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A gas station planned for the corner of The Alameda and eastbound Hwy 156, which has been in the works for more than a decade, is moving closer to the start of construction with approval of plans to create a 450-foot right turn lane with a 120-foot taper. The lane is required by Caltrans and is meant to improve vehicle deceleration as cars make the turn into the station
At the May 6 meeting of the San Juan Bautista City Planning Commission, Associate Planner Ilse Lopez-Narvaez said that a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) study and an encroachment permit are required since there is currently landscaping in the area that will be replaced by the lane. The project will include a four-foot-wide paved shoulder, a six-foot-wide bike lane and storm drain improvements.
According to Lopez-Narvaez, an initial study completed in December 2024 concluded that the project would not create a significant environmental impact beyond what had been analyzed during the Hwy 156 widening project. Mitigation measures, however, would include protections for special status species like the burrowing owl and the California tiger salamander, which would be sought out and relocated.
The Benjamin Wilcox house, a registered historic home adjacent to the new lane, would also require special considerations during construction such as no use of vibratory rollers within 25 feet of the building. Located at 315 The Alameda, the house was built in 1858 by local architect George Chalmers. In 1982, it became the second building in the city to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The city was also required to contact local tribal representatives for consultation on the project. Lopez-Narvaez said that letters were sent in November 2024 and February 2025 and that no requests for consultation were received. Public notice was also posted with a May 5 deadline for comments, but none were received.
The work will be done in four phases and will take approximately 60 working days to complete. The road will be graded and the road base will be installed. Then it will be paved and utilities, landscaping and signal lights will be added to finish the project.
Ron Sissem of EMC Planning Group said that construction likely would be done from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., though the city can revise that schedule. Lopez-Narvaez said the final construction times would be set when the project has received the Caltrans encroachment permit, which could take several months. The city has posted EMC’s report in the meeting agenda.
The planning commission voted to accept the initial study, the mitigation program, and the notice of determination, and to affirm CEQA compliance.
The meeting concluded with a presentation by Shawna Freels on planned restoration work on Rosa’s House, a building she co-owns that is on the National Register and is located at 31 Polk Street. The project would replace the front exterior face boards, remove the existing wooden sidewalk and replace it with wood grain-stamped concrete, and reset the front overhang to make it level. As this was an informal presentation, the commission took no action.
Earlier in the meeting, during public comments, California State Park sector supervisor Wes Gray updated the commission on recent tree removals near the Castro-Breen Adobe and in the garden area at the corner of Second and Mariposa Streets, saying residents and visitors had asked many questions about the work.
Gray said the one large tree removed from between the adobe and the Plaza Hotel was a “very old tree” that was dropping branches and endangering the buildings. Three olive trees and a pepper tree were also removed from the garden area as part of an ongoing project to replace current plantings with native species that reflect the area’s Amah Mutsun heritage.
When completed, Gray said the park will offer guided interpretive tours that will help tell the story of the area’s land use.
Wald, Ruhnke & Dost Architects principal partner Christopher Barlow also spoke during the comments period. He provided a quick update on the plans for the Health Foundation clinic proposed for the corner of Muckelemi Street and Hwy 156.
Barlow said that the housing part of the project had not been given a CEQA exemption, which is required to move forward. Therefore, the project has been split into two parts, with a focus on building the clinic while the exemption is being sought.
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