Simi Valley Hillside Is Considered for Cemetery : Development: Mt. Sinai Memorial Park representatives have met with neighbors and city officials who tend to support the proposal.

Mt. Sinai Memorial Park near Burbank is considering developing a 150-acre cemetery on a hillside at the far east end of Simi Valley.

Robert H. Levonian, a consultant representing Mt. Sinai, said cemetery officials recently met with residents who live near the proposed cemetery site and were encouraged by the response.

“It went very well, we thought,” Levonian said. “I think they would much rather have a memorial park than a subdivision.”

Mt. Sinai officials also met with Mayor Greg Stratton and Councilwoman Sandi Webb, who were receptive to the proposal.

“I tend to feel it would be a good use for the land,” Webb said. “It would certainly be quiet. And they would not be prone to having wild parties.”

The cemetery would be developed on the 381-acre Douglas Ranch, just north of the Simi Valley Freeway between Yosemite Avenue and Kuehner Drive.

Mt. Sinai, a nonprofit organization, is still exploring the idea, Levonian said. It has not purchased the property, but officials have spoken with the landowner and said price does not appear to be a problem.

“It’s a fair price,” said Levonian, who declined to disclose any figures.

“Right now we’re just very interested in what the citizens have to say,” Levonian said.

The company would need to apply for a zoning change to develop the land as a cemetery, said Sam Freed, the city’s senior planner. The site is currently zoned for a mix of housing, he said.

Freed said Simi Valley currently has one small public cemetery and one cemetery owned by the Los Angeles Roman Catholic Archdiocese.

Levonian said Mt. Sinai officials have been looking for other locations to develop because they are running out of space at their Burbank site, which is next to Forest Lawn Memorial Park Hollywood Hills. While the company is looking at other areas, it is most impressed with Simi Valley, he said.

“Our choice will probably be Simi Valley,” he said. “If the people in Simi Valley like it and they think it’s a good idea, then we’ll move ahead with it.”

Don Otto, vice chairman of Simi Valley Neighborhood Council 4, whose area includes the site, said he likes the idea.

“I think the community would like to see those hills stay as green as possible,” he said. “And this would be the way to do it.”

Jim Frascatore, another member of the Neighborhood Council, agreed.

“People must realize that this land is not going to remain unused forever,” he said. “I’m very impressed with these folks because they seem to want to work with us.”

Both Otto and Frascatore said they expect close scrutiny of the proposed project because of its location. “It’s an area that is sensitive to the community because it’s so visible,” he said. “It’s the entrance to our city.”

Although its project was finally approved, McDonald’s Corp. ran into strong opposition from residents earlier this year when it applied to build a restaurant at the northeast corner of Yosemite Avenue and the Simi Valley Freeway.

One element of the cemetery project that Otto and Frascatore are concerned about is what Mt. Sinai would do with the remaining acreage.

Levonian said the company would probably designate 150 acres of the remaining acreage as open space, with 81 acres to be developed as residential or commercial.

“That would be very much up to Simi Valley,” he said.

Levonian said Mt. Sinai officials plan to meet with the Neighborhood Council at its July 21 meeting to discuss the cemetery proposal.