Hawaiʻi Ag Leaders Planned To Oust Official Despite Public Praise

Wendy Gady has stepped down from her role as executive director of the Agribusiness Development Corp., an influential state agency charged with overseeing the acquisition and rehabilitation of the Wahiawā Dam and tens of millions of dollars in other agricultural initiatives.

Gady submitted her resignation on Aug. 12, two days after board chair Jayson Watts celebrated the "historic strides" made by the corporation in a press release. However, he and three other board members were already planning to recommend the board fire Gady during her annual performance evaluation on Aug. 17.

An interim director is expected to be chosen at the board's meeting Thursday, when the board will also take up Gady's performance evaluation. Gady earned a salary of $148,000 in the role.

The resignation comes as the once-beleaguered organization gains momentum toward several goals aimed at revitalizing the state's agricultural economy. It also follows a slowly evolving shakeup of ADC leadership, including the unceremonious ousting of its former board chair last year and the appointment of new board members in recent months.

Four of the five members of the evaluation committee, including board chair Watts, said Gady had failed to meet many of the job's 48 performance metrics. Some related to management of the corporation's growing land and infrastructure portfolio while others pertained to leadership, legal proceedings, budget management and cleaning up the mess Gady inherited in 2023.

More: Embattled Agribusiness Corporation Has Powerful Friends

Watts, who works for Maui's largest agribusiness Mahi Pono, was not the only board member to recommend Gady's dismissal. He was joined by Maui native Ciara Kahahane, deputy director of the state Commission on Water Resource Management; Dane Wicker, deputy director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; and Dave Hinazumi, senior vice president of Grove Farm, one of Kaua‘i's biggest and oldest ag companies.

Big Island macadamia nut farmer Nathan Trump was Gady's only supporter on the evaluation committee. He said in testimony that she "exemplifies strong leadership and portrays the ADC in a positive light despite significant internal and external challenges."

Neither Watts nor Gady responded to requests for comment.

"I do not believe it would be productive to debate subjective assessments contained in the evaluation or ask the Board to revisit them," Gady told the board in a letter Monday.

Gady joined an organization in disarray, taking over from longtime director James Nakatani who died in 2023. The corporation had been castigated in a 2021 state audit because it had failed to keep records or develop concrete plans, and had "done little -- if anything -- toward achieving its statutory purpose" of reinvigorating Hawaiʻi's agricultural economy.

Under Gady's leadership, the state-owned corporation opened up more than 1,000 acres in its portfolio to farmers, increased the agency's landholdings and acquired the problematic Wahiawā Dam and Spillway on behalf of the state. The dam, long owned by Dole Food Co., had threatened to overflow during the Kona low storms in March, putting 2,500 lives at risk on O‘ahu's North Shore.

Gady also led the $39 million acquisition of more than 1,000 acres of land from Grove Farm on Kauaʻi, alongside former board chair Lyle Tabata, and helped direct almost $11 million into restoring irrigation for agriculture in Kekaha.

"But the more important accomplishment is what those numbers represent: more land being positioned for agriculture, more farmers being served, and greater capacity to support Hawaii agriculture for the long term," Gady wrote in her resignation letter.

The corporation has long been an engine for projects in Wahiawā, largely driven by Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz, who chairs the Senate money committee. Lawmakers allocated $111 million to the corporation this year for infrastructure projects, predominantly centered on Kauaʻi and Central Oʻahu.

Those projects include the ongoing construction of the Central Oʻahu Agriculture and Food Hub in Whitmore Village, which has been criticized by the local community for being pursued in obscurity by Gady's predecessor.

"The community, we have really appreciated having her in leadership," said Rep. Amy Perruso, who represents Wahiawā. "We've seen an improvement in the ADC's processes.”

Shaking Things Up

Gady’s exit is the latest change in a monthslong shakeup of corporation leadership, with the reorganization of its governance structure and the addition of new board members and leadership, including two new Kauaʻi representatives.

Joshua Uyehara, president of the Kekaha Agriculture Association, was appointed to replace former Young Brothers president Glenn Hong, whose term ended.

Hinazumi of Grove Farm was appointed to the board to replace former board chair Tabata after Gov. Josh Green in June 2025 withdrew Tabata's interim appointment to the board after four years. Watts was later chosen to become chair.