A quick peek behind the plastic dust sheet covering the entrance to 7453 Monterey St. proves work is under way on the downtown paseo project, but the City’s plan to exponentially increase foot traffic via a pair of aesthetic walkways has been temporarily derailed by a sizable hidden cost.
After seven years in the pipeline, the project finally moved forward Nov. 7, when Premiere Builders of Gilroy began work on the first paseo between Fourth and Fifth streets. The other paseo – for which property purchase talks are still in the works – will be situated between Fifth and Sixth streets.
But as the City was gearing up to bring in landscape architect Karen Aitken to finalize the paseo plans, staff ran into a pricey roadblock: The city-owned building and future paseo site between Fourth and Fifth streets is lined on either side by two old walls, and both need structural reinforcement to the tune of $380,000.
Now, along with former Mayor Al Pinheiro – who is still spearheading project – the City must turn that glitch into a positive.
“We purchased the building and it belongs to us, and we need to do it,” Mayor Don Gage resolved. “This is a lesson for the City and everybody else. Those buildings are old, and when you start tearing into the walls you find stuff that you didn’t even know was there.”
Most recently, the City was in the midst of tearing down the 7453 Monterey St. edifice – last occupied by the Sisters Love Creations embroidery store – in 2006. The commercial building distinctive for its Mediterranean-style architecture was built in 1920, and is now an unreinforced masonry building deemed structurally unfit to survive an earthquake.
Workers discovered in early December, however, that the neighboring building to the north – most recently the Garlic City Railroad Company at 7455 Monterey St. – has a wooden wall on a shared foundation. That wooden wall, a mere few feet from the brick wall of the building slated to be torn down, is old and unable to withstand the strain imposed by demolition, Gage explained.
In order to create a safe paseo fit for public use, the City must bolster the wooden wall, which is not sitting squarely on its own foundations.
Adding to the to-do list: the former South Valley Pinnacle building at 7451 Monterey St., which has a brick wall bordering the site of the future paseo lot to the south, is also in need of structural reinforcement.
Paseos, by definition, are pedestrian passageways that add dimension and improve connections to the downtown pedestrian network. Gilroy’s paseos will offer mid-block connections between main sidewalks of Monterey Street to public parking spaces between Gourmet Alley and Eigleberry Street. Previously described by Pinheiro as “linear, rectangular mini-parks,” the spaces will have lighting, surveillance cameras, landscaping, tables and benches; and might include focal elements such as fountains, special paving, trees, potted plants and flags or banners. The intention is to create comfortable niches for enjoying a cup of coffee with a friend, eating lunch outside and showcasing public art.
The “mini-parks” will also add artistic dimension to downtown’s fabric.
Pinheiro says the theme of the first paseo between Fourth and Fifth streets will be “Sister Cities,” incorporating visual themes related to Takko-machi, Japan; Angra do Heroismo, Portugal; Saint-Clar, France; Monticelli d’Ongina, Italy; Tecate, Mexico; and Koror, Palau.
The dimensions of the paseos are expected to be 20 feet wide by 125 feet long, but those measurements are subject to change as the extra structural work is completed.
City Development Center Manager, Lee Butler, announced the issue with the wood wall at the Paseo Project Committee’s Dec. 12 meeting. Additional destructive testing a little more than a week later confirmed needed structural reinforcement to the brick wall of the old Pinnacle building.
The emergency cash flow for the extra structural work was authorized at a City Council meeting in late January.
Paying $380,000 create a safe passageway is the cheapest solution, according to Gage. Another option, lifting the building up and putting in new foundations, was projected to cost around $800,000.
As far as the mayor is concerned, the recent resurgence in local sales tax revenues – up 4.4 percent in the third quarter of last year – is funneling enough money into the City’s coffers to get the $380,000 job done.
“The city will have to take that out of our reserves,” he continued. “Because it wasn’t in the budget initially. It was extra.”
Gage said he asked the owners of the two buildings – which neighbor the paseo site on either side – if they were willing to contribute financially by funding a mandatory retrofit as per the Gilroy Unreinforced Masonry Building ordinance, in order to get new business tenants into what will be two prime downtown locations.
“We explained to the owners how beneficial it would be for them to get their buildings up to code,” said Gage.
City records indicate that Michael and Michelle Gaeta own the former South Valley Pinnacle building to the south of the future paseo site, while Kirk and Eleanor Tuckness own the former Garlic City Railroad Company building to the north.
The Dispatch attempted to reach both owners for comment, but calls were not returned as of press time.
The original total budget for the first paseo development, excluding the design plans and construction costs, was $696,000, according to Butler. The Downtown Business Association also paid $40,000 – to make up the difference between the market appraisal of the building and the amount the City was willing to pay – to the seller of the property.
As far as a project timeline is concerned, the construction start date for the first paseo is contingent on how long it takes to bolster the neighboring foundations and walls, which Pinheiro hopes can be fixed by the middle of May or June.
“Right now we don’t have a start date, as far as the actual paseo,” he explained.
The entire undertaking “has been a learning experience for the city,” Pinheiro added.
The preliminary structural tests and reports performed by San Jose-based engineering firm Briggs Cardosa Associates, Inc. didn’t reveal any problems according to Butler.
In the areas that Biggs Cardosa checked, the wood wall of 7455 Monterey St. was where it was should be, said Gage.
Had the City known about the structural issues in the first place, “we would have reconsidered doing what we’re doing, because that’s extra money,” he insisted.
Butler underscored the precaution taken by City staff prior to embarking on the paseo project.
“The due diligence that we did was based on the best available information,” he said.
Despite a prolonged timeline and a higher price tag, downtown shop owners such as Garlic City Cafe owner Margarita Velazquez still see the glass as half full.
“I think it’s a good thing,” she said. “It’ll be better for the community. It’s what we need down here, we need more people.”
CEO and President Susan Valenta with the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce reiterated that point.
“I can see that paseo already there,” she envisioned. “I can see these two buildings having businesses. It could be incredibly beautiful. Overall for the downtown, it could be huge, it could be a real focal point.”
