THOUSAND OAKS : Panel Urges Denial of Ranch Project

The Thousand Oaks Planning Commission voted 4 to 1 Monday night not to recommend approval of a huge development proposed for the former MGM Ranch site, saying the trade-offs the city would receive from the developer were not worth the impact the project would have on the environment.

The recommendation is scheduled to go to the City Council April 2.

The project would include 1,000 houses, 400 apartments and a 111-acre industrial park west of Lawrence Drive and Rancho Conejo Boulevard. In return, the city would receive 5.5 acres for the relocation of Conejo Valley High School, eight acres for a school warehouse, plus land for a recreational vehicle park and recycling center.

The developer is also asking for 29 acres of open space to be zoned for industrial use.

The 1,862-acre project would require an amendment to the city’s General Plan before the Rancho Conejo development could begin.

About 30 people attended the commission meeting. Most opposed the development, saying it would harm the area’s wildlife.

“What we decide for the environment is more important for our students than a school site,” Fred Bickel, an opponent of the project, said.

“Once it’s developed, it’s gone . . . what will we leave for children?” asked Mark Murphy, spokesman for the Conejo chapter of the Sierra Club.

“The City Council’s position, the commission’s position and the community’s position on open space has been, ‘We like our open space and we want to see more of it,’ ” Planning Commission Chairman Andy Fox said. “The city may get an RV park, a recycling center and another school site later, but not at the expense of the loss of open space and the impact to the environment.”

Mervyn Kopp, who voted in favor of the project, said, “I’ve heard a lot tonight about animal rights, wildlife rights, flower rights . . . but I’ve heard nothing about property-owner rights, and that concerns me.”

The developer of the project is Shapell Industries Inc.