The North Shore's largest subdivision in decades and a growing number of small "gentleman's farms" are planned on agricultural land from Kahuku to Waialua, raising concern about whether the developments set a dangerous precedent for acreage considered important to Hawai'i's agriculture industry.

Under the Important Agriculture Lands Act of 2005, the state and the city are working to determine which farmlands are vital enough to protect.

Meanwhile, gentleman's farms — heretofore a primarily Neighbor Island phenomenon — are spreading on the North Shore.

Proposals for three new agricultural subdivisions totaling 127 lots ranging in size from two acres to 13 acres in Mokule'ia, Pupukea and Kahuku are working their way through the city approval process. If approved, they would join a handful of others.

And Hawaii Reserves Inc., which manages and owns property affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has announced plans to build hundreds of affordable homes between La'ie and Kahuku towns on almost 900 acres of agricultural land.

While the Hawaii Reserves plan would eat up the most land, the gentleman's farms generate at least as much concern because they drive up home prices and infrastructure costs to the city because they are spread over broad areas and serve few people.

State officials recognize that some of these small farms in agriculture subdivisions are productive, but the track record statewide is poor, said Earl Yamamoto, a planner for the state Department of Agriculture involved with the state-city effort.

Agriculture subdivisions with their estate-type homes have sprouted on all the major islands with few restrictions, "allowing for it to ... drive up land value exorbitantly," Yamamoto said. "The bigger problem is it's setting a precedent (for land use)."

Selecting the "important agriculture land" could help to curtail the loss of quality agriculture property to these subdivisions that are nothing more than private homes, Yamamoto said.

SHRINKING AG LAND

Between 1969 and 2006, the amount of land zoned for agriculture declined by 25,651 acres statewide, according to the Hawai'i Data Book.

On O'ahu alone, land under cultivation went from 125,000 acres in 1982 to 70,000 in 2005, according to the Statistics of Hawai'i Agriculture compiled by the state Department of Agriculture.

While much of the vacated farm land is fallow, some has been zoned residential and there's pressure to convert more as home prices soar and agricultural uses decline.

The rise in gentleman's farms has been the subject of debate at neighborhood board and City Council meetings.

On the North Shore, the farms are most evident in Mokule'ia and Waialua, where sugar and pineapple once covered the countryside.

Real estate ads touting these homes emphasize luxury, not agriculture.

One ad offers a 17-acre agriculture "estate parcel" in Kahuku. Four fertile agriculture acres in Mokule'ia are touted as a place to "build a dream home" and grow your own food — if you want.

Poamoho Estates, once advertised as an agriculture subdivision, is a place to build a dream home in a gated community — or you can purchase an "executive country plantation style villa" with an organic farm for $3.95 million.

Michael Lyons, chairman of the North Shore Neighborhood Board, said the community is concerned about the misrepresentation these agriculture lot owners use to get a tax break for farming. Instead of paying upward of $7,000 a year in property taxes for a five-acre lot, they pay $200, Lyons said.

Ironically, people in Hawai'i see prices for these properties as high, but outside buyers see them as bargains and snap them up for second homes, he said.

"Is this what we want to bring to the North Shore?" Lyons asked.

PUTTING A FOOT DOWN

While the city waits for the selection of important farmlands, it is taking some steps to curb these proposed agricultural developments.

Recently, the city rejected a request for an agriculture "cluster" subdivision near Poamoho Estates in Waialua for Kaala View Farm Lots for 16 single-family farm homes on 84.68 acres. The proposal called for 14 homes on lots from 1 to 1 1/2 acres, and two homes on 10 acres each.

An agriculture cluster subdivision's purpose is to maximize the farming area by placing the homes together in a cluster.

Henry Eng, director for the city Department of Planning and Permitting, said the city has more discretion in decision-making regarding cluster developments than agriculture subdivisions.

Agriculture subdivisions are granted if they meet standard requirements, Eng wrote in an e-mail.

"Clusters involve a design review and allow for consideration of other factors as described in the (Land Use Ordinance)."

In denying the application for Kaala View Farm Lots, Eng wrote that the agriculture cluster subdivision plan sounded more like a housing project than an agriculture endeavor.

"The application lacked comprehensive agricultural feasibility plans. ... There are no assurances that farming and other agricultural uses will be established and maintained on the site," he wrote.

Henry Curtis, executive director for Life of the Land, an environmental preservation group, said the city found flaws in the plan.

"We're elated that the city has put a foot down against gentlemen farms and we hope it sets a precedent for future gentlemen farms," Curtis said.

STATE, CITY EFFORTS

Under the state's Important Agriculture Lands Act, the counties are charged with selecting properties that are particularly suitable for agriculture and maintaining that use in perpetuity, Yamamoto said.

At the same time those lands are being identified, the state Legislature must develop incentives that make it attractive to landowners to dedicate their property to agriculture, he said.

The idea has been around since 1983 when the Important Agriculture Land Commission was formed. It submitted a final report to lawmakers in 1986. In 2005 the Legislature passed the act to start the selection process.

Hawaii Reserves President and Chief Executive Officer Eric Beaver said the company shares the desire of North Shore residents to keep the area rural.

But he also said the area needs the affordable homes that will be built on the company's agricultural land between La'ie and Kahuku. The land isn't in production and much of it is being used for pasture.

"I feel torn, too, because I agree we want to keep the country country and we want to keep open space and we want to keep everything beautiful," he said. "If anything, we want to enhance things with the built environment."

The best agriculture land will eventually be set aside but in the meantime it's inevitable that some agriculture lands will go to development, said Alan Takemoto, executive director for Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation.

The agriculture subdivisions are nibbling at prime farm land, and Maui and Kaua'i are seeking a moratorium on new subdivisions, Takemoto said, adding that O'ahu isn't at that point yet.

Nevertheless, once land begins subdividing, it could continue.

"We're concerned about that," he said. "The further you subdivide the better chance of it coming out of agriculture."

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.