After four years of delays, developer Award Homes will get
another shot at annexing 125-acres into the city, possibly ending
the battle between the developer, the Local Agency Formation
Commission (LAFCo) and the City of Hollister.
Hollister – After four years of delays, developer Award Homes will get another shot at annexing 125-acres into the city, possibly ending the battle between the developer, the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) and the City of Hollister.
On Monday night, the City Council approved two resolutions that may bring the three groups closer to a truce. One requires Award Homes to reimburse the City for consulting costs associated with their proposed 677-home project west of Fairview Road. The other gives the company an extension on its development agreement, and permission to ask LAFCo on Dec. 16. to annex their property into the city again after being shot down in 2000.
“We pretty much agreed that we’d work with them (Award Homes) and let them come into Hollister. The project is probably going to get through,” said Councilman Robert Scattini.
Councilwoman Pauline Valdivia cast the sole vote against sending the developer back to LAFCo and extending its development agreement.
“I voted yes on the first (reimbursement) resolution, because I think Award Homes should pay their share of costs they’ve already incurred. But the second one, for resubmission of services… I’ve been very consistent with my position because we don’t have the resources for this (many new houses) right now. Highway 25 is still up in the air, and we don’t have the sewer. This is going to have a big impact on the community,” Valdivia said.
Award Homes could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Award Homes is pursuing a $54 million lawsuit against LAFCo, alleging the organization unfairly froze the developer’s plans to build 677 homes west of Fairview Road by refusing it annexation after the project had already been approved by the Council. LAFCo ruled that the city couldn’t support the services the project needed.
“At the same time they got their approval, the county was starting to get really cynical about growth, and this project kind of became the poster-child for anti-growth,” Mayor Tony Bruscia said.
He added the decision about annexation was also held up because the city and the county couldn’t agree on which agency got the tax dollars from the area if the land were annexed.
Award Homes wants the 125-acre parcel of land off of Fairview Road next to St. Benedict’s church annexed into the City of Hollister. LAFCo is the agency that approves or denies annexations. The city is now trying to help LAFCo straighten things out with the developer, Scattini said.
The first resolution approved Monday details an agreement between Award Homes and the City of Hollister that the developer will reimburse the City for all of the costs associated with the West of Fairview project.
This will include outside environmental and legal consultants, a planning department liaison and the hourly rate of city employees working on the project.
The overall cost is currently projected at about $10,000, which Award Homes will be putting down as a deposit if and when the annexation is approved by LAFCo.
The council also passed a resolution Monday asking Award Homes to resubmit their service plans – which explain how and when the city will provide services to the area – to LAFCo. This essentially means the city agreed to extend Award Homes’ development agreement, which expired after the sewer moratorium began, Bruscia said.
In May, the council also negotiated a $1 million injection into the General Fund to be paid by Award Homes in two installments of $500,000, and a requirement that 20 percent of the houses built on the Award tract must be affordable. But since then, Bruscia said, the council has negotiated for double the affordable housing. In addition, the first payment of $500,000 has already been made to the city, so Hollister’s General Fund will keep that money regardless of whether the homes actually get built, Bruscia said.
Tony LoBue, who will be leaving the council on Dec. 13 after four years in office, said he was glad to see the conflict between Award Homes and the City of Hollister may finally be resolved. The initial approval for the project had been given before LoBue joined the council in 2000, but it was only after he and councilmen Bruscia and Brian Conroy took office that the lawsuit and fighting began.
“I started my term with this and it looks like I’m going to end my term with this,” LoBue said. “Four years ago, we had Award Homes dumped in our laps, and I’m glad that it’s now coming to an end.”
Jessica Quandt covers politics for the Free Lance. Reach her at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or at jq*****@fr***********.com.
