DMB Associates' withdrawal of its El Rancho San Benito project certainly reflects the poor economy, but county officials have plenty of other opportunities on the table on which they should focus and ensure the area grows with the right mix of housing, commercial and industrial development.
DMB recently announced it was withdrawing the 6,800-unit planned community proposed off Highway 25 near the Santa Clara County line. The company cited the economy for its decision. Days later, DMB announced plans for an 8,000- to 12,000-unit proposal in Redwood City, which has not been hit nearly as hard as San Benito County by the housing industry's downfall.
One of the bigger negative effects of having such a large proposal on the table is that it demands an extraordinary amount of attention from county officials and staff members. Now, with the project withdrawal, all those people have to shift gears and focus that attention elsewhere.
Fortunately, the county has a lot of work ahead on such projects as the 1,100-unit Santana Ranch development off Fairview Road near Hillcrest Road.
There are several reasons we support Santana Ranch and believe it stands to benefit the community for years to come. Here are a few:
- It has strong potential and offers mixed uses, while offering an abundance of parkland.
- A local family, the Guerras, is building the project. They are rooted here and have a vested interest in the community's future.
- Its location to the east of Hollister, meanwhile, caters more naturally to keeping the related economic benefits in San Benito County and away from Santa Clara County. From an education point of view, the site is beneficial because the development is near slated locations for a new high school and Gavilan College.
The focus on this and other major projects must be their economic benefit - residual effects on the commercial, industrial and retail sectors in the county. San Benito County has to get its wheels rolling again, as soon as possible, and officials must do what they can to support this and other smart-growth development projects on the table.
We encourage county officials to hone in on such developments, to move them through the process with relative expediency, to show outside companies that San Benito County wants to accommodate sustainable, variable growth.
The economy, after all, isn't reversing course anytime soon.
The Free Lance Editorial Board The Free Lance Editorial Board is made up of Publisher Steve Staloch; Editor Kollin Kosmicki; Columnist Marty Richman; and members at large Frankie Arballo, Jae Eade, Louise Ledesma and Richard Place. Opinions of the board are not necessarily unanimous.
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