City to Hold Hearings on Luxury Homes

After months of study and weeks of public comment on environmental impacts, the Moorpark City Council is scheduled today to hold the first of several hearings on detailed plans for a 216-home luxury development on the city’s north side.

In early December, the City Council approved an environmental report for the project--known as Moorpark Country Estates--despite objections from several residents who said it would degrade sensitive habitat and undermine the rural character of their neighborhood.

For the project--proposed by the Bollinger Development Co. of Westlake--to be built, its detailed plans must also be approved by the council. The hearings on the plans are expected to take several meetings, city officials said.

The proposal is to build the luxury homes on 655 acres near Walnut Canyon and Grimes Canyon roads on the north side of the city. Each home is expected to cost between $500,000 and $1 million.

As an incentive for approval, Bollinger’s proposal also includes two 18-hole golf courses, several trails and an equestrian center.

Originally, one of the golf courses was to be handed over to the city in exchange for public financing of some of the infrastructure improvements at the site.

But that part of the plan has been scrubbed. Now the developer is offering to share with the city a portion of the annual greens fees from one of the golf courses. Both golf courses will be open to the public, officials said.