DHHL AWARDS AGRICULTURAL LOTS ON HAWAIʻI ISLAND

Event Marks the Department’s Largest Agricultural Offering in Nearly 40 Years

News release from DHHL, November 23, 2024

HILO, HAWAIʻI – The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) awarded 68 agricultural lots on Hawaiʻi Island Saturday, November 23, 2024, marking the largest agricultural lot offering by the department since the late-1980s.

“These lots are more than pieces of land, they’re opportunities for our beneficiaries to reconnect with the ‘āina as Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole intended,” said DHHL Director Kali Watson. “These projects serve as solutions to ending the DHHL waitlist and highlights the department’s efforts to create diverse homesteading options for those awaiting lease awards.”

Located in Hilo, the Honomū and Makuʻu homestead lots range in size from one to five acres. In Honomū, 16 one-acre subsistence agricultural lots were offered. In Makuʻu, 20 five-acre agricultural lots and 32 two-acre subsistence agricultural lots were offered.

“This momentous occasion marks an exciting milestone for DHHL beneficiaries, providing not only the opportunity to build homes but also to cultivate a future grounded in food sovereignty and self-sustainability,” Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke said in a statement.

Nearly 200 beneficiaries and their ‘ohana celebrated the occasion at Keaukaha Elementary School. Senator Kurt Fevella (District 20 – ‘Ewa Beach, Ocean Pointe, ‘Ewa by Gentry, Iroquois Point, portion of ‘Ewa Villages) and Representative Darius Kila (District 44 – Honokai Hale, Nānākuli, Mā‘ili) shared their enthusiasm.

“I am blessed, this is what I’m going to fight for,” Senator Fevella said. “Words cannot explain or express what I feel today for our people; this is your land, and this is what you deserve.” 

“We are looking for solutions to keep people in Hawaiʻi and we have it in the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. That is the way to keep people in Hawai’i, and not just people, Native Hawaiians,” said Representative Kila.

Subsistence-ag lots are less than three acres in size and near existing infrastructure. This homestead model allows beneficiaries to live and grow food on their lots for home consumption or small-scale economic agricultural activity.

Beneficiaries who opt to grow produce and other crops commercially must create a farm plan, like a business plan, as part of their lease, and lessees must cultivate at least two-thirds of the land.

With both lot types, beneficiaries have the option of constructing a single-family home or supplemental dwelling unit.

An additional 40 subsistence agricultural lots are slated for development in Honomū within the next two years. More than 1,600 lots are planned for various homesteads across Hawaiʻi Island including Laʻi ʻŌpua, Kaumana, Honokaʻa, Pālamanui and Panaʻewa.

# # #