Taylor Fresh Foods plans to turn two Salinas parking lots into housing and a hotel.

In the decade since the Salinas City Council approved a plan to revitalize downtown, the changes have been aplenty: the burnt-out Bruhn building has become apartments and commercial space, the building at 301 Main St. is now a brewery and studios, there are new trees and sidewalks, and even an arch spanning the street proudly proclaiming the name of the city, among other things.

Many of these projects can be linked to investments made by Salinas-based vegetable processor Taylor Fresh Foods, which bought and renovated properties throughout downtown, including opening its own headquarters on Main Street.

Now, Taylor Fresh Foods is set on another downtown project: transforming two worn-out but well-used parking lots around Salinas City Hall into housing, retail space and a hotel.

The parking lots, owned by the City of Salinas, are located along West Gabilan Street at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue, across from the Salinas Transit Center. Parking Lot 12, as it is referred to, has 120 spaces currently used for jurors serving in the nearby Monterey County Superior Court as well as for city vehicles, while Parking Lot 8 offers 63 spaces of permit parking.

At one point eyed for a parking garage, these lots were outlined in the 2015 Downtown Vibrancy Plan as future redevelopment sites. In 2021, the council rezoned the properties to allow for mixed-use developments, putting them up for sale, drawing interest from Taylor Fresh Foods.

On Nov. 5 – after the Weekly’s deadline – the Salinas Planning Commission was set to review a development agreement between the city and Taylor for the properties before it heads to the council for approval.

Parking Lot 12 is slated to include 67 units of workforce and low-income housing, says Taylor Fresh Foods spokesperson Mindi Mayhew. A hotel and commercial space is proposed for Parking Lot 8.

A report to the Planning Commission states there is no specific timeline for when construction finishes, only estimating it will happen within the next decade. Under the draft agreement, Taylor Fresh Foods must seek city approval for developing Parking Lot 12 within a year of the agreement being finalized, while for Parking Lot 8, that deadline is within five years.

What Taylor Fresh Foods will pay for the properties will be determined by an appraisal that has yet to take place, according to the agreement.