THOUSAND OAKS : Skateboarding at Complex Is Banned

A Thousand Oaks office complex will be a little less hectic, now that the City Council has declared it off limits to skateboarders, bicyclists and roller skaters.

The council voted unanimously Tuesday night to prohibit skateboarding, bicycling and roller-skating at the Westlake Plaza Centre on Townsgate Road after its property manager reported an increase in vandalism.

Manager John S. Kelly said he was pleased to see the council take action against skateboarding youths who he says damage the building and sidewalks with their activities.

Skateboarders use a 100-foot concrete walkway to practice their aerial jumps, leaving dark scuff marks on planters and railings, and they harass workers who cross their paths, Kelly said.

“This has been their summer playground,” he said. “They do a little vandalism. They put paper towels inside the restrooms.”

The complex is the site of offices for a number of large businesses, including Liberty Mutual Insurance and Century 21.

Youths caught skateboarding, bicycling or roller-skating by Ventura County sheriff’s deputies will be issued a ticket, according to a city ordinance.

Thousand Oaks traffic engineer John Helliwell said the center is the first private complex in the city where such activities are prohibited. The city already bans such activities at its two public libraries.