PUHI – When John Isobe, Gary Figueroa, Calvin Shirai and Mia Ako survey the 40-acre farm project at Kaua’i Community College, they see something that prepares for Kaua’i’s agricultural future and pays homage to its past. The four leaders of
PUHI – When John Isobe, Gary Figueroa, Calvin Shirai and Mia Ako survey the 40-acre farm project at Kaua’i Community College, they see something that prepares for Kaua’i’s agricultural future and pays homage to its past.
The four leaders of the project have played key roles in helping teach people how to farm better and get into new businesses.
Plans for the farm also call for the construction of an education resource center boasting exhibits featuring things Hawaiian and Grove Farm’s heyday as one of the largest sugar plantations on Kaua’i. A multi-media and audio recording studio is also part of the plan, according to Isobe, a project director.
“We see what we are doing here will benefit Kaua’i,” Isobe said.
The Kaua’i Rural Development project supports the Kaua’i County General Update plan calling for an active tourism industry and new businesses that will help strengthen the island’s economy.
The project also will prepare many new farmers for the day when more sugar and state lands are made available for the burgeoning diversified agriculture business.
The project will feature a small-business academy, an educational resource center, an archeological archival center and agri-business programs.
On the farm, students learn about Hawaiian plants and tropical plants, taro and organic farming, alternative energy generation, community gardening, agro-forestry and production of fresh fruits and vegetables, said Figueroa, a diversified agriculture program coordinator.
Program participants also will learn how to propagate trees for the tree industry on Kaua’i, he said.
The farm provided training for students involved in the Gateway project, a $5 million commercial undertaking by Kaua’i Nursery and Landscaping Inc. to beautify Ahukini Road and Kapule Highway, the main roads leading from Lihu’e Airport.
Ako, a counselor and recruiter with the federal Job Training Partnership Act program at the college, helped find 40 program participants between ages 19 and 24 for training in planting and propagation.
Participants also learn about perma-culture, an alternative use of the land and resources, and how to till the soil to avoid denuding the terrain, Figueroa said.
“We put up windbreaks, develop water resources and plant fields and gardens in accordance with the land,” he said.
When students are finished with the training, they will be ready for the marketplace, he said.
“You will definitely be employable if you train with me,” said Figueroa.
Fruit, flowers and vegetables grown at the farm will be sold from a kiosk at the facility.
The educational resource center will consist of a gift shop stocked with local craft products.
In addition, a small museum will be built to commemorate former residents of the old Puhi Plantation Camp, which has been bulldozed and dismantled and on which the 40-acre farm currently sits.
The center also will feature a multi-media center, which Isobe said will be used to help people find employment in high-tech industries.
The farm also boasts a small business management academy for technical assistance and training for new businesses. The academy also will support promotion of products and services on the island, and will be a meeting place for business training workshops, Isobe said.
The project also has involved the creation of a community garden within the farm, according to Calvin Shirai of the Kaua’i Business Assistance Corp.
The program was initially designed for senior citizens, who received training from the University of Hawai’i Cooperative Extensive Service. The seniors grew the produce as a way to augment their income.
Apparently because of growing interest, the program has been expanded to accommodate people of all ages.
“They will learn skills that will enable them to be more successful gardeners,” Shirai said. They will be schooled in how to select the right fertilizer, understanding the soil’s chemistry to enhance their ability to grow fruit, flowers and produce, and how and where to sell them.
The impetus for the Kaua’i project came from U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, who wanted to help rural communities in the state, Isobe said.
In 1997, Lana’i was the first island to receive federal grants for its project. Similar projects are in operation on the Big Island, Maui and Moloka’i.
Kaua’i’s project started in 1998 with $223,000 and operates on a $550,000 budget this year. Isobe said he will pursue more funds next year because community interest in the project is on the rise.
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or lchang@pulitzer.net
