Key Takeaways<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Kaumakani, a name that translates from the Hawaiian language as \u201cplace in the wind,\u201d is a \u00a0former sugar plantation camp founded in the late 19th century on the island of Kauai.<\/p>\r\nKauai, known as the Garden Isle because of its lush landscapes, is the fourth largest of the Hawaiian islands and has served as the backdrop of numerous films, including Jurassic Park <\/em>and\u00a0Avatar. <\/i>Kauai is home to less than 5 percent of Hawaii\u2019s people and the population of Kaumakani\u2014around 720 people\u2014is less than 1 percent of Kauai\u2019s.\r\n On any given day, nearly one-third of the people on Kauai are tourists. They have no lasting stake in Kauai\u2019s future, but their connection to Hawaii\u2019s major economic driver can slant the island\u2019s power dynamics, stifling the voice of Kauai\u2019s permanent population.<\/p>\r\n A small rural settlement like Kaumakani is especially vulnerable. That's one reason the planning department for the County of Kauai uses maps and geographic information system (GIS) technology to help protect Kaumakani\u2019s unique character. A recent survey of the area gathered details and enshrined them in a new type of building code, protecting Kaumakani\u2019s roots from cultural erosion.<\/p>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"gallery","gallery_images":[601062,601082,601072]},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Sugar is no longer a viable industry on Kauai, but several of the plantation camps it generated still survive as contemporary housing. As the County of Kauai\u2019s Planning Department noted in its recent general plan<\/a>\u2014which received the American Planning Association\u2019s most prestigious award<\/a>\u2014the camps occupy a unique place in the island\u2019s history and culture.<\/p>\r\n Their location, surrounded by sugar cane fields, \u201ccreated a greenbelt that differentiated towns from agricultural and natural areas,\u201d the report noted. \u201cThis relationship between built areas and surrounding natural or agricultural lands heavily influences [the island\u2019s] character [and] rural identity.\u201d<\/p>\r\n The pedestrian-oriented scale of the camps fostered walkable communities, even with the rise of the automobile. That communal feel remains today. However, the camps\u2019 relative isolation and paucity of services\u2014Kaumakani has a single, small retail area\u2014make residents largely car dependent.<\/p>\r\n The general plan includes a commitment to \u201crevitalize, restore, and celebrate these characterful towns that promote healthy economies and community life.\u201d Kaumakani appears in the plan as one of five priority equity areas, given its makeup of largely low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. Recently, planners had to navigate the tension between preservation and adaptation.<\/p>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"gallery","gallery_images":[602062,601162,601172]},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Most of Kaumakani\u2019s modest homes\u2014relatively low-cost rentals\u2014were built in the 1940s, before the sugar plantation changed ownership. In 2022, Kaumakani\u2019s current owners expressed an interest in demolishing and replacing some of the unoccupied homes that had fallen into disrepair. The owners also wanted to build new structures on the camp\u2019s mostly vacant fourth quadrant.<\/p>\r\n Planners had to look closely to determine what the land owners would be allowed to do\u2014and to detail how they would be allowed to do it.<\/p>\r\n \u201cThe thing that\u2019s so unique about this area, and which required a different approach, is that it\u2019s just one big property with no lot lines, built before there were any complex zoning ordinances,\u201d said Alan Clinton, an administrative planner for the county.<\/p>\r\n The planning department would have to start from scratch, formulating a code that would articulate what makes Kaumakani Kaumakani.<\/p>\r\n County planners walked the streets, observing the form and layout of the neighborhood. They carried mobile devices loaded with ArcGIS QuickCapture<\/a> to gather relevant details and place them on a shared map. All information\u2014pictures, notes, data\u2014populated this map.<\/p>\r\n \u201cTo write the code, we made a lot of measurements, took photos of everything, and put together a series of features,\u201d Clinton said.<\/p>\r\n As the map developed, it revealed patterns that helped the planning department define the formal elements the landowners needed to include in their structures. The code was appended to the 300-page West Kauai Form-Based Code.<\/p>\r\n Besides describing how the homes should look to conform to the plantation architectural style, the planners also wanted to preserve the way private housing and public street life were closely intertwined in Kaumakani. The new code defined the allowed frontage, the maximum amount of space between a building\u2019s facade and the street.<\/p>\r\n\r\n The map, and the building forms within it, revealed fascinating details about the essential characteristics of Kaumakani that would likely have gone unnoticed otherwise.<\/p>\r\n Clinton pointed to an aerial view provided by the department\u2019s Kaumakani map. \u201cYou\u2019ll notice that all these homes have a main central body and a carport on the side,\u201d he said. Close observation and an understanding of local culture helped the planners understand the carports\u2019 significance.<\/p>\r\n \u201cOftentimes, planners will say parking in the front is bad,\u201d Clinton said. \u201cBut these carports are really more like outdoor living spaces. They\u2019re places where people eat, or even live. They\u2019re kind of extensions of the houses' interior space.\u201d<\/p>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"gallery","gallery_images":[602092,602082,602512,602042,602072]},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" The carports were never part of the original design of the houses. They had appeared organically, added to the properties over the years by individual tenants.<\/p>\r\n The property owner, which had already begun to build some of the replacement homes, had missed the carports\u2019 significance.<\/p>\r\n \u201cWe told them, \u2018Sorry, guys, but this is part of the form and character of the camp,\u2019\u201d Clinton said. \u201cThe carports are a defining element that we wanted to make sure was included.\u201d<\/p>\r\n Clinton pointed to interesting detail from the map. On one quadrant, the homes had been built with a vertical orientation to the street, while in another, they varied, forming a neat pattern that alternated between vertical and horizontal. As carports had been added over the years, tenants had followed these patterns.<\/p>\r\n The lack of formal lot lines made this all the more remarkable. The patterns had emerged without guidance and likely without discussion among tenants. They are now part of Kaumakani\u2019s building code.<\/p>\r\n\r\n In Hawaii, the concept of land planning taps into a unique historical and cultural vein. In the Indigenous Hawaiian belief system, the concept of land\u2014or aina\u2014<\/em>implies not just the ground itself but also the connection between people and place<\/a>. The concept of aloha aina<\/em> (love of the land) is a deeply rooted tenet with connotations of patriotism. The local word used to describe a resident of Hawaii\u2014kamaaina<\/em>\u2014translates literally as child of the land.<\/p>\r\n The general plan for the island reflects the department\u2019s understanding of these ideals. It was assembled with extensive community input, including informal \u201ctalk story\u201d sessions, a local term that refers to casual conversation.<\/p>\r\n These sessions influenced the planners\u2019 approach to applying zoning ordinances to plantation camps like Kaumakani. Feedback from camp residents included the importance of community childcare centers and the interest in adding yurts or tiny homes to increase the amount of living space.<\/p>\r\n One way the department demonstrates its respect for a historically rich neighborhood like Kaumakani is via a modern approach that runs counter to traditional urban and regional planning orthodoxy.<\/p>\r\n \u201cPlanners have usually divided land into usage categories\u2014like, this area is for industrial purposes; that one is for single-family homes,\u201d Clinton said. \u201cBut over the years, focusing on use hasn\u2019t always supported the historic areas people love and enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\r\n The alternative approach\u2014form-based zoning codes\u2014retains usage categories while adding humanist considerations. Function, to varying degrees, follows form.<\/p>\r\n \u201cForm-based codes highlight form and character over use,\u201d Clinton said. \u201cWe create a whole new zoning code that focuses on building types, how structures interact with the street, and how the form and character of buildings fit an area.\u201d<\/p>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"gallery","gallery_images":[602762,602772,602752]},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Island Camps<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n
Past and Present<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n
Carport Confidential<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n
The Move to Foreground Form<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n