Posted on: Friday, January 17, 2003
More grading-related problems for Kaua'i landowner Pflueger
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
LIHU'E, Kaua'i — The county prosecutor's office has filed seven criminal charges against retired auto dealer Jimmy Pflueger for grading without a permit, adding to an already thick stack of court filings involving earth-moving activities at his north Kaua'i property.
The seven charges cite Pflueger personally and several of his companies and associates. Each count is subject to a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine, 30 days in jail, or both. An arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 12 in Hanalei District Court.
Pflueger attorney Philip Lowenthal said the latest court complaints will not help resolve the situation, and that Pflueger already is doing all he can to make up for the problems caused by the grading. "He's doing his best to make it right with everybody and to make sure there's no hazard," Lowenthal said.
Pflueger has admitted he graded some of his lands without permits. On one occasion, he told The Advertiser he did so because at his age — he is in his 70s — he doesn't have time to wait for government agencies to issue permits.
Two specific instances cited by government agencies are earth-moving Pflueger did in the late 1990s around Kaloko Reservoir, and work performed starting in 2001 on a bluff above the shoreline at Pila'a, where Pflueger had planned an agricultural subdivision. He has since withdrawn his application for the subdivision.
In heavy rains in November 2001, a mudslide from freshly graded land damaged two beachfront homes at Pila'a and flowed into the ocean, where it settled on the reef. Muddy runoff continued to flow into the ocean during rainy periods for months thereafter.
The county Planning Department in October asked the 5th Circuit Court to oversee grading activities on Pflueger's property. The Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund has filed complaints under the Clean Water Act on behalf of the Limu Coalition and the Kilauea Neighborhood Association against Pflueger for damage to coastal reefs, and property owners whose homes were damaged by the mudslide also have filed suit.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has twice ordered Pflueger to stop discharges and to act quickly to minimize further sediment-laden runoff, with the state Department of Health participating in one of those orders.
Pflueger's representatives say he is doing everything in his power to cooperate and make required improvements to the land.
"I would say he is cooperating diligently," said another of Pflueger's attorneys, William M. Tam. "We are actively working with each of the agencies and meeting weekly. Our engineers are working with their staffs. We are taking action as soon as we get the approval to do it."
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.
