East County Issue / Circuit City...

Frank Schillo, City councilman, Thousand Oaks

Yes. There are so many people that are concerned about it. I have asked the mayor to set up a meeting, and there will a public hearing Tuesday. The Planning Commission approved this 4 to 1, and it wasn’t appealed, so it never came to the City Council. There were only three or four people at the meeting who objected to it. It will be a Mediterranean building with towers on two of the corners. One of the towers goes up 43 feet. The Planning Commission insisted it have a big setback from the corner, but even so, it’s still a pretty imposing building. They would make a lot more friends in the community by listening to the people and reducing the height of the tower and the building itself. I don’t think that, by lowering it, it’s going to affect the operations of their building.

Donald E. Davis, Member, Concerned Citizens of Thousand Oaks

I believe the building should conform more with the standards for which Thousand Oaks has been famous for many years--buildings that conform to the existing terrain and character of the surrounding facilities. The Circuit City building, in our opinion, does not satisfy this criteria. It’s being built on a corner of a major intersection of a scenic corridor, Hillcrest Drive and Lynn Road, where the other three corners exhibit excellent aesthetic planning and contouring to demonstrate a very attractive gateway to the city. The Circuit City building violates the view shed of the background mountains. A petition requesting an emergency meeting with the City Council to discuss the issue was signed by 2,524 citizens. Some do want the building totally removed, however it is the general opinion of those who signed that major modifications to the building would be sufficient.

Stephen J. Rubenstein, Director, Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce

The building’s shell is complete, and with the exception of possibly bringing down the foundation of a tower, it would be difficult to say what could change to soften it. We don’t know how it’s going to look when it’s completed at the point we’re at right now--it’s just a wall. But when the wall and the roof are on, it will probably take on a different appearance. If there is a way to soften the impact on this corner, it certainly is encouraged. But as far as a significant change, or moving it to a different place on the property, that’s an impossibility. I’m happy with the fact that the city is entering into these discussions, and we’ll hear the citizens and their concerns, so perhaps more notification will be given to allow the citizens input on future developments. I hope that cooler heads prevail and that everybody looks at this for what it is and not from a personal level.

Mervyn Kopp Chairman, Thousand Oaks Planning Commission

I voted for the project. Circuit City certainly more than met all the city standards with respect to setbacks, height and landscaping. The building and its zoning are in compliance with the city’s General Plan. Circuit City worked for months with city staff to design the building to our city’s architectural standards, as opposed to their company’s standards. Given that, plus the fact that I thought it made sense for the corner, is why I voted for it. I think people are looking at the baby before it’s out of the birth canal. That’s not fair. For a long time, people have been driving by that corner and have come to regard it as theirs. But it’s not their corner. It belongs to the property owner. Some people have called it open space, but it was a vacant lot. It’s a very sensitively designed commercial structure. I just can’t buy the fact that it’s overdeveloped and insensitive.

Robert Larson, Assistant vice president, Oltmans Construction Co.

I don’t think so, only because they’ve already had to implement a whole series of items requested by the Planning Department to get the building to where it is now. That reflected some much higher construction costs than Circuit City was anticipating. Over the next 60 days, that building will be night and day compared to what it is now. If you look at the Circuit Citys in the Valley or in Ventura, or their ads on TV, they depict a giant gray box with a red plug in the corner and I wonder how many people think that’s what we’re building. This Circuit City is so different from any other in California. Thousand Oaks would not allow a big gray building with a red tower in the corner. You can’t make everyone happy all the time, but by the time this gets done, I think most people will like it.