Gov. Linda Lingle has approved an Enterprise Zone designation for Waimanalo to help stimulate business activity and enhance employment opportunities in that Windward O'ahu community.

The designation is a joint state and county effort that offers tax incentives and a priority permitting process for certain types of businesses, such as in agriculture, manufacturing, technology, biotechnology and wholesaling. Each county can select up to six zones for approval by the governor.

Waimanalo is O'ahu's sixth Enterprise Zone and the state's 22nd. There are 210 firms enrolled in the Enterprise Zone program, up from 170 in 2002, according to the state.

A proposal to declare Waimanalo an Enterprise Zone was made in 2001 by the Waimanalo Community Development Corp. and the neighborhood board. The Honolulu City Council passed a resolution supporting the proposal last year, and in January Mayor Mufi Hannemann requested that Lingle approve the designation.

"The new Enterprise Zone will help support Waimanalo small businesses and increase employment opportunities in Waimanalo for area residents," Lingle said in a press release. "The Enterprise Zone will also help perpetuate Wamanalo's agricultural heritage as well as preserve Windward O'ahu's rural lifestyle."

The proposal to grant Waimanalo the special designation was supported by area farmers including Dean Okimoto, head of Nalo Farms and the Hawaii Farm Bureau.

Businesses that meet Enterprise Zone criteria will be eligible for state benefits, including exemption from general excise tax on eligible revenue and income tax credits for seven years. On the county level, qualified businesses may receive property tax adjustments, zoning or building permit waivers or variances, and priority consideration for federal job training or community development funds.

For information on the Enterprise Zone program, visit www.hawaii.gov/dbedt/business/programs/ez, or call the state Enterprise Zone coordinator at 586-2593.