Economy

The San Benito County Board of Supervisors will start 2023 by deciding whether to approve the 141-unit Lee Subdivision residential project in southeast Hollister.  It is the first new housing proposal in unincorporated San Benito County that the board has considered in several years, and...

The new Holiday Inn Express & Suites hotel, developed by Lotus Management, Inc., opened near the intersection of Highways 25 and 156 in Hollister last week.  The 93-room hotel, which shares a border with Santa Clara County, currently employs about 20 people, says a press...

Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital employees received notices this week indicating the Hollister hospital could close as soon as February 2023, according to HHMH administrators.  The hospital’s issuing of Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notifications (WARN) to its employees follows a string of unfortunate financial announcements from...

The Amah Mutsun Tribal Band last week announced that it has filed a lawsuit against San Benito County to halt development of a new commercial project on Betabel Road, which sits on property that “holds significant historical, cultural and religious value” to the tribe.  The...

Construction of a new traffic roundabout at the intersection of State Routes 25 and 156 near Hollister continues this week with work taking place behind protective concrete barriers, according to the California Department of Transportation. Recently installed K-rail at all four approaches to the construction...

San Benito County and its elected board of supervisors violated state environmental protection laws when they approved a conditional use permit for the Betabel commercial project proposed next to Highway 101, according to a lawsuit filed last week by two nonprofit organizations.  The lawsuit—filed Dec....

Members of Texas Masonic Lodge #46, located in San Juan Bautista, held a fundraiser on Nov. 12 to benefit local youth and homeless programs.  Texas Lodge’s Teresa Herrick and her husband, Kevin, spearheaded the fundraiser by holding  a “Legit Phở Cooking Class” and holiday floral...

Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital—whose administrators earlier this year declared a state of fiscal emergency—recently requested $10 million in the form of emergency bridge funding from the San Benito County Board of Supervisors, according to the Hollister hospital.  The hospital sent the proposal for a $10...

The California Transportation Commission (CTC) last week approved $1 billion for 93 new walking and biking projects for disadvantaged communities—including $780,000 to repair a stretch of Highway 101 in San Juan Bautista, says a press release.  The funds were released as part of the 2023...

San Benito County will receive $2.4 million in state funds to purchase factory-built homes for chronically homeless people, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced earlier this month.  The funds come from the California Homekey program, and will help the county buy a total of 11 prefabricated homes,...