MOORPARK : Supervisors to Consider Flood Damage Pact

The owners of a Moorpark orchard that was partially washed away during the 1992 floods will soon see the banks of the nearby Arroyo Las Posas reinforced if an agreement with the Ventura County Flood Control District is approved by county supervisors today.

In a lawsuit, Circle T Corp. blamed construction of a flood control district project on Arroyo Las Posas for a ground collapse in the orchard. As part of the agreement, the flood control district will fill in the damaged area, which will require about 80,000 cubic yards of soil and debris over the next three years.

In return, Circle T Corp. will turn over 1.69 acres to the district for a right of way for the project, which includes a levee, artificial channel and access road.

The sediment control project has been part of the district’s capital improvements program since 1991-92, said Alex Sheydayi, the district’s deputy director.

“Circle T lost some bank in the same area as the project,” he said. “Part of the orchard fell in. They filed a lawsuit contending that the flood control district work had caused the damage.”

He said he hopes that work on completing the project would begin as soon as this summer. But the district needs to obtain a small parcel of land from another property owner before it can go ahead. Sheydayi estimates that it will take about seven months to finish.