENTS

There are no announcements.

V. ADJOURNMENT

The meeting is adjourned at 11:25 AM.

Respectfully submitted,
ary Carney Perzinski
Burials Facilitator

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