The Maui County Council’s Housing and Land Use Committee voted 8-1 Wednesday to recommend passage of a bill to allow a 500-square-foot increase in the size of secondary farm dwellings in agricultural districts on Maui and Lānaʻi.

Bill 71 would not change the permitted size of a secondary farm dwelling on Molokaʻi, in deference to the Molokaʻi Planning Commission. The panel called for no change on Molokaʻi because of concerns about additional structure growth on agricultural lands there.

Currently, on 2-acre agricultural lots, the Maui County Code allows a 7,712-square-foot main farm dwelling and a 1,000-square-foot second dwelling, according to the Department of Planning. The proposed amendment would permit a 7,212-square-foot main house and a 1,500-square-foot secondary dwelling.

The Planning Department supports the bill, saying that increasing the size of the second farm dwelling would not significantly impact agricultural uses. Also, the development area of farm dwellings still would not exceed 10% of a property owner’s lot area.

The department also said the bill is consistent with the intent of the Maui County Code to restrict the size of a secondary farm dwelling to keep it incidental to the main residence.

Haʻikū resident David DeLeon submitted written testimony in favor of the bill, saying it provides a hint that, post wildfire disaster, Maui County’s housing policy may come to grips with its housing disaster by changing policy from “resisting new housing development to promoting and enabling it.”

“While the bill does not actually allow for more units being built in the Ag district, it does promote more livable space for our local families to live,” he said. “It promotes local families staying on the ‘farm’ by giving young families space to grow and space for grandma and grandpa to enjoy their golden years in comfort.

“While an extra 500 square feet used as a residence will have little to no impact on the agricultural function of the property, it will have a serious beneficial impact on the family residing in the home,” DeLeon said. “And because of that, perhaps this action may also promote more families staying on their land.”

Haʻikū residents Tracy and Laura Stice testified in person Wednesday and submitted written testimony in favor of the bill.

Owners of an Ulumalu Road lot since 1978, they said they’ve worked hard to farm it, but Tracy, 72, and Laura, 69, said they’re coping with health conditions, including arthritis that makes it increasingly challenging to navigate in a two-story home with an upstairs bedroom.

“Our children, Jeremy, Brianna and Chloe were born on this property. It has always been their home,” they said. “This property, once an abandoned 5-acre pineapple field devoid of trees, has been our labor of love. We have tirelessly farmed it, transforming it into a thriving ti-leaf , and fruit tree farm known as Maliko Ti. It is not just a piece of land to us but a testament to our dedication and hard work.”

Now, they plan to build a one-story home with no stairs, accessible bathrooms and wide doors for roll in and roll out access.

“Someday, we may not be able to walk and want to live our last years in this home rather than Hale Makua or Roselani (Place),” they said. “We support this bill because it would allow us to construct another bedroom or two to give long-term caregivers a place to live and help care for us as we age… Aging farmers need a place to live comfortably and safely and enjoy our grandchildren living next door.”

Grassroot Institute of Hawaiʻi submitted testimony in favor of the bill, saying it would provide more housing in Maui County. “An additional 500 square feet of living space could provide several new rooms, which could be used for a growing family or an elderly relative, or as a rental for a person or family displaced by the August 2023 Maui wildfires,” said Institute Executive Vice President Joe Kent.

West Maui Council Member Tamara Paltin and Molokaʻi Council Member Keani Rawlins-Fernandez had reservations about the bill and the problem of “fake farms,” as Paltin put it, especially in her West Maui residency district.

For decades, there have been complaints about so-called “gentlemen estates” crowding out commercial farming from agricultural areas and building expansive homes with only minimal amounts of “farming” activity. County enforcement in support of legitimate farming has proven difficult.

Paltin submitted a proposed amendment that would limit the cumulative size of two allowable farm dwellings on Maui to 5,000 square feet. Later, she proposed exempting the West Maui district from the bill. But ultimately neither amendment had enough support for a vote before the committee.

Lānaʻi Council Member Gabe Johnson said: “I will support this bill because we have a housing crisis. I think that some folks, and some of the testifiers were good examples of that, who were farmers and they are trying to farm actively. We don’t want to cast a wide enough net to catch them. We want to catch the fish that are taking advantage of the system. I think the problem that we’re trying to address, with Council Member Paltin’s amendment, there should be some nuance involved so that we can find the folks that are abusing our systems.”

“There are simple folks out there who are just trying to farm and do the right thing. And a little extra room for themselves and their family is a good idea,” he said.

Rawlins-Fernandez cast the sole dissenting vote against the bill.