Honolulu Council asks DPP to void Kamananui agribusiness CUP, citing unmet conditions and cultural, safety concerns

The Honolulu City Council on Nov. 5 adopted a hand‑carried resolution asking the Department of Planning and Permitting (DPP) to declare null and void, or to deny modifications to, a 2019 conditional‑use permit (CUP) for the Kamananui agribusiness project on the slopes of Mount Kaʻala.

The council’s action follows an extended public‑testimony period in which dozens of residents, landowners and community leaders said the developer failed to meet conditions tied to the original CUP and that the proposal’s scale and tourism elements (including a proposed gondola) are inconsistent with the parcel’s agricultural and cultural setting.

Why it matters: The resolution requests that DPP use authority in the 2019 Decision and Order to terminate uses authorized by the CUP if permit conditions are unmet. Testimony detailed conditions that speakers said were not satisfied — including multi‑year forestry plantings, specified acreage in crop cultivation and the phased establishment of fenced pastures and cattle — and raised concerns about cultural impacts, erosion and military training hazards on the adjacent US Army training lands.

Neighbors and community leaders described Kamananui as failing the permit’s agricultural and stewardship expectations. Mike Peach, owner of…