Countywide : 1 Campus Finalist Called Unsuitable
Land owned by the McGrath family that sits in the flood plain of the Santa Clara River should be dropped from consideration as a site for a Cal State University campus, officials said Wednesday.
The 312-acre parcel, bordered by Harbor Boulevard near Gonzales Road, is unsuitable for a campus because of both flood and traffic concerns, Cal State Vice Chancellor John M. Smart said.
If a levee is built south of the river to protect the campus, businesses north of the river would be in jeopardy in a flood, Smart said.
In addition, the city of Ventura objects to the McGrath site because of the increased traffic it would bring to Harbor Boulevard.
Trustees will consider March 13 whether to order that the McGrath site be removed from the list of four primary sites being evaluated in an environmental impact report.
The other sites are 448 acres of farmland south of Foothill Road east of Ventura owned primarily by the Pinkerton family; 589 acres west of Camarillo and north of the Ventura Freeway, near the California Youth Authority, owned by Duntley Trust and the Chaffee family; and the Diedrich/Donlon property, 590 acres west of Rice Avenue and north of Wooley Road in Oxnard.
The environmental study will help trustees choose a site next May for a four-year campus to serve 15,000 people.
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