“Man bites dog” story of the day: Kauai developer to require ag use on ag land. It’s a different twist since most of the controversy regarding “farm dwellings” and ag uses these days goes in the other direction:
The developers of the Kealanani agricultural subdivision hope to break a tradition in which agriculture-zoned lots are sold as country estates with little if any assurance that agricultural production will take place.
Their goal: to sell view lots for premium prices, but to come as near as possible to an ironclad requirement that owners farm on the property.
. . . .
The developers clearly are trying to break the image of “agricultural subdivision” as code for “rich-folks’ estates.” Thus far, their project has generated virtually none of the rancor that has attended projects like the Big Island’s Hokuli’a. At one point, that project was halted by a court order that said it was actually an illegal use of lands earmarked by the state for agriculture.
A settlement in the case eventually allowed the project to continue, but for critics, the development remains an illustration of the so-called “fake farms,” large homes built on agricultural lands where only nominal farming is done in a show of conforming to a state requirement that homes on agricultural lands must be “farm dwellings.”
The Kealanani development’s owners association will have the ability to fine owners who fail to fulfill their agricultural commitments, Kyno said.
The enforcement mechanism will presumably be restrictive covenants (CC&Rs), but this project should not raise the Act 5 issue, which is designed to invalidate CC&Rs that prohibit (not require) ag uses on ag lands. More on ag subdivisions, CC&Rs, and Act 5 here.
