AGOURA HILLS : Merchants Accuse City of Intimidation

Agoura Hills officials have notified two local businesses that the city considers them to be in violation of numerous zoning laws, triggering accusations that officials are retaliating because the merchants sued the city last year.

The businesses, Fence Factory and Roadside Lumber, sued the city in an effort to keep their outlawed freeway signs, which the city banned as eyesores in 1984. Now, the business owners say, the city is trying to intimidate them into dropping the suit by claiming the violations and issuing an Aug. 1 deadline for them to bring their establishments into compliance.

“We’ve been in the area for the past 20 years, doing business the same way, and now, in the middle of [the lawsuit], they come and say, ‘You’re not in compliance,’ ” said Steve Bennett, owner of Fence Factory. “If that is not intimidation and Gestapo tactics, I don’t know what is.”

Mitchell Abbott, an attorney for the city, recently informed the two businesses by letter that the City Council had rejected the two businesses’ offer to settle the lawsuit. Fence Factory says it offered to replace its freeway sign with a slightly smaller sign, and Roadside Lumber says it offered to consolidate into one sign several smaller signs at the site.

“The City Council has further instructed us to advise you that it considers Roadside Lumber to be in violation of numerous provisions of its nonconforming use permit,” Abbott wrote in a form letter that was also sent to Fence Factory. However, the letter does not spell out what the alleged violations are, and Abbott on Friday declined to elaborate.

City Councilwoman Fran Pavley said that aside from the non-complying freeway signs, the violations are “generally minor things.”

After the city incorporated several years ago, Pavley said, the businesses--along with numerous other establishments--signed agreements in which they promised to abide by new city ordinances regulating such things as signage, parking, landscaping and screening. In exchange, she said, the businesses would be exempt from future zoning ordinances that would make it impossible or difficult to stay in business.

“The attempt was to work with these businesses to make sure they could stay in Agoura Hills,” she said. “At the time, they all thought it was extremely reasonable.”

Twelve businesses, including Fence Factory and Roadside Lumber, joined in the suit against the city. The businesses say they need the signs to attract customers.

City officials say they have popular support, and point to two ballot referendums that overwhelmingly supported the freeway sign ban.

The lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial next month.

Closing the businesses would hurt the city’s economy in the long run, said Mike Tuchman, owner of Roadside Lumber.

It would cost the city about $90,000 in sales tax revenue annually, he said, along with dozens of jobs.