CAMARILLO : Panel to Scrutinize Fruit Stand Permit

The Camarillo Planning Commission will consider tonight whether to revoke the permit of a roadside fruit stand.

In a report to the commission, Planning and Community Development Director Matthew A. Boden said fruit stand operator Tom Staben has violated conditions of his 1983 permit, which prohibits him from operating the stand without farming the land he leases.

When the permit was granted, Staben farmed a 74-acre site south of the Ventura Freeway on each side of Conejo Creek. The permit specified that the fruit stand would be located on a one-acre piece of the land and that only produce grown in the county could be sold. It also allowed only one storage building and banned promotional displays.

But Staben stopped farming the parcel without notifying the city and continued to display farm equipment as part of a promotional display, Boden said in his report.

However, since the revocation hearing was scheduled two months ago, Staben has corrected some of the violations the city has alleged.

In a phone interview, Staben said he stopped farming the site only when he lost the lease two years ago. He blamed complaints that led to the revocation hearing on a business competitor who wants to open another fruit stand nearby. “They’ll be groping for straws to (close me down),” Staben said.

The commission will hold a public hearing on the permit at its 7:30 p.m. meeting at Camarillo City Hall, 601 Carmen Drive.