Proactive move to add more space makes sense
Gavilan College trustees have found a logical, convenient
solution to growing enrollment, and school officials deserve praise
for their latest endeavor in Hollister
– an attempt to add classroom space in one of two vacant
buildings.
Proactive move to add more space makes sense
Gavilan College trustees have found a logical, convenient solution to growing enrollment, and school officials deserve praise for their latest endeavor in Hollister – an attempt to add classroom space in one of two vacant buildings.
With the school officials’ plans for San Benito County’s full campus an estimated 20 to 30 years from fruition and continued growth calling for immediate expansion in Hollister, Gavilan officials are on the right path in seeking out extra space to lease as a complement to the Briggs Building.
Enrollment increased by 7 percent two years ago and 12 percent in 2008-09. College President Steve Kinsella noted to a Weekend Pinnacle reporter that 40 percent of the school’s students are from Hollister. He contended that expanding classroom space here would keep more of the students in town.
Any local expansion of classroom space stands to benefit all parties: the students who would cut commute time, Gavilan because it would relieve growth pressure and – if trustees select the former Pinnacle building – the downtown district would make strides because hundreds of young people would remain in the retail-heavy area most days.
There are 1,000 students attending Gavilan College in Hollister. Six classrooms are available, so there appears to be no room for enrollment expansion at the Briggs Building on the corner of Fourth and San Benito streets.
That demand has prompted Gavilan officials to conduct talks with a property owner over potential use of the two sites – the former Fortino’s property on Tres Pinos Road and the former Pinnacle building on Fourth and San Benito streets. The locations under consideration both make sense as new uses for unoccupied space.
We particularly support the downtown site because it is close to existing classrooms at the Briggs Building, offers convenient parking access and, if city officials move ahead on a $1.3 million Hollister Redevelopment Agency loan to help the owner make improvements, it could vastly improve a crucial corner’s appearance.
Most important, the expansion gives the college some short-term breathing room and it offers local students more opportunities to stay closer to home.
Editor’s note: Gavilan officials met in closed session Tuesday over the leasing issue.
