Developer also has plans for an upscale rest stop off Highway
101 near Masten Avenue
A new farm and housing development for south San Martin cleared a major hurdle last week and may be under construction as soon as next year.
“It’s nice to get past this step,” property owner Jeff Martin said, after the Santa Clara County Planning Commission unanimously approved his conceptual plan for the 19-house development.
The houses would be situated on a 95-acre plot just west of Monterey Highway and just south of where Church Avenue intersects the east side of Monterey.
Martin has already planted 3,500 Frantoio olive trees along Monterey and wants to build the houses on the western part of the property, where he would restore the western branch of the Llagas Creek to its natural channel and allow it to meander through the neighborhood.
To alter the creek, Martin will need the approval of several regulatory agencies. He said he wants to turn what is now a barren, engineered eyesore into an attractive waterway that will lure wildlife to the area.
“I want it to have vegetation and provide habitat,” he said.
The olive grove will be an active farming operation. Martin hopes to tap the organic olive oil market. Richard Palmisano, a planning commissioner who resides in San Martin, praised the project as a benefit to San Martin and the county.
“It’s an excellent type of development for the area,” Palmisano said.
The plot of land is one of several that Martin is developing along the Gilroy-San Martin border. He has built 60 houses at the southeast corner of Fitzgerald Avenue and Santa Teresa Boulevard, across from LJB farms, and owns two other parcels on Masten Avenue that he would like to develop.
His grandest plans are for an upscale rest stop just off Highway 101, north of Masten and across the street from where the owners of the Guglielmo Winery are planning to build an agricultural theme park.
“My goal is to have a different kind of roadside attraction,” Martin said. “Not your typical freeway rest stop. Someplace to go if you’re not just looking for a burger and want to sit down and relax for a bit.”
Martin must next return to county planners with a more detailed map of his housing and farming project. He said final approval could come in a year.
“We really are ahead of the game,” he said.
Matt King covers Santa Clara County for The Times. Reach him at 847-7240 or mk***@gi************.com.
