Mayor Bryan Baptiste is proposing to temporarily stop the development of new agricultural subdivisions on Kaua‘i to augment ongoing state and county efforts to protect agricultural lands. During a meeting with reporters in his office at the Lihu‘e Civic Center,
Mayor Bryan Baptiste is proposing to temporarily stop the development of new agricultural subdivisions on Kaua‘i to augment ongoing state and county efforts to protect agricultural lands.
During a meeting with reporters in his office at the Lihu‘e Civic Center, Baptiste announced he had sent a bill to the County Planning Commission proposing a moratorium on such developments.
“I believe that a temporary moratorium on the creation of new agricultural subdivisions is urgently needed to protect Kaua‘i’s remaining agricultural land from being used for non-agricultural uses,” he said in a statement as well.
He said a recent inspection of agricultural lands by helicopter confirmed his belief agricultural subdivisions have proliferated throughout Kaua‘i in the past ten years.
The proposed moratorium is a way to block such activity until long-term solutions are found, he said.
“I feel that we cannot wait any longer. We must take action now to maintain our rural identity in the best interest of the health and welfare of the residents of Kaua‘i,” Baptiste said.
The moratorium would not affect proposed agricultural subdivisions that would be set aside for affordable housing.
He said the county plans to buy agricultural lands on which affordable housing can be built through a partnership between government and private developers.
“I feel it is a good use of ag lands,” he said.
The moratorium would not affect 13 existing applications for new agricultural subdivisions that have been given tentative subdivision approval by the Kaua‘i County Planning Commission, he said.
In explaining why the proposed subdivisions would be exempt from the moratorium, Baptiste said, “We believe that an active application that’s already been tentatively approved for a new agricultural subdivision is the correct benchmark, since a substantial investment is required from this point forward.”
To prevent a flood of applications for approval of agricultural subdivisions, the moratorium, if approved, would become effective Aug. 3, the date when the proposal was sent to the Planning Commission.
Without effective legislation in place, valuable agricultural lands could be lost, changing forever the rural character of the island, Baptiste said.
A number of problems have surfaced in the regulation of agricultural lands, including the creation of residential condominium property regimes, increased density and commercial uses on such lands, he said.
Without the moratorium in place, the availability of agricultural land could be irretrievably lost before any new laws are created to preserve such resources, Baptiste said.
Baptiste said he has informed the Kaua‘i County Council about the proposed bill.
Some council members support the moratorium, but others believe solutions will be forthcoming before the moratorium is acted upon, Baptiste said.
The Legislature has helped keep alive the momentum to preserve agricultural lands statewide by passing Act 183 in 2005, which requires all counties to identify important agricultural lands, he said.
Thorough legislative funding, Kaua‘i was selected to be the first county to be studied and will serve as a model for the rest of the state, Baptiste said.
Conducted by the University of Hawai‘i’s Department of Urban and Regional Planning, the study will focuses on the Koloa district and surrounding areas, including Po‘ipu and Kalaheo.
University officials hope to develop data and maps to help the county establish the standards for determining important agricultural lands and their identification, Baptiste said.
A preliminary report is expected to be sent to the Legislature in January.
Kaua‘i County also will initiate a comprehensive study of important agricultural lands, Baptiste said.
“We’re in the process of developing the scope of work for our own (Important Agricultural Lands) study,” Planning Director Ian Costa said in a statement. “Information gleaned from the University of Hawai‘i’s IAL study will be very helpful with determining how the county’s study will be managed, and result in more effective land classifications and regulations.”
Baptiste urged the Legislature, the council and the Planning Department to expedite efforts to preserve agricultural lands.
“Permitted uses and a procedure for reviewing and allowing these uses must be clearly defined. I urge them to do this expeditiously,” he stated.
