The cloud of a state-mandated moratorium on new construction has
cast a dark shadow on Hollister since 2002. But brighter days are
ahead.
The cloud of a state-mandated moratorium on new construction has cast a dark shadow on Hollister since 2002. But brighter days are ahead.
Work is progressing apace on expansion of the city’s sewage treatment facility. Once the project is completed late next year, the moratorium will be lifted. Another important project is also scheduled for completion at the same time: The Highway 25 bypass, which will move highway traffic off San Benito Street, downtown Hollister’s main commercial artery.
So the timing is right for the Hollister Downtown Association to get going on a strategy to take full advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead.
To that end, the association is seeking outside expertise in coming up with a plan for downtown revitalization. Three consulting firms – two based in Berkeley and one from Irvine in Southern California – have submitted proposals for developing a new plan for downtown Hollister. One is expected to be chosen soon after a series of April interviews is completed.
The next step will be to secure funding to pay for the plan, which will cost somewhere between $160,000 and $200,000. Given the importance of this undertaking in reinvigorating the city’s downtown core, the Hollister Redevelopment Agency, a public entity that exists to channel money to significant city improvement projects, needs to provide financial help here.
Choosing the right consulting firm is key to ensuring that we get a plan that will bring results. There’s certainly no need to reinvent the wheel here – we can learn much from successful efforts in other communities and can adapt appropriate ideas and strategies to our own needs – but a cookie-cutter approach won’t do the job.
The chosen consultant needs to have a very real understanding of downtown Hollister’s strengths and weaknesses, of the opportunities on the horizon as well as the threats, of the economy and dynamics of this community and the greater region, as well as of the local politics that will determine how a new plan plays out here.
It’s also important that the various elements driving a downtown-specific plan mesh well with the City of Hollister’s recently revised general plan. It’s worth noting that one of the three consultants under consideration (Moore, Iacofano Goltsman Inc. of Berkeley) prepared the city’s new general plan, but even that firm needs to win out based on the strength of its proposal and a record of proven success helping small communities like Hollister revitalize their downtowns.
Time is of the essence. It won’t be long before the building moratorium is lifted and the highway bypass is completed. We need to be ready with a plan for brighter days in downtown Hollister.
