CALABASAS : City to Appeal Ruling on Street Widening

The city of Calabasas will appeal a judge’s ruling that it must allow the developer of Ahmanson Ranch to widen Thousand Oaks Boulevard to accommodate traffic for the project.

At issue is an Aug. 8 ruling by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Diane Wayne that says Calabasas must allow the work to be done because it’s called for in the Los Angeles County General Plan.

Calabasas officials maintain that they have the right to abide by their own General Plan, which rules out widening the road. The city has refused to approve the widening, citing environmental concerns.

“When you believe in certain land-use principles, you have to see them to a conclusion,” said City Manager Charles Cate.

“We think we have a legitimate request; we think that request has been validated by the court, so our ultimate goal is, we hope they’ll process the application,” said Mary Trigg, a spokeswoman for Ahmanson Land Co.

This latest action is part of the continuing saga over the developer’s battle to build 3,050 homes, two golf courses and 400,000 square feet of commercial space in the hills southeast of Simi Valley on the border of Los Angeles County. Thousand Oaks Boulevard would be one of two entrances to the project.

Ahmanson sued Calabasas after the city refused to give the company a permit to widen a quarter-mile-long portion of Thousand Oaks Boulevard from two lanes to four lanes. The city--under intense political pressure to block the project--argues that a wider road would disrupt life in the residential community.

“That would be a four-lane highway right through the middle of a residential area, “ said Jeff Goodman, a member of the Malibu Canyon Homeowners Assn., which opposes the road widening.

Besides increased noise and traffic, a wider road would create a danger for children who must cross the road to get to Lupin Hill Elementary School, he said.

Goodman suggested that Ahmanson funnel traffic to the project on two or three different roads to lessen the impact on any particular neighborhood.

“Why does all the traffic have to go to one road?” he said.

Ahmanson argues it has done everything possible to protect the environment and quality of life of area residents.

Calabasas has already appealed another Superior Court ruling saying the project’s developers have done everything possible to minimize the impact of the project on the environment and quality of life.

That court decision came after Calabasas and eight other parties, including the city and county of Los Angeles, challenged the validity of an environmental impact review of the project.

The lawsuits have stalled the development, which was approved by the Ventura County Board of Supervisors more than two years ago.