The San Juan Bautista Planning Commission unanimously supported
recommending the city council pass an ordinance permanently
restricting big-box retailers from setting up shop in the Mission
City.
San Juan Bautista – The San Juan Bautista Planning Commission unanimously supported recommending the city council pass an ordinance permanently restricting big-box retailers from setting up shop in the Mission City.
The planning commission voted to recommend the city council pass the ordinance without much discussion on the issue at its meeting last week, said Dan De Vries, planning commission chairman. De Vries said commissioners were in favor of the ordinance and it didn’t take much to come to a consensus.
The city adopted a temporary ordinance in December of 2002 that placed a suspension on permits for new large-scale businesses and restaurants. The ordinance is set to expire in two months.
“I was completely surprised how it was not a big issue,” De Vries said. “The prevailing feeling was this was adopted as a temporary measure, and there’s no need of further discussion to make it permanent because it’s not in keeping with the city’s decision to maintain a unique character.”
The city council will discuss whether the ordinance should be made permanent next Tuesday, but it may not be voted on until next month or the month after, said City Councilman Arturo Medina.
Medina supports the ordinance because he believes the inception of big-box retailers would destroy the unique atmosphere of the town and turn it into one of the many cities across the nation consumed by the “generica” big-box mentality, he said.
“Big-box retailers are going into every city across America – when you’re at one of them you don’t know what city you’re in because they’re all the same,” Medina said. “The unique character of our cities is disappearing.”
Medina believes most of the public is in line with his thinking, except for a few business people who want to see financial gain for themselves and the town, he said.
Although big-box retailers could bring more revenue into the city, Medina said the monetary gain is a trade-off to the way of life many residents prefer in San Juan.
“It’s a life choice,” he said. “Would you rather live in something that looks like San Jose, or San Juan?”
Along with the planning commission’s decision was a recommendation to still allow some service providers like Intero Real Estate and Coldwell Banker to open offices, De Vries said.
But any formula retailer that must have the same color scheme, logo and products in every of its locations is not welcome in San Juan, De Vries said.
“Instead of a Starbucks, we’d prefer a Mission City Brewing Co.,” he said. “Something that will adopt the city’s character and identify with it, as opposed to a corporate business.”
The city council’s meeting will be held at City Hall on Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 7pm.
Erin Musgrave covers public safety and the city of San Juan Bautista for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or [email protected]
