Hollister resident Jim DeLaPena is hoping his plan to develop
a
”
restaurant row
”
in northern Hollister along the proposed Highway 25 bypass route
will bring jobs, tax revenue and more entertainment options for
locals into the city.
Hollister – Hollister resident Jim DeLaPena is hoping his plan to develop a “restaurant row” in northern Hollister along the proposed Highway 25 bypass route will bring jobs, tax revenue and more entertainment options for locals into the city.
DeLaPena says representatives from restaurants like Chili’s, Mimi’s, the Olive Garden and In N’ Out have shown interest in locating in Hollister on property he owns on the south side of Chappell Road east of San Felipe Road.
“When a project comes to town like this, you’ve got to jump on it,” he said to the City Council during a Nov. 21 meeting when the council was considering adopting the city’s new general plan.
Under the new general plan, which the council is anticipated to officially adopt Dec. 5, DeLaPena’s property will be zoned as north gateway general commercial. The land currently has two houses, which DeLaPena said he will demolish to make way for the restaurants. He declined to comment further on the his plans, saying that he was still working on organizing everything.
DeLaPena faces a couple of obstacles to seeing his plan become a reality on the property he owns, however.
Caltrans’ plans for the bypass include the construction of a sound wall in front of DeLaPena’s property. Also, current plans include no entrance or exit from the bypass to his property. Each of these obstacles is enough to kill the project, he said.
“If the sound wall goes up and stays up, none of the businesses I’ve talked to will want to build there,” DeLaPena told the City Council recently. “Without accessibility we won’t have revenue, we won’t have jobs or shops.”
He said he is hoping that council members will voice support for his efforts to work with Caltrans to address his concerns.
“I need your help to help me help the city,” he said during the November meeting.
Some on the council said that they would likely give whatever support they could to DeLaPena’s cause, saying that his plan would bring sales tax revenue to city coffers and give locals more dining options so they don’t have to drive to Gilroy if they want something different.
“If it’s a Caltrans thing, I don’t know how much we can do about it,” Councilwoman Monica Johnson said. “But I’d support his efforts with Caltrans. I would definitely write a letter of support as a council member.”
Johnson said that many of her constituents say they want more dining options in town.
“I think that it’s a good thing,” she said. “We talked about building up the north gateway. I think it can be a combination of things to keep locals in town for shopping.”
Councilman Brad Pike said he would want to know more specifics about DeLaPena’s plan before he threw his support behind it, but thinks the concept is good.
“I like the fact that some restaurants come in that people flock to,” he said. “That would be good money-wise.”
Pike also said that if he liked the details of the plan, he would also support DeLaPena’s efforts with Caltrans.
“If a plan worked out, that was conducive to everybody, then I’d be out there trying to support and help him see it through fruition. I think we should do that, as a council, for everybody who has a project that will benefit the community.”
DeLaPena said he has made some progress on getting the sound wall removed from Caltrans’ bypass plans. A Nov. 18 letter from Palo Alto-based MO’C Physics Applied supports DeLaPena’s claim that the sound wall along Chappell Road is not necessary because he plans to demolish two houses he owns on the property in order to develop his restaurant row. Those two houses were the reason the sound wall was to be built in the first place.
“Of course the now-planned removal of the residential uses naturally leads one to assume that no sound wall would be needed,” the letter states.
The letter from MO’C Physics Applied states that constructing commercial buildings on DeLaPena’s property would create a suitable barrier too any noise that might come from traffic on the bypass.
DeLaPena said he also has plans to meet with state Assemblyman Simon Salinas (D-Salinas) in hopes that Salinas can help him get an entrance and exit to his property from the bypass route.
The San Benito Council of Governments is still working to obtain property needed to construct the Highway 25 bypass, which is eventually supposed to create a new leg that circumvents Hollister’s downtown and connects with Airline Highway near Safeway.
Luke Roney covers local government and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at lr****@fr***********.com.
