Official Denies Homeowners’ Claims : Group Says Church Unfairly OKd

A group of Thousand Oaks residents angry over a proposed Mormon church in their neighborhood charged Monday that the Planning Commission approved the project without sufficient review because the city manager is a Mormon official.

However, members of the Hillview Homeowners Assn. did not offer evidence that City Manager Grant Brimhall used his influence to win approval for the church. Residents said they object to the church primarily because of increased traffic and what they say is danger from landslides on the sloping property.

Brimhall, president of the 2,300-member Mormon church in Thousand Oaks, said he was not involved in the church’s effort to get a permit to construct the two-story building on a vacant 8.72-acre lot at Erbes Road and Sapra Street.

“I know people have said I bribed the planning commissioners, which is an affront,” Brimhall said. “. . . I work with the church about 15 hours a week, but this project is being handled by an architect.”

The site is zoned for rural residential development. The Planning Commission generally regards churches as compatible with residential areas, said John Prescott, the city’s principal planner. Several churches are on Erbes Road near the Hillview neighborhood.

Gregory Cole, commission chairman, said commissioners were following the planning staff’s recommendation when they unanimously approved the church’s proposal Jan. 23 without requiring additional environmental documentation. He said the commission set certain conditions, however, such as requiring a traffic signal at Sapra Street and reducing the building’s height by about 10 feet.

A group of 34 homeowners has appealed the commission’s decision to the City Council, which is to hear the matter March 28.

In literature handed out at a news conference Monday, the homeowners said that “given the structure of city government, it is difficult to imagine that the project could receive an unbiased evaluation from the planning department. After all, everyone works for Mr. Brimhall, and they all know that he wants this building very badly.”

Prescott said it was ludicrous to suggest that planners recommended the project out of fear of being fired because Brimhall cannot arbitrarily fire civil servants.

Homeowners have said the site is geologically unsound because of potential landslides. But Prescott said a geological report prepared by Envicom Corp. of Calabasas, an independent consultant, indicated that the land was stable.

Residents also said the project raises traffic concerns. Prescott said about 80% of the cars leaving the church would have to exit onto Sapra Street, a quiet cul-de-sac. Traffic on Sapra is estimated to increase by about 1,080 trips on Sundays, he said. Prescott said traffic on the street is “nearly non-existent now.”