Robert Rodriguez will have to appeal to the county board of
supervisors if he wants the chance to operate a flea market on San
Felipe Road near the airport. The San Benito County Planning
Commission on Wednesday rejected his application for the flea
market at 1771 San Felipe Road.
Robert Rodriguez will have to appeal to the county board of supervisors if he wants the chance to operate a flea market on San Felipe Road near the airport.
The San Benito County Planning Commission on Wednesday rejected his application for the flea market at 1771 San Felipe Road. It was denied in a 3-0 vote – with Commissioner Dan DeVries absent and Commissioner Robert Scattini recusing himself from consideration because he has accepted political campaign support from the applicant.
Commissioners Gordon Machado, Richard Bettencourt and Jeff Culler opposed it, with the two primary concerns being its proximity to the Hollister Municipal Airport and traffic on San Felipe Road.
The proposal is for a weekend operation with 100 vending booths, parking for 350 or more cars, portable concession areas, chemical toilets, and live and recorded music. The same applicant’s idea for a flea market on Shore Road – denied by supervisors in February largely due to traffic issues – would have included 50 vendors, toilets, a food truck and a beverage stand. Rodriguez when he initially proposed the Shore Road project also had included a rodeo portion, but he later withdrew it.
Rodriguez, who already owned the San Felipe Road site, has said the county informed him the heavy manufacturing occurring in that district is appropriate for a flea market business.
At Wednesday’s meeting, commissioners officially examined a “manufacturing district review” – because the property falls in an industrial zone – but it acted as the ultimate decision for that panel, said Assistant Planner Byron Turner.
If Rodriguez chooses to continue on, his next step would be filing an appeal to the board of supervisors – which he must do within 10 days, Turner said.
Rodriguez has contended it is a safe location and he noted how he hopes to open the business in the spring of 2011. Regarding the airport, opponents have argued it is too close to the runway in the event of an accident.
Look back for more on this story.
