Housing, homeless shelter and more: What’s coming to Salinas in 2020 – The Californian

2020 will bring big changes to Salinas' skyline as new affordable housing, a police station, a library, a homeless shelter and more are slated toopen.

The projects have been in the works for years and are spread throughout Salinas, including Chinatown.

Here areseveral big projects scheduled to open in 2020:

The new Moon Gate Plaza located in Chinatown is under construction in on Dec. 21, 2019.(Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

The exterior work on the MoonGate Plaza affordable housing complex in Chinatown is done, said Betsy Wilson, director of special projects at MidPen Housing, which is developing the project.

It will offer 88 unitsfor low-income tenants, with half of them reserved for those referred by health officials, she said.MidPen is waiting on some final work on elevators and then approval from inspectors.

"Just as soon as that's done, we're going to be ramping up to moving people in," she said.

MidPen has received more than 800 applications 23 had been approved as of last week, Wilson said.Most of the units are studios.

Workers in early 2018 beganbuilding the complex, which will also dedicate five apartments for artists.

The new Moon Gate Plaza located in Chinatown is under construction in on Dec. 21, 2019.(Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

State and federal tax credits provided the lion's share of the $38.9 million price tag.The city donated the property, valued at about $500,000, and $2.5 million.

The project also has space for storefronts and retail on the ground floor.

Wilson said she hopes MoonGate will be ready for tenants to start moving in by the end of January. She doesn't expect to have all the rooms filled until all applications are finished, which may take several months.

MidPen currently isn't building any other housing complexes in Salinas, Wilson said.

More: Affordable housing props could mean $55M for Monterey County

"This is... our first community in Salinas," she said. "... We continue to look for opportunities but there are a lot of constraints, the primary one being a lack of local funding."

Indeed, Salinas has an enormous affordable housing crunch and is well short of its 2023 goal of 2,229 homes being built, according to the Monterey Bay Econoomic Partnership.

855 E. Laurel Drive, the planned site of a new Salinas homeless shelter.(Photo: Joe Szydlowski, The Californian)

Salinas will be getting a new homeless shelter, expected to be completed by December 2020, at 855 E. Laurel Drive.

The 16,000-square-foot facilitywill have 100 beds and a fully functional kitchen, according to Monterey County. The board of supervisors in November awarded the $5,760,231 contract to Avila Construction, which is expected to begin work in January, according to a staff report.

It will also replace the current homeless shelter, which is housed in a repurposed modular at 111 W. Alisal Street.

But the East Laurel Drive locationprompted protests and galvanized Creekbridge residents to oppose the location.

They lobbied the Salinas city council to oppose the project, which is a joint effort by the city and the county, over concerns about it attracting crime and drug use to their neighborhoods.

City officials said it was the only site that had all the necessary traits and was publicly owned. In addition, it is close to Natividad for medical emergencies.

The location of the planned homeless shelter at 855 E. Laurel Drive.(Photo: PROVIDED/MONTEREY COUNTY)

Ultimately, the project moved forward. The county is handling the construction side, including awarding the bids.

About $6 million in state funds are paying for the project, with Salinas and Monterey County sharingthe remaining costs, most of which arefor professional services, testing, inspections and permitting, according to the county's Resource Management Agency.

More: UPDATE: Salinas council votes to move forward with homeless shelter near Natividad

More: New homeless shelter moves forward for Salinas

More: Creekbridge group protests proposed year-round homeless shelter site in Salinas

The old Rabobank building on Main Street, Dec. 21, 2019 (Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

Oldtown's Rabobank building will be transformed in 2020 into around 50 apartments.

The historic building's six floors of office space will be retooled into studio apartments, said Brad Slama, the owner and developer.

Workers spent 2019 tearing out the old office-space and will build the apartments this year.

He's hoping to have them ready by the end of the year for tenants and already has a wait list with 40 applicants.

The old Rabobank building in Main Street on Dec. 21, 2019 (Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

The renters will also have a rooftop terrace, he said. If they were on the market today, he'd expect the rent to be about $1,200 per month.

The apartments will also be pet friendly, he said.

The new Salinas Police Service Headquarters located between E. Alisal and John Street on Dec. 21, 2019.(Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

The most expensive addition to Salinas' skyline will be the new, $56 million Salinas police station at 312 E. Alisal St.

"We're on-time with the original construction schedule," said Cmdr. Stanley Cooper, who is overseeing the project for the police department.

The exterior is done, and workers are now focused on the interior, such as putting down carpet and tile and finishing up plumbing and electrical work.

"They're probably 80, 85 percent complete right now," he said.

The building's design also includes space for expansion.

"You dont build a new building to meet todays needs, you build it to meet future needs," he said.

The current police station, built in 1958, accommodated a much smaller police force, he said.

The new Salinas Police Service Headquarters located between E. Alisal and John Street on Dec. 21, 2019.(Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

"The building is literally falling apart," he said. "We've had a number of electrical, plumbing (issues) and roof leaks. It's well past its viable state."

The new facility will have a more spacious lobby and a community room open to the public. In addition, offenders needing to register will enter through a separate door.

It will also have a separate steel structure for storage.

The project is also coming in under budget, Cooper said, and it's expected to be occupied in March.

City officials broke ground on the new station in 2018.

More: Five things to know about your new $56M Salinas police station

More: Salinas Public Safety Center projected to open 2019

The new El Gabilan Library/Biblioteca on Dec. 21, 2019/ (Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

North Salinas' new library is nearly open, said Kristan Lundquist, Library and Community Services director for the city.

The project to replace the original 3,500 square feet of library space with a 21,000-square-foot, two-story library is on budget and on-time, she said.

Workers are finishing up the exterior and Lundquist plans to move in sometime in February.Funds donated by nearby residents also helped with the ambiance outside.

The new facility will feature a community room, an amphitheater, a children's discovery area with hands-on activities and a second floor for adults.

"The whole bottom floor is focused on youth, and we have some designated adult-use space as well," she said.

It will share parking with the allUSCredit Union, which paid $1.4 million in lease dues up front as seed money for the library, Lundquist said.

The total cost is about $21 million. The library has already received its temporary certificate of occupancy.

At the end of January, Salinas will close its temporary library at Northridge Mall.

"We're working now, in the process of planning our grand opening celebration," she said. "It'll be a day full of activities."

More: City breaks ground on new, much larger El Gabilan Library

More: New Salinas police headquarters, El Gabilan Library projects moving forward

More: As El Gabilan Library prepares to temporarily close, it's ready to party

The old municipal pool center located in Sherwood Park on Dec. 21, 2019. (Photo: David Rodriguez/The Salinas Californian)

The long-delayed Sherwood Community Center is close to opening.

The $3 million rehab for the former municipal swimming pool should be finished within three months, said Megan Hunter, director of community development for the city.

Workers have filled in the swimming pool as well as replaced windows and degraded wood, she said. Some of the space has been converted to office space and a new HVAC system was installed.

That HVAC system caused one delay because the city didn't have funding for it at the time.

Community Development Block Grants are funding the renovations, Hunter said.

It will have gym space for basketball and volleyball. In addition, it will have classroom space.

More: When will Salinas' new recreation center open?

This artist's rendering shows the interior of the planned Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System Center, which is expected to be open for the Spring 2021 class.(Photo: PROVIDED/HARTNELL COLLEGE)

Hartnell College is adding a 24,000-square-foot facility for its Nursing and Health Sciences students, said Scott Faust, director of communications and marketing at the college, in a press release.

The community college broke ground Dec. 12 on the Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System Center, named after the hospital and medical services organization that donated $3 million to the college.

Work will take place in 2020 with the opening scheduled in time for the Spring 2021 class, he said.

The facility will help train students of registered nursing, vocational nursing, respiratory careand emergency medical technicians in addition to other programs. It will also include a student health clinic.

The college's governing board chose Salinas contractor Tombleson Co., which placed a $21.42 million bid.

While Salinas Valley Memorial donated $3 million to the health sciences at Hartnell, the voter-passed Measure T 2016 ballot measure is paying for the construction.

Hartnell is also building two South County projects: A16,750-square-foot multipurpose education center in Soledad and a 12,500-square-foot expansion of its King City Education Center.

Both projects are planned to open for the 2021 Spring semester. A third education center in Castroville is expected to break ground in the summer.

Joe Szydlowski is a multimedia journalist for the Salinas Californian who covers local government, crime and cannabis. Follow him on Twitter attwitter.com/JoeSzyd_Salinas. He can be reached at 235-2360. Help support The Californian's work:https://bit.ly/2Qo298J

Read or Share this story: https://www.thecalifornian.com/story/news/2019/12/27/housing-homeless-shelter-police-station-library-and-more-whats-coming-salinas-california-2020/2635341001/

Continue reading here:
Housing, homeless shelter and more: What's coming to Salinas in 2020 - The Californian