TVRs are not appropriate for agriculturally zoned lands.
The Maui County Farm Bureau believes TVRs can contribute positively to Maui’s community and visitor industry provided they are established in suitable locations and operated in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
Agriculturally zoned lands are not suitable locations for TVRs. Agricultural lands must be preserved for legitimate agricultural purposes. Agriculture’s fundamental purpose is to provide basic necessities for life.
In any discussion about TVRs in Maui County it is vital to understand what is "rural" and what is "agricultural." The difference is critically important, but often misunderstood.
Rural refers to country life – the opposite of urban life. Typically, rural areas are sparsely populated, houses are spaced farther apart, land parcels are larger and residents may enjoy a lifestyle that includes such activities as raising pets and gardening. Rural living is a lifestyle choice.
Farms are also typically part of a rural landscape, however agriculture is not so much about lifestyle as it is about providing for society.
A rural garden may provide foods for the gardener to eat and share with few friends and neighbors or provide the homeowner with incidental income through sales at a farmers’ market. By comparison, farms provide primary economic sustenance for the farmer and his or her employees along with food, feed and fiber for many other people.
Today, less than 2 percent of our country’s population lives on a farm. They feed, clothe and support the other 98 percent who do something else for a living. On average, each farmer supplies nearly 50 other people 365 days of the year. Nonfarming uses of agricultural land jeopardize the legitimate farming operations that are essential to the survival of our largely nonagricultural society.
It is because of agriculture’s importance to society that agriculturally-zoned lands are afforded reduced property taxes and water rates. These incentives help ensure that farms are economically sustainable and agricultural products continue to be available and affordable. It is unfair for anyone to take advantage of these benefits without engaging in legitimate farming operations.
Neither is the failure of a farm a reason to convert the land to nonagricultural uses. The community would be better served by seeking ways to support successful farming, not finding a replacement.
By law, each agricultural lot is allowed to have two farm dwellings, one of which must be a farm labor dwelling with associated gross agricultural sales of at least $35,000 per year. The law additionally prohibits accessory dwellings in agriculturally zoned districts but allows them in other areas, including state land use rural districts subject to certain provisions.
Thus TVRs may be appropriate for rural areas, but not lands designated for agriculture. Permitting nonfarming operations on agricultural lands would not only be highly irresponsible, but illegal under current laws. Agricultural lands that are used to build homes and other nonfarming operations rarely ever revert back to farmland.
The Maui County Farm Bureau strongly believes that Maui County must clearly define what agriculture is and develop strong policies that ensure strong and viable farming operations. The bureau supports proposed ordinances that protect agricultural lands by prohibiting nonagricultural operations such as TVRs and B&Bs that may be more appropriate for areas zoned as rural or otherwise.
So many of us say we want agriculture in Hawaii. If so, then we need to do whatever we can to keep agricultural land in productive agricultural use.
Warren Watanabe is president of the Maui County Farm Bureau. He operates a farm in Kula.
