Simi Valley : Merchants Can Post Wood Ranch Signs

Hoping to boost flagging sales at the Wood Ranch shopping center, the Simi Valley City Council has agreed to allow merchants to post signs along a nearby roadway.

The council action reverses a decision by the city’s Planning Commission, which rejected the request by Ralphs supermarket and other merchants to advertise their stores with a 12-foot-high lighted sign on Madera Road.

Shop owner Larry Lindauer told the council he was frustrated with the commission’s decision, and that without a sign on Madera he might be forced out of business.

“The simple fact of the matter is that a sign is needed on this street,” Lindauer said. “Please look at how your decision will affect business owners.”

In a letter to the council, resident Denise Dean-Guerrero agreed. “The residents of Wood Ranch want a thriving shopping center, not a lot of empty storefronts.”