Now that much of the debate on the Indian casino proposed to be
built near the Hollister Airport is focusing on jobs, one thing
that should be made clear:
Now that much of the debate on the Indian casino proposed to be built near the Hollister Airport is focusing on jobs, one thing that should be made clear: The best way to attract employers to Hollister is to complete a new sewer plant and lift the building moratorium that is so seriously damaging the city’s economy.
The allure of the casino’s promised 2,000 union-wage jobs is powerful, especially for a city that has been suffocating economically under a building moratorium since 2002. And now that the October, 2005 deadline for completing a new sewer plant – allowing new businesses to build here and current businesses to expand – won’t be met, the Hollister City Council must be sorely tempted by the prospect of all those jobs. The sewer plant might not be complete until 2007.
But it is clear that a large number of residents, the San Benito County Supervisors and, now, the San Juan Bautista City Council don’t want those particular jobs. What is equally clear is there is a huge thirst for local employment at decent wages.
Hollister has yet to weigh in on the casino, and council members feel they have an obligation to see what the casino has to offer the city and its residents before they show their cards. Mayor Pauline Valdivia will appoint a committee to research the project next week.
She should expand the scope of the committee to explore all the economic opportunities available to the city.
Hollister and San Benito County should team up with the Economic Development Corporation to see if we truly have no job options other than a casino. How many businesses are out there that would come to Hollister if there were no moratorium? How many are planning to expand once the moratorium lifts? Can we sell our area as a future location for businesses once the moratorium lifts? How many jobs will those businesses bring?
Finding those answers will paint the full economic picture for the council, which can then make a well-informed vote.
What we think will become apparent to the committee is that there are other opportunities out there for sustained, long-term economic growth once the moratorium is lifted.
