Members of the San Benito County Homeless Task Force are
starting to plan for a new shelter, one that might be built in
downtown Hollister.
HOLLISTER
Members of the San Benito County Homeless Task Force are starting to plan for a new shelter, one that might be built in downtown Hollister.
Task force member David Huboi acknowledged the group has more immediately concerns – namely, a budget shortfall that could lead to an early closure at the county’s winter homeless shelter. But the task force has a broader vision, too, Huboi said, and that means eventually building a year-round shelter in a more central location.
“(The current shelter) doesn’t really meet our long-term needs,” Huboi said. “My vision is for a nice site in a stable area.”
The county’s existing homeless shelter is open only from November until March, Huboi noted, and its location on Southside Road means the homeless need to take a bus to and from the building every day. Ideally, the shelter would be a lot closer to job opportunities, counseling services and mass transit, he said.
Huboi, along with task force member Scott Fuller, were recently appointed to a committee that will investigate opportunities for a new Hollister shelter. Anthony Ha 12.26.07 tweaked this paragraph
Fuller confirmed that Huboi recruited him for the new committee.
“There’s a great need in the community,” he said.
Construction probably wouldn’t begin for another few years. But Huboi, who chairs the Hollister Planning Commission, is already working to make sure the shelter would have a clear path to fruition.
The planning commission is developing a new zoning ordinance to match the city’s 2005 general plan, and Huboi said homeless shelters should be allowed in “mixed-use commercial” districts, including downtown Hollister.
“(Commercial mixed-use), to me, means downtown, but there are other mixed-use areas,” Huboi said.
The land formerly occupied by GAF Leatherback Co. could also be a good location for future facilities, he said.
Huboi’s desires dovetail nicely with new statewide rules, said Hollister Development Services Director Bill Avera. State agencies now mandate that all cities allow “special needs housing” in at least one zoning district. Such housing isn’t limited to homeless shelters, Avera added. It includes “a tremendous range,” from recovery homes to residential care facilities for the elderly.
Hollister’s current zoning ordinance would already allow a homeless shelter to be built in some parts of the city, but other towns are less welcoming, Avera said.
“Sometimes cities like to zone these things out of existence,” he said.
The zoning ordinance should be done in the next few months, Avera said. He had previously said the ordinance would be finished by the end of 2007, but Avera told the Free Lance on Wednesday that all the planning and public outreach has taken longer than expected.
“It’s coming together,” he said.
