San Benito County features parks such as the San Juan Bautista State Historical Park, the Hollister Hills State Vehicular Recreation Area, and Pinnacles National Park. These treasured destinations are not in danger of disappearing, but other open spaces are — particularly as new residential developments pop up around the county.
On May 12, the San Benito County Parks and Recreation Commission held a meeting to discuss the Roberts Ranch Subdivision Proposal, the Enterprise Road Subdivision Proposal, and the Veteran’s Park capital improvement project proposals. The commission also considered how the need for park space is balanced with the need for housing.
The Parks and Recreation Commission, active since 2006, works off of a Master Plan to protect parks which, in turn, maintain residents’ quality of life. The Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan, in place since 2010, keeps in mind the needs of the county residents while new subdivisions are developed.
The commission makes recommendations to the San Benito County Board of Supervisors about the need for future park facilities along with maintaining existing parks. Officials surveyed approximately 400 residents about what type of parks would they like to see in the county, with an eye toward making sure that the space required for parks is utilized.
“Some subdivisions are looking at areas for parks that don’t count for park credit because maybe the slope of the hill is too steep in that area,” said Sara Fontanos, management analyst for San Benito County. “We want usable parks.”
At the meeting, using maps to illustrate the discussion, the commission discussed the idea of combining the park acreage required by each subdivision into a larger park for residents to use. If there isn’t enough room for a park in each subdivision, there is an opportunity for developers to provide a park together in a mutual location.
According to the county’s parkland ordinance, for each single family residential home, .015 of an acre must be donated to parkland. For a multi-family residential home, .010 of an acre must be donated to parkland. For every designated senior residential home, .010 of an acre must be donated to parkland. So, if the area in which a new subdivision is planned is not conducive to a new park, officials are considering pooling the parkland dedication requirements from multiple developments to create larger parks outside the new subdivisions.
“All planning is tentative at this point,” Fontanos said, “We talked about bike lanes and pedestrian paths at the meeting. It gets everyone talking. I think it’s a good process.”
There are multiple stages during these developments and there are more meetings held with public comment. The next San Benito County Parks and Recreation meeting will be on Tuesday, June 9 at 5:30 p.m. at the San Benito County Board of Supervisors’ chambers, located at 481 Fourth St. in Hollister.