Council Rejects Plan for Luxury Homes

Simi Valley officials joined two neighboring cities Monday in rejecting a developer’s proposal to build seven luxury homes on 10-acre lots in the middle of the mostly undeveloped Tierra Rejada greenbelt.

Simi Valley’s City Council asked City Manager Mike Sedell to recommend that the Ventura County Board of Supervisors reject a zoning change for the developer, Norfolk Ventura Properties of Brookline, Mass.

Simi Valley, Moorpark and Thousand Oaks established the greenbelt area on either side of Tierra Rejada Road in 1986, agreeing to restrict the land between their cities to use as agricultural fields and open space.

But the development company had hoped to turn its 61-acre lot just south of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library into seven mini-ranches of about 10 acres apiece, each sporting a custom-built single-family house.

In exchange, the company would give nearly 220 acres of unprotected land that it owns to the Rancho Simi Community Park District to be absorbed into the greenbelt. Norfolk has already given 80 acres of that land to the district.

Council members said they might be open to this proposal if Moorpark and Thousand Oaks approved of the idea. However, those cities have asked supervisors to reject the plan because it would violate the greenbelt agreement.

Councilman Paul Miller said: “I hate to see us nibble away at the greenbelt . . . it may be six [homes] now and four later and 10 after that. And pretty soon, Presidential Drive is going to be a four-lane highway.”

Webb replied: “I disagree. We’re expanding the greenbelt. To me it seems like a pretty good trade-off.”

However, several council members said they worry that the homes could be seen from nearby Olsen Road, which would violate Simi Valley’s hillside ordinance--an issue Norfolk must resolve before the project could continue.