Planners Reject Art Plaza Tower : Jungleland: Thousand Oaks mayor believes action against the planned 9-story structure near the freeway will be reversed by the council.

In the first sign of official discontent with the planned $63.8-million Jungleland civic arts plaza, the Thousand Oaks Planning Commission has rejected a proposed design change that would allow construction of a 101-foot tower next to the Ventura Freeway.

The commission Monday night voted 3 to 1 to reject changes in the architecture that would allow the proposed performing arts auditorium tower to rise 64 feet above the adjacent Ventura Freeway. Commissioner Forrest Frields was absent.

Despite the action, Mayor Robert E. Lewis said Tuesday he is confident that the City Council will override the commission’s decision and approve the design changes when it reviews the project at its next meeting April 21.

Lewis said a majority of council members--who have shepherded the project through nearly four years of planning and public hearings--had already accepted the 101-foot tower height when they gave tentative approval to the design plans in September.

By that time, Lewis said, the council had reviewed and rejected other proposals that would have allowed an even taller tower of about 115 feet to be built.

Initially, buildings on the former Jungleland site were planned to rise no more than 25 feet above the freeway, according to a plan adopted in 1989. The maximum tower height initially was set at 75 feet.

As now proposed, the nine-story structure would be the tallest in Thousand Oaks. The city generally restricts buildings to no more than 35 feet.

“From a planning standpoint, it clearly violates practically every standard we have in the freeway corridor,” Commissioner Andrew P. Fox said Tuesday.

Chairman Mervyn Kopp, the only commissioner to approve the plan, minimized its impact on freeway motorists. He said they would see the building for only 35 seconds.

“It’s one building in one space on a freeway,” Kopp said.

The 1,800-seat performing arts auditorium is the centerpiece of the city’s civic arts plaza, a project designed by architect Antoine Predock.

The tower, which would rise above the auditorium stage, would be used for hiding sets, and dropping and raising scenery. It is an architectural feature that city officials say is necessary to attract any world-class theater company.

The civic arts plaza also includes a smaller 400-seat auditorium, a new city hall and a parking structure to be built at Conejo School Road and Thousand Oaks Boulevard.

In rejecting the proposal, commissioners echoed criticism from the project’s opponents and officials from other cities who say that allowing a nine-story tower to be built near the freeway would violate promises by Thousand Oaks officials to protect scenic views.

Last week, officials from the city of Agoura Hills in Los Angeles County expressed concern that Thousand Oaks is building the tower close to the freeway.

Commissioner Marilyn Carpenter said the proposal contrasts sharply with the project envisioned about five years ago by residents who helped the city design the development.

“To tell you the truth, my heart breaks at the way the project has evolved,” she said. “Much as I would like to see a civic arts complex . . . the trade-off is not worth it.”

City officials said they could not lower the building because a layer of bedrock prevents the city from grading deeper.

A decision to stray from the proposed changes could involve losing all or part of the $6 million the city has spent so far on the project, said Edward J. Johnduff, a city administrative services manager who is overseeing the civic arts plaza construction.

The city has spent about $4 million developing architectural drawings. Those drawings should be completed by May, he said.

The city has already graded the 23-acre site and officials are still evaluating bids submitted for steel structural foundations. A contract will be awarded at the next City Council meeting, Johnduff said.

Councilman Frank Schillo, a longtime champion of the controversial project, said he still supports the height of the building, but is aware that some residents have lingering objections.

“We’ve exhausted all the possibilities of reducing the height,” he said. “We spent thousands of dollars reducing the height, it can’t go down any lower.”

Councilwoman Judy Lazar, who sits on the civic arts plaza design committee, said she is concerned that any further changes could result in financial loss for the city.

“If the City Council were to say the height is inappropriate, we would have to go back to the architect and have him throw out drawings that have been done,” she said. “That’s major. It means a major amount of money as well.”

Councilwoman Elois Zeanah, the only council member who opposes the civic arts plaza, said she plans to vote against the proposed change in height. She said she plans to urge the council to send the project back to the drawing board.

“It does not conform to the standards we impose on private developers,” Zeanah said. “Citizens have constantly said that when they drive the streets and highways, they want to see nature, not high-rises.”

Psyche Pascual is a Times staff writer and Maia Davis is a correspondent.