City Councilwoman Mickie Luna reacted after the fatal accident Monday—involving a bus that struck a boy on a bicycle—by pointing out that many users of the nearby skate park facility neglect to wear helmets, as required by law.
Luna and other city officials Tuesday offered their thoughts a day after Joshua Rodriguez, 11, died in the accident at Memorial Drive and Verdun Avenue.
Luna mentioned how earlier this year during a city council meeting she had expressed concern about the striking lack of helmet use by skaters and bicycle riders in Hollister. She recalled how she had visited skate park at Veterans Memorial Park, along Memorial Drive, and watched for more than 30 minutes as eight or nine skaters used the facility, the majority without helmets.
Luna said she was unsure whether Rodriguez had on a helmet at the time of the accident, but the incident made her reflect on the lacking use of the safety gear.
“They were having fun but they didn’t have helmets on,” she said.
Luna also talked about parental supervision in light of the accident.
“There’s got to be a way of having more parental involvement to oversee these young people that are actually out there,” Luna said.
She said children are skating all around town, sometimes using property that’s inappropriate for skateboards such as the Veterans Memorial Building.
“I just feel that parents—sometimes the park is out of sight, out of mind,” Luna said.
While Luna focused on the helmet and parental supervision issues, Councilman Victor Gomez recommended the city consider safety improvements in the area such as an enhanced crosswalk, perhaps with flashing lights.
Gomez noted how Memorial Drive is four lanes wide from Hillcrest Road to Sunnyslope Road, where the park is on one end and homes are on the other.
“People are going to drive fast,” he said.
