Our Choice
The Community has a Choice and the Choice is clear – Demolish the Granada or Save the Granada. The time is now – if we remain silent the wrecking ball will come.
If The City Demolishes the Granada in its place will be Retail, parking and “Affordable by Design” housing. The dirty little secret is that “Affordable by Design” means 700 to 1300 sq ft condo, townhouses and/or rentals. This is the housing the City wants you to believe will be attractive to Baby Boomers who wish to dump the lawn mower and the hip new generation seeking the urban experience.
We only have to look 10 miles south to Gilroy and their grand experiment into “Urban Experience South County Style” to see empty store fronts with For Lease Signs and “Affordable by Design” housing being turned into Apartments, homes that once sold for over $300,000 now begging for buyers at $95,000. And the excuse of “it was the economy stupid” that created that mess – not the basic bad planning and dumb idea.
It is insane to think that we will fare significantly better than our cousins south of us.
A little bit of “Affordable by Design” housing is great – but do you really want 60 units between 1st and 2nd on Monterey?
THAT’S THE PLAN!
Oh by the way - They can’t finance the retail without that many housing units – even with the City GIVING the property to Barry Swenson Developers! If the Banks don’t think it is such a hot idea – why should we?
Is that really what we were led to believe when Measure A passed? We were promised No Low Income Housing in Downtown.
So what do they do?
They rename it, repackage it and we the tax-paying public are not supposed to notice the “Man behind the Curtain”. The Great, The Powerful City Management knows best. You people just get in your cars, go to work, keep paying your taxes and we will tell you how to live your life.
The City in their vast wisdom have thumbed their noses at the over 1000 signatures on the advisory petition, the over 700 Facebook fans, the 100’s of emails and letters sent to the City Council, the countless phone calls that want them to Save the Granada and the hordes of people who have shown up at City Council Meetings to voice their opinion for the allotted 3 minutes.
But I digress …
The City’s Solution to the Entertainment component for Downtown is a 4-plex movie theater at 2nd and Monterey. The only type of entertainment the City wants for Downtown year round is Movies.
Is that all the year round entertainment you want?
Sure we have lots of places for outdoor concerts – but don’t believe “It never rains in California”. That leaves at least 1/3 of the year where these outdoor venues are not dependable and hence silent.
Hasn’t anyone in “Power” noticed that people are coming Downtown right now for events and restaurants?
Plus how many tourist dollars do you think a 4-plex will generate for the City? Zip, zero, nada, zilch. Who travels to see a movie?
But right now many people are already traveling to participate in our Mushroom Mardi Gras, 4th of July Parade and Fireworks, Taste of Morgan Hill, the new Chili Cook Off and our Thursday and Friday Street Dances. Heck, we even have people coming from all over to compete in our Morgan Hill Idol Contest!
We would love to see modern retail spaces in Downtown and be able to attract and retain a wonderful retail environment. There are many places in Downtown where that can be accomplished, it might be harder, it might not give as much of a return on investment to the Developer, it might even be more expensive in the short run, but in the Long Run keeping the character of our Downtown, keeping the History and the Icons of our Downtown will be what creates the “Uniquely Morgan Hill” environment that we all want for Downtown. Plus Saving the Granada will make Downtown a viable destination for people who want to eat, drink, shop and be entertained. I thought that was the Goal?
To quote Greg Sellers, “Once we lose our theater we can’t get it back.”
If we save The Granada, the Save the Granada organization is proposing to renovate the existing structure and create a Performing Arts Center. The vision is that the space would be flexible by design. It would have one large movie screen so that we would be able to show a mix of movies based on what the community supports. We would also use the stage so that we could have a mix of live performances. The renovations would be done with flexibility in mind. The programming would be with the community in mind. The flexible nature of the Theater allows the Granada to move and change as tastes and conditions change in the community.
A 4-plex Cinema will always be only a 4-plex Cinema. Same popcorn – different day.
We want The Granada to be the home of the Poppy Jasper Film Festival, we want to assist non-profits in the area to raise money, we want to be a place where local talent can perform and we will be a place where nationally know speakers, musicians and bands come, we will be the place where people can come and see something interesting. And oh by the way, wander around and see the shops, have dinner, get a coffee, have a cocktail and buy a book. Isn’t that what we all want? Isn’t that why Downtown is being redeveloped? Isn’t that the Goal of the RDA?
The Granada is the anchor that Downtowns needs to bring people downtown to shop, eat and socialize. We don’t need to build it! We have it now - open it now!
Do we need a Taj Mahal? No we need something clean, safe and comfortable Now so that as the construction is happening to the surrounding buildings there is a reason to come to Downtown and support the businesses that will remain and attract new business to Downtown.
Don’t delay, we need your support, we are a grass roots organization that loves our town, it’s history, it’s character and it’s Theater.
Help us – Please Donate Now!
Download the petition and get yourself and 10 of your closest friends to sign it. Click here
Click here for a step by step guide to signing the petition and its content.
Click here for the Ballot Initiative FAQ.
Be part of something wonderful – Be Part of Downtown Done Right!
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