Ask the Mayor: Fruit Stand Revisited

Hāna Ranch Farm Stand. Courtesy photo.

Mayor Alan Arakawa answers some of the questions submitted to his office staff. Submit your own questions about County of Maui programs, services, operations or policies to Mayor Alan Arakawa via email at AskTheMayor@mauicounty.gov, call 270-7855 or send them by mail to 200 S. High St., 9th Floor, Wailuku, HI 96793. Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the “Ask the Mayor” column.

The following is a corrected response to a question that ran in last week’s column. The code has been updated through legislative action, but has yet to be reflected in the online version.

Hello Mayor Arakawa!

Q: Quick question… My partner and I will be moving to North Shore Maui near Ha‘ikū off of Highway 360. Will we be able to set up a little fruit stand where our drive meets the highway? Really hope so! We’d love to share our bounty with the people of Maui.

A: Yes, a fruit stand could be allowed if it meets the requirements of Chapter 19.30A of the Maui County Code. The property is probably zoned agriculture, and certain “commercial agricultural structures” are allowed as accessory uses in the county agriculture district, meaning that there must be a principal agricultural use being conducted on the property in order for the accessory use to occur. An “agricultural products stand” is one type of commercial agricultural structure that would be allowed.

The code states that such stands are “partially enclosed by walls, at least 25% open to the outside when in operation, owned and operated by a single agricultural product producer for the display and sale of agricultural products grown, raised, or caught in the County, and value-added products produced using agricultural products grown, raised or caught in Hawai‘i.”

If the stand is between 301 and 1,000 square feet, it needs to be registered with the Planning Department before operation; the registration process includes having an approved and implemented farm plan. If the stand is 300 square feet or less, then it does not need to be registered.

LINK
Ask the Mayor: Can I Open a Fruit Stand on My Property?