So far, El Rancho San Benito is just a gleam in the eye of the
development company looking at building the mini-city in northern
San Benito County.
Hollister – So far, El Rancho San Benito is just a gleam in the eye of the development company looking at building the mini-city in northern San Benito County.
But the project is moving forward, and as it does Arizona-based DMB, which owns 4,500 acres just south of the Santa Clara County line, wants to know what county residents think of the idea. It will hold an open house Saturday from 10am to 2pm at Veterans Memorial Building in Hollister to find out.
“If people are coming to see a plan presented, they’ll be disappointed,” said Ray Becker, a local representative of the development company that has built communities in California, Arizona, Utah and Hawaii. “We want to hear what people want.”
Saturday’s open house will feature several booths, each focusing on a particular development issue, where people can ask questions and have their comments recorded by DMB staff members. The event was publicized in local newspapers, and invitations were sent to those who requested to be on a DMB mailing list earlier this year.
According to Becker, DMB has a different approach to building than most developers. The company’s philosophy, he said, is to go into a town and find out what the residents want to see, listen to their ideas and build a planned community based on the results.
“We expect to be held accountable to the issues that they raise and the solutions they require. It’s a formula we use again and again,” he said. “It’s very much a listening project.”
Those familiar with DMB’s projects in Arizona say that’s an accurate description of how the company operates.
“Their relationship with the city has been very positive,” Claudia Walters, vice mayor of Mesa, Ariz., said. Mesa is home to DMB’s Superstition Springs community. “They have been very straight-forward with working with us, because they take the approach that they want to be here for a long time.”
Comments gathered Saturday will help form the basis for more meetings in the future, Becker said.
“We’re planning on a series of following topical forums that will deal with specific issues,” such as transportation and affordable housing, he said.
Though no plan exists for El Rancho San Benito, Becker said that DMB has looked at several options, including building commercial space and other amenities. The company looked at prior plans for the land that called for 10,000 homes – something Becker said was never a possibility for DMB – as well as plans calling for one house per five acres. DMB will likely leave more than half of the land undeveloped for open space and agricultural use, Becker said.
“We look at the property and try to determine the best use of the property,” he said.
Construction on a project won’t start until late 2009 or early 2010, according to Becker.
In 1988 owner Roberto Floriani began the process to build a self-sufficient community of 10,000 homes with its own sewer system, police, schools, roads, golf courses and trains. Floriani’s development ran into environmental impact report problems and never progressed past the planning phase.
Since January, when the DMB proposal was put forward, supervisors have been withholding judgment about El Rancho San Benito.
“Until we have a plan and have some idea, it’s a little premature,” said Supervisor Pat Loe. “Once a plan is formulated we can determine the impact on the community and go from there.”
