Groups Appeal Golf Course Approval

Two environmental groups on Monday filed an appeal of a Ventura County Planning Commission decision approving the Farmont Corp.’s plan to build an exclusive golf course in the Ojai Valley.

The Environmental Coalition of Ventura County and the Citizens to Preserve the Ojai filed the appeal with the Board of Supervisors, said Meiners Oaks resident Alasdair Coyne.

The Board of Supervisors is expected to hear the appeal within 60 days, officials said.

“We will try to present the case as clearly as possible and say that the commission’s decision was inconsistent with the General Plan,” Coyne said.

Coyne alleges that the area’s General Plan prohibits the project from diverting drinking water from the upper Ventura River basin for nonessential uses, such as a golf course.

But county planner Pat Richards said the agreement did not violate the General Plan. He added that the project’s water use will have no negative impact on the area’s residents and that the company has agreed to help build a reclaimed water plant within 10 years that will allow them to use recycled water for the development.

The Ventura County Planning Commission unanimously approved the proposed 204-acre development on Dec. 17. The proposal includes plans for a members-only golf course, a 19,000-square-foot clubhouse, three lakes and a driving range.