SIMI VALLEY : Residents Protest McDonald’s Plan

Saying a proposed McDonald’s restaurant would cause a traffic nightmare in their neighborhood, more than two dozen Simi Valley residents urged the City Council Monday night not to approve the development.

The speakers were among more than 100 people who attended a public hearing on the proposal. The restaurant would be built at the northwest corner of Yosemite Avenue and the Simi Valley Freeway.

A group of residents calling themselves Citizens for a Safe and Scenic Simi Valley said they opposed the project because it would increase traffic, litter and noise in what is now a residential neighborhood.

“We are not against McDonald’s,” said Eileen Gordon, the leader of the group. “The main reason for our opposition is we feel it is inappropriate to put a commercial development in an area that will generate high volumes of traffic in a residential neighborhood.”

Resident Lynne Myers expressed concern about estimates that the restaurant would generate more than 3,000 vehicle trips a day.

“The increased traffic here is a disaster waiting to happen,” she said. “I think we are asking for a lot of problems. We have got to look for what is best for the entire community.”

A few people spoke in favor of the development, saying the city needs more jobs.

The Planning Commission approved the project Dec. 18, but members of the citizens group complained to city officials, who agreed to hold a public hearing on the proposal.

Sandra Ayers, a McDonald’s spokeswoman, said the project is well-planned and would create dozens of jobs and generate more than $20,000 in annual sales tax revenue for the city.