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New Suburb Plans Dropped Amid Market Downturn

Posted by: Nate Berg

14 May 2009 - 6:00am

Due to the downturn in the housing market, plans for a new development that would essentially become a 20,000-person suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area have been abandoned.

"Located on a panoramic expanse of meadows and ranchlands between Gilroy and Hollister just east of Highway 101, El Rancho San Benito was believed to be larger than any pending development proposal in the Bay Area.

Planned for up to 20,000 residents, it had become a flash point among environmental groups who have worked over the past decade to limit sprawl in San Benito County as Silicon Valley commuters crept increasingly south in search of cheaper homes.

Now, what environmentalists could not accomplish, the housing crisis has.

Late last week, after working to build community support since 2005, developer DMB Associates of Scottsdale, Ariz., announced it was pulling its development proposal."

Full Story: Plan for new city on Santa Clara County's southern border withdrawn
Source: San Jose Mercury News, May 11, 2009
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But why not just require basic accessibility, such as no-step entrances and wider doorways? It seems off the mark to argue that it's inappropriate to place this kind of requirement on homebuilders.
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