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After months of uncertainty, the state has cleared the way for San Benito County to move forward with Riverview Regional Park, the 46-acre recreation zone planned for the area between Hollister High School and the San Benito River.
At an Oct. 28 meeting, Public Works Administrator Steve Loupe informed the San Benito County Board of Supervisors that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife had agreed to reduce the project’s environmental mitigation costs.
State officials had previously deemed that some of the park’s infrastructure posed a threat to the California tiger salamander, an endangered species in some parts of the state, and had required the county to pay $2.2 million in mitigation fees. That had left the park’s future in limbo as the county struggles with a tight budget.
Loupe told the board that after meeting with Fish and Wildlife officials on Oct. 2 that the agency agreed to reduce the fees to $655,000 and allowed the county to split the payment into two parts.
All five supervisors welcomed the news, but expressed frustration at having to incur additional costs. They unanimously approved moving forward with the mitigation fees and paying the first $300,000 to kick off construction.
Supervisor Kollin Kosmicki called the agreement a “victory” and urged county staff to expedite the process so that work can begin as soon as possible, “considering this has been delayed for so long and the frustrations that we’ve all felt.”
More than a decade in the making, Riverview Regional Park is projected to cost more than $20 million upon completion. The plan is divided into three phases: Phase One consists of a parking lot with about 60 spaces; Phase Two includes trails, pickleball courts, picnic areas and restrooms; and Phase Three would expand the parking lot and add more amenities.
The first $300,000 will cover the mitigation costs for Phases One and Two. The county has secured about $6 million to cover them with a mix of state grants and park impact funds, or fees collected from developers on new housing projects to build parks and recreation facilities.
Phase Three, as Supervisor Dom Zanger put it, remains “way, way on the back burner,” as no funding has been secured for its construction.
Once county staff informs the Fish and Wildlife Department that it will proceed with the first mitigation payment, the agency will take about four months to issue the environmental permit, Loupe said. After that, work is expected to begin on the parking lot and the park’s first trails and amenities. Loupe added that the parking lot could be ready next summer, while the remaining facilities are expected to take 14 months to complete once construction begins.
To reduce costs, the board plans to review the amenities included in Phase Two at its Dec. 16 meeting. Supervisors will then discuss a so-called “sponsorship program” in which private companies or nonprofits could help fund the maintenance of county parks.
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