Hollister
– Current and former members of the City Council, along with
City Manager Clint Quilter, took shovels in hand on Tuesday morning
and broke ground on the long-awaited wastewater treatment
plant.
Hollister – Current and former members of the City Council, along with City Manager Clint Quilter, took shovels in hand on Tuesday morning and broke ground on the long-awaited wastewater treatment plant.
“Wow, I can’t believe we’re here,” Councilwoman Pauline Valdivia said. “We’re finally here.”
Marvin Jones, a local resident who attended the groundbreaking, said he’s relieved the city is finally moving forward with construction.
“Maybe this is the end of the beginning,” he said.
The state imposed a moratorium on new sewer hook-ups in 2002, after 15 million gallons of treated sewage spilled into the San Benito River. The moratorium has effectively brought a halt to new development in Hollister; it will be lifted when the new plant goes on line, which is scheduled for 2008.
A number of city officials spoke before the actual groundbreaking, often thanking the many people involved in the project.
“This is a very momentous day for the city,” City Engineer Steve Wittry said. He noted that the wastewater project has two other phases – one to provide additional storage capacity and one to provide effluent disposal – but, he said, “This is the big one. This is the one that builds the plant.”
Councilman Doug Emerson credited City Manager Clint Quilter’s vision with driving the project, and said he deserves much of the credit. Emerson also thanked the residents of Hollister for their patience and support.
“I know every person in Hollister has been affected by this moratorium,” he said.
It’s a statement that Hollister resident Anita Pedrazzi-Minkle agreed with. Noting that developers were building quickly and carelessly before the moratorium, Pedrazzi-Minkle told the Free Lance that the development halt has had good and bad effects.
“(The moratorium) is the only thing that saved the town from being totally buried,” she said.
On the other hand, Pedrazzi-Minkle said, the lack of new development led to escalating property values. Now that the values are falling again, people who bought homes when prices were at their peak will suffer.
In the past, Pedrazzi-Minkle has spoken critically about the council’s handling of the sewer woes, particularly the increased sewer rates needed to fund the project.
“I believe it’s a good thing that the groundbreaking finally happened,” she said. “But there were better alternatives that were never pursued.”
Pedrazzi-Minkle added that to be more fair, sewer rates should be based on usage, rather than a flat fee.
For his part, Jones said he isn’t thrilled with the higher rates – which start this month – but he supports the council’s decision.
“It’s one of those necessary evils,” he said.
Mayor Brad Pike compared the wastewater project to a football game. He said that with the groundbreaking, all of the players are on the field and the game can begin.
“This is just the kickoff,” Pike said.
Anthony Ha covers local government for the Free Lance. Reach him at (831) 637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected].
