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Maui County planning

From dKosopedia

Categories: Maui County, Hawaii | Planning in Hawaii | Maui County planning

Contents

Overview

Private land use in Hawaii is highly regulated by a dual system of state and county laws. There are also federal laws that affect land use, such as wetland protection. Federal lands (such as the national parks) are not covered by state and county land use laws. [1]

State land use classifications

All land in Hawaii is classified into one of four classifications:

  1. Conservation,
  2. Agricultural,
  3. Rural, and
  4. Urban.

The boundaries were initially set by the State Land Use Commission (LUC), a body of nine members appointed by the Governor. Changes to the boundaries can be done by ordinance of the County Council for areas of 15 acres or less, otherwise, the LUC must approve changes by a 6-3 vote. Only the LUC can take land out of the Conservation District. Typically, boundary amendments are initiated by landowner application and reviewed on a case-by-case basis, but the law also allows the state to conduct a periodic boundary review. [2]

Conservation District

Except for land that is also in the Special Management Area (SMA), as explained in more detail below, the Conservation District is solely under State jurisdiction. The Hawaii State Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) has administrative responsibility over the Conservation District. [3]


Agricultural District

The County administers the Agricultural District within the framework of the State land use law. State law and LUC rules limit uses in the agricultural district, most of them relating to agriculture, including mills and other processing facilities, but allowing some non-agricultural uses such as wind energy facilities.

On lots created by subdivisions approved after June 4, 1976, homes are supposed to be “farm dwellings”, or otherwise accessory to agriculture, but in pre-June 4, 1976 subdivisions the homes can be “singlefamily dwellings.”

Lot sizes for subdivisions in the Agricultural District are set by the County Council through zoning, but must be at least one acre by state law.

The “special permit” process potentially allows a wide range of other uses. A special permit can be issued for any “unusual and reasonable” use. For areas of 15 acres or less, the County Planning Commission decides the special permit. For more than 15 acres, the special permit must be approved by both the Planning Commission and the State Land Use Commission. Examples of common special permits are bed-and-breakfast operations and cell phone towers. [4]


Rural District

There are only three significant differences between the Rural District and the Agricultural District:

  1. homes can be single-family dwellings, even on post-June 4, 1976 subdivisions,
  2. the minimum lot size is ½ acre (with an exception to 18,500 ft2), and
  3. since a recent change in the law in 2005, golf courses are permitted in Rural, but not in the Agricultural District (although golf courses previously built or approved by the counties in the Agricultural District remain legal.) [5]


Urban District

The urban district is entirely under county jurisdiction and uses are controlled only by county zoning. [6]

External Links

Retrieved from "http://localhost../../../m/a/u/Maui_County_planning_2f2f.html"

This page was last modified 09:17, 23 September 2010 by dKosopedia user Jbet777. Content is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.


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