Hollister
– San Benito County has hired Emeryville consulting firm Bay
Area Economics to study the economic impacts of proposed
developments, including the 6,800-unit El Rancho San Benito.
Hollister – San Benito County has hired Emeryville consulting firm Bay Area Economics to study the economic impacts of proposed developments, including the 6,800-unit El Rancho San Benito.
County Planning Director Art Henriques said neither the county nor many other consultants have resources to analyze a large project on their own.
“There aren’t too many firms out there that have taken on a project of this size,” Henriques said.
But Bay Area Economics has analyzed large projects before, including the Coyote Valley development in Santa Clara County, Henriques said.
Hiring consultants will ensure that the county knows what it’s getting into when it looks at proposed developments, said county Supervisor Jaime De La Cruz. The analysis also could help the county push for more low-income housing, recreational facilities and job creation.
“It could put us in a better negotiating position with the developers,” De La Cruz said.
Under contract terms, the county could pay Bay Area Economics up to $100,000 over the next year, but Henriques said individual jobs must be approved by the San Benito County Board of Supervisors.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho said hiring consultants will help avoid the dilemma Hollister faced five years ago, when rapid development overloaded the city’s infrastructure.
The county in the past has hired consultants to examine financial impacts of individual developments, including San Juan Oaks, but the contract with Bay Area Economics is a more comprehensive approach to the issue, Henriques said.
“We have not really engaged and taken into account the economic benefits and shortfalls of these developments,” Botelho said.
Supervisors unanimously approved the contract Tuesday, but they disagreed on one of the firm’s first tasks for the county – performing preliminary analysis of El Rancho San Benito.
Botelho and Supervisor Pat Loe voted against the analysis. Botelho said the county should wait until El Rancho San Benito developer DMB actually submits an application.
But De La Cruz said the county needs to start gathering information right away because a development of this size will be required to go before voters.
“To wait until an application is submitted is not fair to the community and not fair to the staff,” De La Cruz said.
El Rancho San Benito project manager Ray Becker agreed that initiating the analysis makes sense for both the county and DMB because it will allow the developer to address any financial concerns in its initial application.
“Frankly, it’s good for us, too,” he said.
DMB is still on track to submit a project application in late September, Becker said.
