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The Hollister City Council unanimously agreed Dec. 18 to accept a $5 million grant from the California Office of Public School Construction.
The funds will be distributed to San Benito High School District to build a student union, which will include a cafeteria, kitchen, indoor and outdoor assembly spaces and study/gathering room for students and staff. The project is expected to cost $14.3 million.
The district broke ground on the 8,500-square-foot building in October.
The project initially received $8 million from the Office of Public School Construction’s School Facility Program funded by Prop 51, a public school facility bond approved by voters in 2016, San Benito High School District Chief Budget Officer John Frusetta said.
The district qualified to receive additional funds from the state’s facility program by using construction expenses from Measures G and U, Frusetta said.
“The state matching funds were made available to the district for construction purposes in addition to and because of the local measures passed by the community,” Frusetta said.
Another $5 million comes from the state budget, San Benito High School District Public Information Officer Adam Breen said. The state provided the budget specifically for the construction of the student union, he added.
The high school’s student body has grown at a rapid rate and put a “significant strain on the school’s food service infrastructure,” a city staff report said. Built in 1952, the cafeteria was designed to serve about 180 students.
There were 3,557 students attending the school during the 2022-23 school year, the staff report said.
Four snack bars and two mobile food carts were provided to students to increase capacity, the report states.
“Yet there are still over 20-minute wait times for food, which has a negative effect on students’ ability to receive food, use the bathroom, and walk to their next class, particularly for severely disabled students with mobility challenges,” the report said.
After the vote, district Superintendent Shawn Tennenbaum shouted a “thank you” to the council from the audience.
There were no public comments.
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