The state has applied for permits for its Ka'ena Point restoration project that includes erecting a 2,133-foot predator fence to protect seabirds and seals in a 59-acre coastal habitat.

The Ka'ena Point Natural Area Reserve hosts one of the largest seabird colonies in the main Hawaiian Islands. It also has several populations of endangered plants and is a resting place for Hawaiian monk seals.

The Ka'ena Point Ecosystem Restoration Project involves a partnership between the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife and State Parks; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and the Hawai'i chapter of The Wildlife Society, which is paying for the $200,000 project.

The DLNR has filed applications for a special management area use permit and a shoreline setback variance that are needed to move the project forward.

The project also will need a shoreline certification and a grading permit.

The community and its neighborhood board supports the project, said Michael Lyons, chairman of the North Shore Neighborhood Board.

"That's a rare area out there," Lyons said. "We have albatrosses, seals that come up, and all types of wildlife."

The city will hold a public hearing on the permits at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 5 at Waialua District Park, Conference Room A, 67-180 Goodale Ave.

Residents can testify on the project at the hearing or submit written testimony to Elizabeth Krueger of the city Department of Planning and Permitting, 650 S. King St., Honolulu, HI 96813. People should refer to the project's file numbers, 2009/SMA-44 and 2009SV-9. Residents can also call Krueger at 768-8019.

After the hearing, Krueger will make a recommendation to the department's director, who will send his recommendation to the City Council.