Council Agrees to Minimal Civic Arts Plaza Upgrades

Arguing that spending $1.3 million to beautify the Civic Arts Plaza was not a wise use of taxpayer money, the City Council has decided to pare a jumble of proposed improvements down to freeway signs and other minimum necessities.

In an unusual pairing, Councilman Andy Fox sided with Councilwomen Linda Parks and Elois Zeanah, voting to pursue signs, pedestrian lighting and improvements to the building’s cooling and fire suppression systems, but nothing more. The council did not give an estimate of costs for these improvements.

“We spent $90 million on this building, and every year we talk about adding things and enhancing things that were wrong,” Zeanah said. “This needs to stop.”

Mayor Judy Lazar and Councilman Mike Markey voted against reducing the list of adornments to the City Hall and theater complex, which were discussed Tuesday night during a study session on the city’s two-year, $57.8-million capital improvement budget.

Lazar in particular fought against it, arguing that necessary improvements should not be ignored because of the ongoing controversy over the building, which has already cost more than $87 million in land and construction expenses.

“I think we are foolish if we don’t support improvements to this building,” Lazar said. “This is as important as anything we own.”

Among the other proposals considered were erecting flags along the driveway leading to the Civic Arts Plaza, building a glass canopy above the circular driveway at the main entrance to the theater and painting the adjacent concrete parking garage.

Several council members said some of those other improvements could be paid for by the Alliance for the Arts, the Civic Arts Plaza’s fund-raising arm, but certainly not with city money. The alliance is open to the idea of helping pay for some improvements, but has not committed to anything, according to city theaters director Tom Mitze.

Fox argued that previous council members promised Thousand Oaks residents that no money from the city’s general fund would ever be used to pay for the theaters, and the suggested improvements could be seen as a violation of that pledge.

“As soon as we start putting the money in that budget, we are, in effect, breaking that promise,” Fox said.

The budget session later got ugly when council members discussed their most volatile topic: the upgrade of the Hill Canyon Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Zeanah proposed including a method of chemically treating sewage in the budget. City leaders have approved the concept of using the sewage-treatment method during earlier debates.

But Fox, Lazar and Markey refused to place the item in the budget, saying it would be irresponsible to do so because the council cannot agree on how to pay for it--or the rest of the sewer plant upgrade.

When Lazar moved to table Zeanah’s motion until the council could gather more information on the proposal, Zeanah balked, saying her views were being silenced by her political foes.

“You have gone too far!” Zeanah shouted at Lazar, as the council members began to shout back and forth. “You are afraid of what I have to say.”

Lazar retorted that she was not afraid of anything Zeanah could say.

Markey then suggested the meeting be recessed so tensions could cool down, and Lazar banged the gavel forcefully several times, ending the showdown about 10 p.m. The council resumed its meeting 10 minutes later and completed its discussion of the budget.