COM 0755.000 2014-2016 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Dru Kanuha, Council Chair and Members of the County Council Page 2 The change of zone request from a Family Agricultural—2 acre (FA-2a) to a Family Agricultural— 1 acre (FA-la) zoning district conforms to applicable goals, policies and standards of the General Plan. The FA zoning district is intended for lands within the State Land Use Agricultural District, where public services and infrastructure are appropriate to support the very low density residential needs of a rural community and where a substantial number of parcels are less than five acres in size, and where a mix of uses will not conflict with or be detrimental to existing agricultural uses in the surrounding area. The Land Use Pattern Allocation Guide(LUPAG)Map component of the General Plan is a representation of the document's goals and policies to guide the coordinated growth and development of the County. It reflects a graphic depiction of the physical relationship among the various land uses. The LUPAG Map establishes the basic urban and non-urban form for areas within the County. The proposed request conforms to the LUPAG Map, which designates the property mainly as Important Agricultural Lands. Important agricultural lands are those lands with better potential for sustained high agricultural yields because of soil type, climate, topography, or other factors. The Land Study Bureau's Detailed Land Classification System identifies the property mainly as "Existing Urban Development", with a small part identified as "C" or"Fair" for agricultural productivity on the northeastern portion of the property. The property is classified as Prime Agricultural Land by the ALISH System. A major concern in allowing a rezoning of agricultural land that creates smaller lot sizes is that this will reduce the potential use of the land for commercial agriculture by fragmenting the land into areas too small to be farmed on a commercial scale. While a few crops can be intensively cultivated on very small acreage,usually these crops have a very limited market. Reducing the size of the lots can reduce the range of potential agricultural uses and the range of market opportunities for those crops. In this particular situation, the applicants are requesting the change in zoning in order to subdivide the property into two lots with the intention of conveying the additional lot to family. Both of the newly created lots will still have the potential to be used for truck crop farming or agricultural purposes, such as pasture. All essential utilities and services are available to the property. Access to the property is from `Akala Road, which is a County owned and maintained roadway that has approximately 18 feet of pavement within a 30-foot right-of-way. The City of Hilo Zone Map identifies `Akala Road as a proposed 60-foot right-of-way, with a future 15-foot