A significant advancement for Hawaii's indigenous population was ceremoniously marked over the weekend as the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) awarded 68 agricultural lots on Hawai'i Island—its largest agricultural offering since the 1980s. These land parcels, situated in Hilo’s suburbs of Honomū and Makuʻu, provide budding opportunities for the DHHL beneficiaries to embrace both homesteading and agricultural ventures. They vary in size, with 1-acre lots earmarked for subsistence farming in Honomū, and Makuʻu offering up both 5-acre and 2-acre lots for a range of agricultural practices.
"ʻOhana are built on the ʻāina and it is the department’s commitment to keeping our families in Hawaiʻi and on the land," said Kali Watson, the Director of DHHL, affirming the department's dedication to perpetuate family bonds through land stewardship, as reported on the Office of the Governor website. Diverse homesteading options are to seemingly sustainably address the long-standing waitlist and the beneficiaries' desires to steadfastly put down roots on their ancestral soil.
About 200 beneficiaries gathered with their families at Keaukaha Elementary School to celebrate the allotment of these lots. For many, the occasion signified a hopeful step forward in cultivating a livable and productive future. These agricultural lots, particularly those designed for subsistence farming, are conveniently positioned near existing infrastructure, fostering an environment conducive to both residential life and modest economic growth through agriculture.
The terms for those who wish to take up more commercial farming are notably adduced; they are required to "create a farm plan, like a business plan" and must dedicate at least two-thirds of their land to cultivation, as noted by the DHHL. Alongside agricultural development, beneficiaries retain the choice to build a single-family home or supplemental dwelling unit, potentially transforming these parcels into hubs of holistic community growth. Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke espoused this as "an exciting milestone for DHHL beneficiaries," as mentioned on the Office of the Governor website, judging by her statement celebrating their path to food sovereignty and self-sustenance.
The momentum of development is poised to continue with an announcement of an additional 40 subsistence agricultural lots earmarked for Honomū and more than 1,600 lots across Hawaiʻi Island in locations like Laʻi ʻŌpua, Kaumana, Honokaʻa, Pālamanui, and Panaʻewa planned for the near future.
