Our View: DMB’s proposal for nearly 7,000 new homes is massive.
Are our elected leaders on top of the issues?
Is it “South Gilroy” or “North Hollister?” That’s a pertinent question in light of developer DMB’s plans to build El Rancho San Benito, a “community” of nearly 7,000 housing units just a few miles from Gilroy proper south of the Santa Clara-San Benito county line.
While South County residents won’t have a vote on whether or not to approve the massive development on 4,500 acres adjacent to Highway 25, its impacts will be huge for our community – positive and negative.
On the positive side, the project, if approved by San Benito County voters and supervisors, will bring an estimated 1,800 construction-related jobs to the region for a decade or more. The new residents will likely head to Gilroy – not Hollister – to do their shopping.
On the negative side, they will clog our roads en route to jobs that are not likely to be in San Benito County. We’re especially concerned about impacts on U.S. 101 and Highway 152. In addition, the project exemplifies the kind of non-contiguous, leapfrog development that brought Los Angeles and its environs to its current sprawl-like state.
Outside of commenting on the environmental impact report, which the project will eventually require, those of us on the north side of the San Benito County line will have little impact on the ultimate decision about DMB’s plans to create El Rancho San Benito, unless our city or county eventually sues to stop the project.
But that doesn’t mean we should just throw up our hands. It’s up to us as residents, and our leaders as representatives, to make sure our concerns are heard and addressed.
Whether or not DMB needs to address our concerns as a matter of law, they ought to do so as a matter of good corporate would-be neighbors. Bringing 15,000 to 20,000 new residents to just outside Gilroy’s borders is a matter that ought to have input from Gilroyans.
We think El Rancho San Benito will be a defacto “South Gilroy,” much more than it will be a northern “suburb” of Hollister. Our elected leaders and top city administrators must stay on top of DMB’s plans. Residents should voice concerns now, and all Gilroyans should advocate to minimize the development’s negative impacts and maximize its benefits for our community.
