Measure gives voters a chip
Re: Monopoly Board and Measure Q
From the sky, San Benito County looks like a comfortable green quilt; yet some want this heavenly view to look like a Monopoly board. Let me explain.
Parcels on a Monopoly board start empty. As the game progresses, players vie to fill the squares with houses and hotels. Much like the board game, many locations in and out of Hollister display multiple parcels filled with housing. This increased population increases traffic and time for simply living. Many building enthusiasts want more buildings, just like a Monopoly game board. The player with the most wins!
They forget to realize the missing element. Look carefully at the game board. Jumping from square to square is the only movement. A necessary component is missing. Because some become so focused on buying and selling property and buildings, they forget to realize the missing vital element. Missing are roads!
Streets have names because they locate buildings on parcels but roads are non-existent in the game of Monopoly. Real life is the subject of Measure Q.
Opponents of Q look at this comfortable green quilt of our county and place buildings over the green. Their proposed map shows replacement areas built over virtually every corner of roads entering or exiting Hollister. These outlying areas on Highway 25, 156, Shore Road, Bolsa Road and Fairview Road are tethered to town. The Q opponents claim good things for Hollister. They do not explain how. They fail to note that supervisors in 2010 reduced road impact fees from roughly $24,000 to $12,000 per residential dwelling. Therein lies the problem: increased building provides no money for roads.
The opponents of Measure Q take the bird’s eye view of Hollister. Their view of distant developments appears to be pretty much like San Jose sprawl. Current home owners leave San Jose sprawl because they love what they find here: clean air, clean water, green agricultural fields, little traffic and safety.
Measure Q gives voters a chip in the game. Currently the supervisors have all the chips. Voters want a chip. Yes on Q lets the voters decide how Hollister grows. How can anyone be against letting people decide?
Mary Zanger
Hollister
Water warning
Hi my name is Keith Snow, a concerned citizen of District 1. I’m really concerned about the bad smell of the water and the health of our community. I think it’s time to find the right leader to make a change for the good.
The cause of it, I believe, is the cannery; there is 1 million cubic feet of water running per second. I heard this through the city council meetings. So to all citizens of this town, be aware of the smell that comes out of your water and the storage ponds overflowing—and the high cost of your sewage bills in Hollister. They are outrageous.
Keith Snow
Hollister
