THOUSAND OAKS : Planning Board Approves Work on MGM Ranch Project

The Thousand Oaks Planning Commission has approved the grading and subdivision of the former MGM Ranch site for an industrial park, 15 years after the development was proposed.

Commissioners voted 5 to 0 Monday to allow the Beverly Hills-based Shapell Industries to remove 98 oak trees and subdivide the 95-acre property into 22 lots, mainly for industrial uses.

The property is located just north of the Ventura Freeway along Rancho Conejo Boulevard.

It also includes the future site for a new Conejo Valley High School.

The property was formerly used by MGM as a movie location.

Shapell proposed developing an industrial park there in 1977, Principal Planner John C. Prescott said.

The proposed development has sparked controversy over the years because the property includes a Chumash Indian archeological site, a small wetland area and bird habitat and many mature oak trees.

The City Council approved the development last year after three amendments were made to the development proposal.

But the Sierra Club promptly filed suit against both the city and Shapell over the environmental issues, Prescott said.

The suit resulted in a settlement in which Shapell agreed to preserve the Chumash archeological site, which is about one acre in size.

And to establish a scholarship fund for Chumash Indian children, Prescott said.

The developer was not required to save the wetlands area, which covers less than half an acre of the property, Senior Planner Greg Smith said.

Of the 98 oak trees that will be removed during grading of the site, 40 will be transplanted elsewhere on the property.