Hollister
– The Hollister Planning Commission gave final approval
Wednesday to developer Award Homes’ 677-unit subdivision, bringing
an end to years of litigation and debate over its effect on the
city’s growth.
Hollister – The Hollister Planning Commission gave final approval Wednesday to developer Award Homes’ 677-unit subdivision, bringing an end to years of litigation and debate over its effect on the city’s growth.
The decision marks the last time the city needs to approve the whole project, which will be located west of Fairview Road and north of Airline Highway. Commissioners voted unanimously in favor of the project’s tentative map, while each of the subdivision’s individual elements will undergo site and architectural review.
“We’ve worked with staff diligently to try to come up with a project we could all live with,” said Award Homes’ attorney Frank Nicoletti.
The proposed development would be built on 125 acres and include 517 single-family houses, 60 “garden homes” built at a higher density and 100 apartments. As currently planned, construction of the Award Homes subdivision will account for about one-third of Hollister’s growth after the city’s building moratorium is lifted.
Project plans go back to the 1990s. The City Council approved a development agreement with Award Homes in 2000, but the plans drew heavy criticism from slow-growth advocates, and the Local Agency Formation Commission refused to annex the land into the city. The developer sued LAFCO, and the agency eventually agreed to annex the project after Award Homes offered the city additional incentives.
Residents earlier this year appeared at Planning Commission and City Council meetings to protest the plan and its potential impact on Hollister, but only one of the project’s critics attended Tuesday’s meeting.
Mary Maio, who said she was speaking for many of her neighbors, urged the city to pursue a design that hews more closely to “smart growth” principles and is more environmentally friendly.
“Does it give us a sense of place, or is it more of the same?” she said.
Planning Commissioner Raymond Friend said the developer has set aside land to protect vernal pool habitats and taken other measures to be environmentally conscious.
“What more could be done, except for not developing that area?” Friend said.
In March, Commissioners Chris Alvarez and David Huboi voted against approving the project’s supplemental environmental impact report. At the time, Huboi said he was worried about the project’s effect on local schools, and whether the city has enough resources to ensure the developer follows the agreement.
But Huboi, the commission’s newly-elected chairman, said some of his concerns have been addressed, because Award Homes will have to hire professionals to oversee the mitigation process.
“I’m very pleased to see that it puts some responsibility on the applicant to assure the mitigation occurs,” Huboi said.
The company hopes to start construction in 2008, Nicoletti said. According to the city’s buildout schedule, Award Homes will construct 125 units in 2008 and 2009, and more than 50 units every year after that through 2015.
