Owners Out to Turn Land Into ‘Model Area’ : Development: Under the project, Ventura vacant lots and a lemon grove will be converted into homes and businesses.

Landowners next week are expected to submit plans for developing about 73 acres in the upper Ventura Avenue neighborhood, a move that could dramatically change the character of the old, industrial area.

Ventura property owners said they want to redevelop their land, turning vacant lots and a lemon grove into 330 residential units, a park, business offices and industrial buildings.

The proposed project would entail changing the city’s Comprehensive Plan, annexing about 26 acres into the city and changing portions of the zoning in the area from industrial to residential.

“I think the Avenue is on the decline and we want to reverse that,” said Bill Neel, one of the major property owners involved in the project. “By upgrading and providing a central core, we will create a model area.”

The area is north of Stanley Avenue and south of Seneca Street. It is bounded on the east by Ventura Avenue and to the west by California 33.

According to a draft project description, the development would include a neighborhood with 330 townhouses, office buildings, industrial facilities and a 1.19 acre park.

It would provide some senior citizens housing and a bike path. Kinko’s--the national copy service company headquartered in the neighborhood--would build a 60,000-square-foot addition to its headquarters.

The project description says the neighborhood would be about 34% residential, 35% commercial, 26% industrial and about 4% open space and parks.

The neighborhood--which is dominated by the Kinko’s headquarters--is currently a mishmash. It includes vacant lots, industrial businesses, storage lots for old cars and buses and the Neel family’s 20-acre lemon grove.

“It’s very difficult to farm in the city,” Neel said. “It is a beautiful lemon grove now but managing a lemon grove of that size in the city is not economically feasible.”

According to Neel, the three biggest property owners in the neighborhood are the driving forces behind the proposed development. They include the Neels, Kinko’s and the Huntsinger family, which owns about 10 acres south of Seneca Street.

The Huntsinger family and Kinko’s were not available for comment Friday.

Steve Perlman, a land use consultant hired by the trio, said he plans to submit plans to city officials as early as Monday.

City leaders said they are enthusiastic about the proposed project, even though it would mean altering the city’s planning guide and rezoning areas now designated for industrial use.

“It may be technically inconsistent with the plan, but it’s not inimical to the city’s redevelopment goals of the area,” said Councilman Todd Collart, a county land use planner.

Mayor Greg Carson said, “It’s trying to revitalize that area out there, and we’re looking at some of Kinko’s needs and trying to keep them in the community.”

Kinko’s is one of the city’s largest employers, and city officials said they want to assist the company’s plans for expansion. Neel said property owners hope to break ground next summer if the project is approved.

After city planners receive the project description from landowners, city staff will determine what kind of environmental review is necessary, said Everett Millais, community development director. The major impacts would be the additional traffic and pollution from cars the project would draw, he said.

“It’s very unusual for this type of thing to come forward,” Millais said. “It’s in essence private redevelopment.”