Oahu food feasibility proposals met with resistance

A package of proposals introduced by City Councilwoman Kym Pine aimed at promoting food sustainability is raising eyebrows and running into resistance from city officials.

Pine said the pandemic has financially devastated too many Oahu families and made it clear to her that radical, new ideas need to be considered to help ease the burdens they face.

Noting that 85% of the island’s food comes from outside of Hawaii, Pine said she wants to lessen that dependence by creating more opportunities for both farmers and regular families who can use the land around them to grow their produce.

“This pandemic showed that we are too at risk,” she said.

Pine’s term in office ends Jan. 2, so it’s unlikely any of the proposals will be adopted before she leaves. But she said she will make frequent appearances at Honolulu Hale to lobby for her ideas. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said with a chuckle.

Perhaps the most out-of-the-box proposal is Bill 83, which would allow the public to cultivate edible plants along city-owned sidewalks fronting their properties so long as they do not pose an obstruction or hazard.

The idea is to allow certain undeveloped sections of sidewalks to be used for growing edible plants. Besides making food available for public consumption, Pine said, using such strips of land for gardening would also make them less susceptible to becoming dumping grounds.

“This 1-, maybe 4-foot strip … gives (people) the opportunity to feed their families,” Pine told colleagues in the Business, Economic Development and Tourism Committee last week.

Pine said her bill is similar to one passed into law by the Los Angeles City Council in 2015 that allows residents to plant fruits, vegetables and herbs on “parkways,” the strips of land between sidewalks and roadways.

Eugene Takahashi, deputy director of the Department of Planning and Permitting, voiced concerns about the proposal.

“Unpermitted, unregulated and uncontrolled planting on sidewalk areas in residential districts would be problematic for city agencies, utility companies and the general public,” Takahashi said.

Additionally, the city currently doesn’t approve large plants because of safety concerns, particularly for vehicles backing out of driveways onto the street, he said.

The law currently allows for ground cover, or plants less than 4 inches tall, provided they don’t pose a tripping hazard such as a vine, Takahashi said. “A lot of plants, especially fruit-bearing, they tend to be either a bush or a tree which … would obstruct views.”

She said she envisions people would need to obtain a permit or sign a declaration in order to gain permission to plant.

Establishing farm village communities

Resolution 20-293 directs DPP to draft a bill carving out “farm village communities” as an allowable use in agricultural zones.

Pine said the bill would allow a farmer to set up multiple tiny houses, with a maximum living area of 600 square feet, on agricultural properties. Such structures would make it easier for people to work together to produce food while, at the same time, provide affordable housing opportunities for families that farm.

Farmers tell her that finding affordable housing for their workers is a major roadblock for them, she said.

Kathy Sokugawa, the city’s acting director of planning and permitting, said the type of structures spelled out in the bill are already allowed under existing land use laws.

The language has been in the books for 40 years but has had few takers, she said.

Pine said agricultural clusters, by definition, allow for only one unit per 5 acres of agricultural land, which would prohibit the multiple, smaller houses she’s proposing.

According to the city Land Use Ordinance, “within agricultural clusters, detached, duplex and multifamily dwellings shall be permitted” with a maximum of four multifamily dwelling units per structure.

Tax breaks for privately owned community gardens

Bill 81 establishes a tax break for private property owners who agree to dedicate suitable parcels of land that would be used as community gardens for a defined amount of time.

A garden would need to be made available to neighbors who want to use it for personal, noncommercial agricultural purposes only. Pine’s latest draft says 75% of the usable land would need to be “substantially and continuously used” as a community garden for three years. During that time, property taxes for the parcel would be assessed at 7% of the land’s fair market value.

Manuel Valbuena, acting director of the Department of Budget and Fiscal Serv­ices, voiced concerns about the impacts such a tax break might have on city finances at a time when it’s under extreme financial constraints.

While community gardens are a valuable resource, Valbuena said, “BFS takes any reduction of revenues seriously, as this bill creates a new property tax relief program during a time when this city will be making very difficult financial decisions.”

Council Budget Chairman Joey Manahan recommended that the bill be shelved for now but said that he is forwarding the proposal to the city’s Tax Review Commission for it to consider.

New community gardens

Bill 59 requires the parks director to identify city lands — either at established parks or undeveloped property — where new community gardens, possibly solely for growing crops, can be created.

Most of the city’s 10 existing community gardens are in urban Honolulu even though there’s just as great a need for them in the West Oahu communities she represents, Pine said. “If you look at the Leeward parks, there are so many dead areas that are not being used” where little corners could be used for community gardens, she said.

Most of the affordable housing units being developed are in townhouses or apartment buildings without the luxury of yards, Pine said. Federal grants can be used to fund the establishment of more of the gardens, to avoid the need to tap into city resources, she said.

Additionally, she said, “I have people in the community who are willing to pay for it, to help run it.”

Some participating in the existing community gardens program have raised concerns that Pine’s proposal will bring unnecessary changes to what they’re doing. Pine said that’s not her intent.

Josh Stanbro, the city’s chief resilience officer, said he welcomes all efforts to make Oahu less dependent on outside food sources.

“The COVID pandemic has forced local food security and sustainability issues into the spotlight,” Stanbro said, noting that the city has been using a good portion of its share of federal CARES Act funding to help local farms, fishers and ranchers continue their efforts.

“But it’s also true that there is a desire and demand for new ways to allow residents to grow their own food, which can save money for households but also make neighborhoods more resilient in the event of economic disruption or natural disaster,” Stanbro said. “If we can find ways to support this effort without overtaxing an already stressed city budget, grow food along streets that doesn’t block view planes for traffic, we definitely want to find those solutions.”