Hollister
– While local transportation officials agree that closing a
budget gap for the Highway 25 bypass will require diverting funds
from other local road projects, neither city nor county officials
on the San Benito County Council of Governments are ready to
volunteer their projects for the chopping blo
ck as the deadline looms to make a decision.
Hollister – While local transportation officials agree that closing a budget gap for the Highway 25 bypass will require diverting funds from other local road projects, neither city nor county officials on the San Benito County Council of Governments are ready to volunteer their projects for the chopping block as the deadline looms to make a decision.
It came to light last month that the budget for the long-awaited bypass project – which will create a new leg of Highway 25 that circumvents downtown Hollister – was short $15.5 million. While the bulk of the shortfall can be made up by $9.2 in traffic impact fees, coming up the additional $6.3 million will require delaying at least one other transportation project to divert the funding to the bypass.
The City of Hollister’s North Street extension – which has been on the books, but dormant, for three decades – is one option for COG to find about $5 million for the bypass. The extension would connect North Street to Buena Vista Road, providing an alternative east/west route for motorists coming or going to Hollister. Construction of the project is slated to start in spring. Another option is the county’s $1.8 million project to realign John Smith Road at the intersection of Fairview Road and St. Benedicts Way and add a signal to the intersection. With a $12 million budget, COG’s Highway 25 safety improvement project, which includes widening the road and installing a center barrier, is also a possibility. Both the John Smith Road project and the Highway 25 improvements are slated to begin this summer.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho, a county representative on the COG board, said that he thinks that Hollister should divert funds from its North Street project for the bypass, rather than use money from the other projects being considered.
“(The bypass is) a city project in my estimation. North Street is not as critical as Highway 25 safety improvements,” Botelho said, adding that he doesn’t think that the county should agree to use money from the John Smith Road project for the bypass either.
Hollister Mayor Robert Scattini disagrees with Botelho, saying that the city needs the North Street extension and the bypass shortfall should be made up with money from the Highway 25 improvement project.
“I don’t like (postponing North Street),” he said.
Scattini said that there haven’t been any major accidents on Highway 25 since interim improvements – including solid yellow stripes with bumps dividing opposing lanes and rumble strips on the median – were made and that further improvements can wait. He said that he won’t give up on trying to convince his COG board colleagues to postpone the safety improvements rather than North Street.
“I’m going to still work on that,” Scattini said. “And that’s tough, because it’s something that nobody wants to touch.”
Ultimately, because it is a city project using city impact fees, it will be the Hollister City Council, not COG, that decides whether funds from the North Street project will be funneled to the bypass, according to City Manager Clint Quilter.
Councilman Doug Emerson said that he isn’t convinced that Hollister should postpone the North Street project.
“I’m not sure. We have to divert funds someplace, but I’m not ready to commit to the North Street Extension,” he said. “I’m still wondering about (taking funds from) the Highway 25 safety improvements.”
Emerson disagreed with Botelho saying that the bypass was a city project. Though it is within the city limits, it is a project that will benefit both the city and the county, he said.
“It’s not just a city issue,” he said.
The COG board needs to figure out a way to fund the bypass, however that might be, by next month when the project right-of-way is set to get Caltrans approval, according to COG Traffic Planner Mary Dinkuhn. Construction on the project is slated to begin in August and take less than two years.
If the bypass is delayed, rising costs and the complexities involved in road projects will make the bypass difficult to complete, Quilter said. If it comes before the council, Quilter said that he will recommend shelving the North Street project and plowing ahead with the bypass.
Despite the disagreement, Botelho said he is committed to seeing the bypass stay on schedule.
“It’s critical,” he said. “We need to work together and get this thing done, and take real hard look at where funding should come from and prioritize our roads.”
Luke Roney covers local government and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at lr****@fr***********.com
