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<br /> 1 Big Islar;td Farm Bureau <br /> mailing address: P.O. Box 2341 •Kealakekua, Hawaii 96750 <br /> 79-1016 East Honalo Road • Kealakekua, Hawaii 96750 <br /> Phone (808) 324-601 t • Fax (808) 322-9633 • E-Mail: bifb®verizon.net <br /> June 25, 2004 <br /> rv, <br /> c. <br /> Councilman Leningrad Elazionoff, Chairman c,~ <br /> Committee on Planning <br /> Hawaii County Council r~~ ` <br /> 25 Aupuni Street, Ste. 209 <br /> Hilo, HI 96720 ~ <br /> RE: Bill 163, Draft 2 <br /> Dear Councilman Elazionoff and Committee Members: <br /> During a meeting held on June 15, 2004, Big Island Farm Bureau Boazd of Directors <br /> voted to respectively request that the Hawaii County Council Committee on Planning <br /> reject Bill 163, Draft 2 that proposes to delete the references and policy statements <br /> related to the identification and protection of Important Agricultural Land in the County <br /> of Hawaii, as well as the "Important Agricultural Lands" LUPAG designations currently <br /> contained in Draft 1. During the development of General Plan, there was intense <br /> participation by the Big Island Farm Bureau and other agricultural organizations. The <br /> language within the "Agricultural" chapter of Draft 1 is a product of this participation. <br /> This language should be retained. <br /> Here on the Island of Hawaii, the issues that hinder protection of agricultural lands have <br /> been understood for quite some time. Twelve yeazs ago, in 1992, the County of Hawaii, <br /> through the Department of Research and Development, published a report titled: <br /> Agricultural Development Plan. In the section titled, "Problems Hindering <br /> Agriculture", the report states: <br /> 1. Current zoning does not protect agricultural lands from non-agricultural uses. <br /> Land zoned Agricultural are continually being rezoned to other uses. <br /> 2. The cost of agricultural land has no relationship to the potential agricultural <br /> productivity ofthe land. Land prices are based on residential use, given the <br /> appazent ease of changing Ag lands into residential uses, either through re- <br /> zonings or building homes on lands with AG-1 or AG-3 designations. Thus, <br /> fazmers have to...compete with people who are buying land and selling it at <br /> exorbitant prices. <br /> 3. The State and County permitted uses of agricultural lands are very broad. <br /> Comm. No. 4 •~S <br /> Ref. To: <br /> Ref. Uate <br /> Hilo • Hamakua • Kohala • Kona <br /> <br />