BY BRIANNA VACCARI

CV Journalism Collaborative

Despite staunch opposition from residents, the Merced County Board of Supervisors gave the green light for another new subdivision in Hilmar.

The board considered an appeal of a prior planning commission decision on Tuesday during its regular meeting. Ultimately, the board affirmed the planning commission’s approval of the project on a 4-1 vote, with Supervisor Lloyd Pareira, who represents Hilmar, casting the lone no vote.

Half a dozen Hilmar residents drove the 30 minutes to Merced to register their opposition to the project. They voiced concerns over traffic, water supply and strategic planning decisions.

For the majority of the supervisors, the issue came down to property rights. 

“I understand the need to make sure we’re planning in a good way and the county is developing in a positive way,” Board Chair Josh Pedrozo said. “Yes, there’s going to be some hiccups, but I think this company who has submitted the plan … has listened to everybody, has taken a lot of time to do it the right way, based upon the county’s recommendation.

“I can’t, in good faith, vote against this project,” he said.

Supervisor Daron McDaniel said he worried that since the developers met all of the county’s requirements, denying the project may expose the county to legal action.

The 136-home project, called Shevlin Place, will include a pocket park, walking trail and drainage basin on about 33 acres of land, south of Hilmar and Irwin high schools and a new elementary school. Homebuilder Mike Wadsworth is behind the project.

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The site of the project, located near the intersection of West Geer and North Lander avenues, previously was an orchard and has been fallow for several years, county documents show. About a half dozen homes, outbuildings and a storage company remain on Geer Avenue directly north of the project site.

The unincorporated town of Hilmar is home to just over 5,000 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Known locally as a dairy town with deep Portuguese roots, there’s a growing population of Latino residents as well.

Traffic and water concerns

Hilmar resident Danny Coder filed the appeal that the board of supervisors weighed Tuesday. 

Public records show Coder lives in one of the homes right by the project location and likely will be directly affected by construction and the resulting neighborhood.

Coder was unable to attend Tuesday’s public hearing because he got called to work, according to another Hilmar resident who spoke on his behalf during the hearing. In his appeal, Coder outlined his concerns with the project as well as possible solutions.

The main concern cited by residents and the supervisors alike is the vehicle traffic the new development will add to an area of town that’s already notorious for traffic congestion.

Outside of Hilmar, Lander Avenue turns into state Highway 165, which is managed by Caltrans. 

The intersection of Lander and Geer avenues  is located near a Hilmar Unified School District compound that includes the newly-opened Hilmar Elementary, Irwin High, Hilmar Middle and Hilmar High schools, Elim Elementary and its associated Head Start program.

During the hearing, Supervisor Pareira said he has seen firsthand the existing traffic congestion at the intersection.

On Lander Avenue, drivers sometimes will use a turn lane as a passing lane to bypass bottlenecked traffic, Pareira said. Other Hilmar residents described the staggered school schedules that create nonstop pickup and dropoff traffic around the various schools.

“What the public comment is saying about the school traffic is – I don’t even think they’re explaining it to the degree that it is,” Pareira said.

“It’s just unreal,” he said, later adding, “It’s a mess out there.”

Although a traffic study was conducted for the project as part of the environmental review process, Coder and others called it flawed and called for a new one to be done that considers school operations within its peak hour analysis.

However, Merced County planning staff said the study did include school drop-off times, and in the end the study found the project met “safe circulation” standards set by Caltrans and county planning.

County staff also confirmed Caltrans is planning to install a traffic signal at the intersection of Lander and Geer avenues around 2028 or 2029. After eventually being called to speak, Wadsworth told the board the traffic signal likely will already be installed by the time the first house goes up for sale, considering permitting and engineering plans may push construction out a year or two still.

Coder in his appeal, along with other Hilmar residents, also voiced concerns about the Hilmar County Water District’s ability to provide water for the new subdivision, citing lack of supply and adequate infrastructure.

Other residents also voiced concerns about the water district’s supply for the several new subdivisions coming to town, saying the district cited supply issues in the past. Residents also mentioned failed wells in the community. 

County staff said the water issue is outside of the county’s jurisdiction, but the small water district signed a “can and will service” letter for the project and a legal acknowledgement that it has capacity for the new community.

If it turns out Hilmar County Water District does not have capacity to serve the new development, “then it doesn’t get built,” said Tiffany Ho, Merced County’s deputy planning director.

Residents say they want ‘responsible growth’

Hilmar residents urged the board to carefully consider residents’ concerns before approving the project.

Crystal Casey, an active Hilmar resident who also serves as a member of the Hilmar-Stevinson Municipal Advisory Council (MAC), said nearly everyone in town she’s talked to opposes the project.

“It’s important to note that Hilmar is not against growth. We are advocates for responsible growth,” Casey told the board of supervisors. “We actually have already voted in favor of two subdivisions. …

“The residents of Hilmar are very clear in their vision of the community. They do not want large subdivisions built south of the school,” Casey said.

Casey and other residents criticized the Hilmar community plan – a county planning document that charts future growth – as 20 years old and outdated. She said the Hilmar MAC has requested an updated plan many times.

On the other hand, Wadsworth said that years ago, the community asked for development west of Lander so children wouldn’t have to cross the road to get to school. That’s why the property was zoned as residential, noting it’s taken over three decades for the project to get to this point.

County staff estimate construction on the development will begin around 2028.