Local architect David Huboi hopes his design for a new housing project on Rustic Street in Hollister will not only provide an affordable housing alternative - it will also help reduce crime in the area.
The Rustic Street project, which will include 12 affordable units, a play area and lawns, will replace a 60-year-old trailer court currently filled with dilapidated mobile homes. Huboi's design incorporates Defensible Space Strategy, a way of designing projects that maximizes visibility and discourages criminal activity, such as drug dealing, by reducing the chance that they will go unnoticed.
"It allows people to see and be seen continuously. When that occurs, it helps diminish fear, because (residents) know that a potential offender can be observed and apprehended," Huboi said, adding that when people are more secure in their surroundings, they will take ownership of the area, take care of it and even form neighborhood watch groups.
To achieve increased visibility, designs for the Rustic Street project have the fronts of the units facing the street and fences are replaced with trees and shrubs. The idea isn't to take away people's privacy, Huboi said, but to make them comfortable that their surroundings are safe.
"When people feel more confident in their environment, they feel that they can interact and take ownership," he said.
Law enforcement officials like the idea of developments with increased visibility as well. Because Hollister police officers patrol from their cruisers, having an unobscured view is crucial to being able to spot impending crimes or crimes in progress, according to Hollister Police Chief Jeff Miller.
"Having areas where people can't duck and cover is a great thing," he said.
Hollister police Captain Richard Vasquez agreed.
"The fact that a car can drive by and do security checks is a plus," he said, adding that it is also good for neighbors to be able to see what is going on so that they can report incidents to the police.
Huboi has been working since January with the Community Service Development Corporation, a local non-profit group that has been acquiring and developing affordable housing in the county since 1984, to get the project off the ground. Huboi supplied the design, while the CSDC purchased the Rustic Street property earlier this year with a loan from the Hollister Redevelopment Agency.
The project, which will cost about $1.8 million, will be funded in large part by loans from the RDA, according to CSDC Executive Director Brian Abbott. Though the CSDC has purchased the land, the project still needs to go through city's planning and allocation process, he said.
Also, they must wait for the sewer moratorium, which was placed on the city in 2002 following a 15-million gallon sewage spill, to be lifted before construction can begin. Once built, the apartments on Rustic street will rent for about 30 to 50 percent less than market rate, Abbott said.
Development Services Director Bill Avera, who also runs the Hollister Redevelopment Agency, said that he hopes Huboi's design will have the intended effect of reducing crime on Rustic Street.
"I think that any means of development to take the burden off of public safety and create a better sense of community is a good thing," said Bill Avera, development services director. "Anything that seems to work, we'll incorporate it."
Defensible Space Strategy was developed in the 1970s by architect and city planner Oscar Newman. It has been used successfully in communities in St. Louis, Mo., Dayton, Ohio and others throughout the nation, according to the National Housing Institute.
Luke Roney covers local politics and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at lroney@freelancenews.com
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