Zoning Change Could Block Development

In a move that could kill a 612-home development in Moorpark’s northern end, the City Council has started efforts to rezone the project’s land and cut the number of houses the property could hold.

Council members launched the rezoning process late Wednesday night, frustrated that six months after developer Paul Bollinger won their approval for his plans, he still had not found full financing for the project.

Although council members said the rezoning effort, expected to take several months, would stop the moment Bollinger showed them proof he could finish his project, Bollinger said their vote would drive away investors he has wooed for months.

“Once you establish that you’re going to rezone this property . . . that interferes with my business, my ability to go forward,” he said.

A divided council in April approved the development, which would fill the land between Grimes Canyon and Walnut Canyon roads with luxury homes and two golf courses. As part of their approval, council members changed the land’s original rural zoning to accommodate the number of houses Bollinger wants to build.

But council members were concerned that Bollinger did not yet own the 600-acre property. So they reserved the right to return the land to its original zoning if the developer did not receive financing within 120 days. The time limit gave the city a way to prevent other developers from using the rezoned property in case Bollinger’s plans fell through.

The deadline passed in September. On Oct. 2 the council agreed to give Bollinger another two weeks.

Wednesday night, Bollinger told council members that he had offers from potential investors that would allow him to finance the project immediately. However, he said he was holding out for another potential investor with whom he felt he could cut a better deal. This investor, a company he declined to name, did not want to commit money to the project until the first quarter of 1997, he said.

Councilman John Wozniak complained that Bollinger had been consistently slow to give the city financing information. And he said the council had adopted the 120-day limit only after Bollinger assured them he could line up investors before the deadline.

“Mr. Bollinger stood right at the podium and said, ‘I can do this in 90 days,’ ” Wozniak said. “From what I hear, there is no, ‘I’m going to do it,’ [from investors]. It’s still, ‘I’m looking at it.’ ”

Councilman Bernardo Perez voted against the zoning move, saying Bollinger was making progress and deserved more time.

“I think Paul is taking the appropriate steps to get this done,” he said.