CAMARILLO : Residents Oppose Revised Flood Plan

County flood control officials have scaled back a $1-million flood-prevention project at Rancho Adolfo Mobile Home Park in Camarillo, but residents don’t like the new plan much better.

“The park is up in arms about it,” said resident Andy Gabbard, a member of the committee working with park owner Leonard Butler to convert the rental park lots into 254 units for sale.

Estimated lot prices range from $51,095 to $68,645.

Under the new flood-control proposal, Butler would build two stone walls, one on either side of Calleguas Creek.

Butler would pass the cost of the project on to prospective buyers.

Although the new proposal halves the project cost to each lot buyer from $4,000 to $2,000, residents are still griping about the price that the Ventura County Flood Control District is requiring them to pay.

They also are complaining that one of the six-foot walls would eliminate the views for about 37 coaches along the golf course.

“To be asked to put a wall 15 feet from the homes is just stupid,” Gabbard said.

In addition, Gabbard said, the wall would slice two holes and 15 feet from the width of the park’s nine-hole golf course.

When the park was established in 1978, the county allowed the course to be built on county land, once owned by the park.

The original $1-million flood-control plan, which included about $400,000 in contingency funds to be banked by the district, was to line the Calleguas Creek channel along the length of the 36.5-acre park with rocks to protect the park from flooding during heavy rains.

The new plan does not include any contingency funds.

Alex Sheydayi, deputy public works director for the flood control district, said county officials agreed to the scaled-down plan after realizing that state environmental officials would not allow the vegetation habitats in the channel to be disturbed.