**PLEASE NOTE WE ARE NOT SOLICITING FUNDS HERE ONLY SIGNATURES—PLEASE DO NOT DONATE! Thank you!**
Hollister Citizens are looking toward building a Brighter Future and want to ensure our General Plan process is transparent, inclusive and balanced in its approach particularly towards growth. It must be a reflection of the whole community.
With the COVID crisis, and its huge economic impact to our City of Hollister, now more than ever planning to rebuild our economy is essential.
Hollister is in the beginning stages of developing its General Plan. A good general plan represents the vision of our community, and serves as a guide for future growth and development.
The General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) will work closely with the Consultant, Planning Commission and City Council to develop the General Plan. They will also be responsible for getting information out to the greater community and soliciting input.
We have several concerns in regards to the formation of the committee and the development of the plan itself.
• The current GPAC consists of 5 members, with only one citizen representative.
• A recent appointment by the Mayor of Councilman Resendiz to replace Councilman Richman on the GPAC was made unilaterally, even though the Resolution and Bylaws unanimously approved by the City Council regarding the GPAC formation clearly state appointments are to be made by the City Council.
• With that appointment, 3 of the 5 members (a majority) now on the committee have recently aligned themselves and supported the anti-growth group PORC and their No on K campaign against the County. This creates a potential imbalance of the committee which may negatively impact the development of the General Plan.
• PORC, which is based in Aromas, is attempting to place another initiative on the ballot to force an Urban Growth Boundary onto the City of Hollister, one that would stifle development for 29 years and severely impact our commercial growth and ability to recover from the current economic crisis we are facing. There is little mention in the Hollister General Plan proposal for developing our own urban growth boundary as an integrated part of a strategic, smart growth plan—one that could regulate and plan for growth without strangling it—also one that is created by and for the citizens of Hollister, as opposed to an outside group.
THEREFORE, we are asking the City Council to make the following changes with regard to the General Plan and its General Plan Advisory Committee:
1. Replace the recent appointment of Council Member Resendiz with either Council Member Spencer or Lenoir to balance the viewpoints on the GPAC committee; varied perspectives allow for more dynamic and thorough discussions around growth;
2. Broaden the GPAC committee to include more citizen representation—one citizen from each of the four districts, appointed by their respective Council Members; and
3. Expand the scope around growth and land use in the General Plan to include an exploration into adopting an Urban Growth Boundary as part of an integrated and strategic approach to regulate but not discourage commercial growth in Hollister.
A well-developed General Plan is transparent, inclusive and developed from a balance of perspectives. Therefore we are urging the city council to make the above changes to the GPAC committee and the scope of the General Plan.
**PLEASE NOTE: THIS PETITION IS FOR HOLLISTER CITIZENS SIGNATURES. PLEASE DO NOT SIGN IF YOU DO NOT LIVE IN THE CITY. ALSO--We are not soliciting funds here, so please do not donate! Thanks.**
