Council OKs WellPoint’s Complex

WellPoint Health Network officials on Wednesday won approval to begin construction of a 61-acre complex in Camarillo that ultimately could employ 7,200 workers.

The City Council unanimously agreed to sign development agreements with WellPoint officials promising that the city will not change its planning laws to stop construction of the project.

The council also voted to allow the construction of a helicopter pad in the southwest corner of the project. The pad still needs Caltrans and FAA approval.

Last month, the city’s Planning Commission approved the $180-million project and the helicopter pad after a five-hour meeting that dragged into the early morning. Company officials said the pad is necessary to ferry executives to and from meetings.

But on Wednesday, several residents and Mayor Mike Morgan voiced opposition to the pad. Morgan said he wanted a helicopter ride along the proposed flight path before considering the issue.

“You really don’t know what the impacts are until you experience them,” Morgan said.

The objections did not sway the four other council members from supporting the helicopter pad.

WellPoint officials hope to move nearly 4,000 employees to the parcel between the Ventura Freeway and Adolfo Road, west of Conejo Creek, by 1997. Plans call for the construction of 14 buildings, ranging from three to four stories high. The site will serve as a sales and policy management headquarters.

Once completed, WellPoint will be the single largest employer in Camarillo. The company is a subsidiary of health insurance giant Blue Cross.