VENTURA : Plan to Annex Parts of Montalvo Delayed

The Ventura City Council postponed a plan to annex parts of unincorporated Montalvo and voted Monday to send it back to county planners for revision.

The council voted 6 to 1 to ask the county’s Local Agency Formation Commission to redraft the plan to exclude land owned by registered voters who oppose the annexation.

LAFCO approved the annexation proposal last March as part of its ongoing effort to have cities absorb surrounding neighborhoods that use city services.

Ventura originally received protests from fewer than 25% of the 69 registered voters living in the areas of Montalvo affected by the plan, which would have allowed the City Council to approve the annexation without the residents’ consent.

But during a Jan. 6 hearing, annexation opponents filed more written protests after complaining that the county and city had not notified all the residents of the plan.

By last week, the city had received written protests from 24 of the 69 registered voters there, more than enough to force the city to either send the plan back to LAFCO or let the Montalvo voters decide on the annexation.

The plan that LAFCO will consider at its Feb. 19 meeting excludes 15 residential properties owned by the voters who protested, but the annexation still would include five businesses, such as the Victoria Motel.

Councilman Jim Monahan said he opposed the plan because the decision on annexation unfairly excludes business people whose property rights are equal to those of homeowners in the area.

Several residents protested the plan, the fourth attempt at annexing parts of Montalvo since 1980.