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Develop tools to expedite permitting processes for the recovery of West Maui and Kula, aligning with the County's Planning and Long-Term Recovery Plan and the Maui ERC Planning Committee's Objectives to accelerate the rebuilding of the vision for Lahaina
This project seeks to address diversifying the economy, creating jobs, and feeding people on Maui by creating a Food System Workforce Task Force that would create a plan by February 2025, with recommended steps for immediate implementation with high potential of success within phases of one year, two years, and five years. The Task Force’s kuleana will include: identifying partnerships with workforce development and training opportunities in the food systems; securing workforce development funding streams for the development and training in all jobs along the supply chain; designing policies and programs that would create opportunities for career pathways; revising and rewriting existing policies that present barriers to farmers; devising a program design that would assure living wages, suitable workforce housing, agricultural labor dwellings, and long term lease availability; exploring partnerships with K-12 schools and the potential for workforce housing in a state farm bill; identifying prime agriculture lands that could be preserved and offered as long-term leases; incorporating loko i’a and other forms of regenerative aquaculture into the planning; analyzing interdependencies with agriculture across sectors such as housing and energy to identify synergies and strategies that align across multiple county and state goals; and more. A pause on any non-agriculturally related development of lands identified as agricultural lands, until the Task Force plan is completed, is recommended so as not to preclude the opportunity to cultivate a more local food system
Connects to health and well-being, natural resource (‘āina and wai) management, climate resilience, economic resilience, overlaps with other county plans on housing and energy for land use, competing land use needs
Cost Estimate: $130,000
Potential Funding Sources: USDA, County of Maui, Private Funders
Project Lead: Paula Daniels, The 30% Project
Project Partners
ERC members share from the ERC process:
Maui Nui Strong is a program of the County of Maui Office of Economic Development that connects our residents, businesses, and visitors to useful information about Maui County, our diverse islands, and a variety of resources that help to promote thriving and vibrant communities.
