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~JM<r os x~~+. dy; FRED C. HOLSCHUH, M.D TEL: 961-8538 Council Member "r'oY+~"' Hawaii County Council 25 Au nni Street ~"i /lilo, Hawnii 96720 L=~.'J ~~iil 1 t j' 1 Telephone: (808) 961-8255 Fncsimi(c (R08J 961-8912 May 17, 2005 MEMORANDUM TO: K. Angel Pilago and Pete Hoffmann, Co-Chairs, Planning Committee and Members of the Planning Committee FROM: Fred C. Holschuh, M.D. ~ KE: Bill 80 Bill 80 broadly seeks to prohibit luxury features within subdivisions in the state agricultural district. It also presumes to protect the affordability and productivity of agricultural lands. . In recent years, we have all witnessed an amazing spike in the prices of homes and land throughout the State of Hawaii. We have seen such bubbles in the real estate market before. Like a tsunami, they tend to sweep everything along in a great wave. We see the unimproved lot market booming. We see a boom in the planned subdivision market. Condominium prices rise right along with the single family home market. All this is driven by people seeking homes and equity, as people naturally do. Meanwhile, much of the vast inventory of ag lands leR by the plantation era remains fallow and unproductive. Astute observers say outright what Bill 80 does not: we have far more lands classified in agriculture than we have farmers who are ready, capable, capitalized, and willing to farm. Bill 80 does not address this problem. Instead, it seeks to regulate and frustrate lifestyle preferences by prohibiting certain amenities, including the size of one's home. This year, our state legislature considered a similar bill, House Bill 109. In its original form, it proposed that "a subdivision or development is not agricultural, and does not consist of farm dwellings if it includes any of the following: (I) lots situated along golf course fairways; (2) a gated entry; (3) covenants that restrict agricultural uses; or (4) private country club facilities, members' accommodations, hotels, or other resori facilities;" In its wisdom, this bill was amended by aseven-member legislative conference committee that included Senator Russell Kokubun and House Representatives Dwight Takamine and Bob Herkes from the Big Island. Their amendments supported efforts to create more rural districts by: (1) allowing the counties to work with the l.,and Use Commission to develop policy and recommend boundary amendments to expand and enhance the use of rural districts; and (2) convening an advisory group to redefine rural districts. Comm. No. 2 ~ ~ • ~ I Ref. To: Prese Rc~f. Date