Travelers Station: In line for first Measure A vote

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Voters will be required to decide the fate of a commercial development for the first time under Measure A if a proposed project proceeds through the San Benito County planning process.

Travelers Station, planned for the crossroads of Highways 101 and 129 on Searle Road, was initially proposed for one of the county’s four former nodes eliminated by Measure A, according to county officials.

The project would be built on a 2.6-acre parcel and includes a 4,000-square-foot convenience store, automobile and truck fueling, electric vehicle charging stations and a county information kiosk. It is being planned as a 24-hour operation. 

County officials say It is anticipated to be heard by the county Planning Commission this fall, and would require a public vote before it moves forward.

“If the Travelers Station project moves forward with its proposed General Plan Amendment, it would be the first project processed under the requirements of Measure A,” said Gregory Priamos, San Benito County Counsel.

A node, as San Benito County uses the term in its General Plan and zoning code, is a designated cluster of commercial or industrial developments—not a single business—at or near a major highway intersection or interchange.

Measure A removed the Commercial Regional zoning, thus eliminating the nodes. If any developer now wants to build on them it requires amending the General Plan, which would mean voter approval for any redesignation of agricultural, rural, or rangeland-zoned land. 

Besides the Searle Road area, where the Hwy 129 node existed prior to Measure A, there were three others: at Betabel Road, Rocks Ranch and the 101 Livestock Market area.

Travelers Station will require land redesignations in the General Plan in order to be developed. 

The property where it is proposed is currently designated rangeland by the county General Plan.

According to Praimos, state law requires zoning to be consistent with the General Plan—and in this case, it currently isn’t.

“To allow development consistent with the commercial thoroughfare zoning, the county would first need to approve a General Plan amendment changing the land use designation to one that supports the existing commercial thoroughfare zoning,” Priamos told BenitoLink. “If the proposed General Plan amendment changes the designation from rural to another land use designation, the amendment would be subject to the requirements of Measure A.”

The creation of the nodes was part of a larger effort that began in 2015, when the supervisors adopted them into the 2035 General Plan. The idea was to devise concentrated commercial developments at strategic highway locations rather than allow scattered growth along rural roads. 

The General Plan spelled out the rationale at that time: “The county shall encourage new Commercial Regional nodes to be located at or near existing or future highway interchanges, major intersections, and along existing or future transit facilities.

According to San Benito County Planning Commission records, two years prior to the passage of Measure A, Monterey developer Omar Mahssin’s Royal Oaks’ Salinas Valley Investment Company had filed with the county to move forward with Travelers Station.  

Mahssin’s 2022 plan was amended in 2025 to implement Measure A approved by a majority of county voters November 2024, and to bring the county into compliance with the 2023–2031 California Department of Housing and Community Development’s mandated Housing Element. 

Priamos noted that Travelers Station is inconsistent with the existing rangeland General Plan land use designation and voters will have the final say if it moves forward. 

“Following Measure A’s adoption, the project was revised to include zoning and General Plan amendments from rangeland to commercial thoroughfare,” he said, adding that after several more planning steps, “the Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing, consider the project, and may place the amendment on the ballot for approval by a vote of the people at a special or general election.”

Priamos also said the project will need to complete environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act and proceed through the conditional use permit and general plan amendment review process. 

Priamos said the Planning Commission would hold at least one public hearing to consider a conditional use permit and make a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors. Planning Director Prado said the supervisors would then determine whether to place it on a countywide ballot. 

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