Hollister council members have chosen Walgreens over Denny’s as the competing bids sought use of city land on McCray Street.
Council members considered two bids received in January for 1.47 acres near the intersection of the Highway 25 bypass and Tres Pinos Road. The Council of San Benito County Governments handed over the property as part of the bypass’ completion in the spring of 2008.
City leaders on Tuesday awarded the bid to Hawkins Companies, which submitted the proposal to buy the land for $900,000 and build a 14,550-square-foot Walgreens store. The commercial developer, which has built more than 90 Walgreens stores, also has an option on the neighboring Gibson property required to complete the project, according to a city report.
The Hawkins representative at the council meeting said the company expects the store would open in mid-2013.
Harbhajan Dadwal, who was not at Tuesday’s meeting, and other developers submitted the proposal to buy the land for $702,445 and build a Denny’s. The same developer operates three Subways, a Mountain Mike’s and Water World locally.
The two proposals also included other data, including sales-tax information provided by a consultant that examines such information for the city. The estimates show that Walgreens, on average, provides about $24,000 annually in sales tax. Additionally, Walgreens stores generally employ 25 to 30 full- and part-time workers. Pay ranges from $9 per hour for clerks to $113,075 paid to pharmacists.
