Hollister
– It may not be obvious to everyone, but construction has
started on the Highway 25 bypass.
Hollister – It may not be obvious to everyone, but construction has started on the Highway 25 bypass.
There are small signs of progress around town: Pavex Construction employees have set up mobile offices in an empty lot on Sunnyslope Road, and they’ve erected a water tower on McCray Street. Mary Dinkuhn, transportation planning manager for the county Council of Governments, said Pavex has also been clearing land and moving utilities in preparation for more substantial construction.
“They’re still getting off the ground,” Dinkuhn said. “Next week, it’s going to be more of the same.”
Throughout June, construction efforts will become more visible as workers demolish buildings and erect soundwalls along the bypass route, Dinkuhn said.
Hollister resident Robert Hoefler said people have been talking about the bypass since he came to the area 24 years ago. Hoefler’s been using the Internet to track the project’s progress, and he’s taking a cautiously optimistic approach for now.
“I’m definitely watching it,” Hoefler said. “They broke ground (on May 1), but nothing’s happened since.”
Dinkuhn said Hoefler and other Internet-savvy Hollisterites should visit the new bypass Web site, www.highway25bypass.com. Locals can also come to the bypass open house on Monday and Tuesday, Dinkuhn said, where they can ask county staffers any questions they have about the work.
The $45 million project, which is scheduled to be completed by November, 2008, will reroute highway traffic from San Benito Street to a new road east of McCray Street. The road will be six lanes from Sunnyslope Road to East Park Street, and a four-lane road from East Park Street to San Felipe Road. The bypass has been a long time coming – county officials have said the bypass has been discussed since the 1950s, and serious planning began in 1988, after the passage of the Measure A sales tax.
Mayor Brad Pike said the bypass should decrease traffic congestion and boost downtown businesses by making San Benito Street more pedestrian-friendly. Pike acknowledged that most of the current work is invisible, but he said progress is definitely being made.
“Little by little, people are going to see things falling into place for the community,” he said.
