Planners to Consider Woodridge Proposal

A proposed 273-unit housing development that has come under fire from slow-growth advocates because it would be built on a swath of open space on the outskirts of the city will face its first test tonight before the Planning Commission.

Woodridge Associates is asking the commission to approve rezoning part of a 743-acre tract of unincorporated land east of Erbes Road for housing. The project site is sandwiched between Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley.

Although final approval rests with the City Council, which would have to annex the land before development could begin, commissioners could push the long-planned subdivision much closer to reality after months of debate and revision.

In addition to rezoning the property, the developer is asking the commission for approval to subdivide 118 acres of the site into 287 lots. The remaining 625 acres would be set aside as permanent open space.

“We know this is a very sensitive project and have given it a very close look,” said Thousand Oaks city planner Greg Smith, whose department has recommended approval of both the subdivision and rezoning initiatives.

The land in question is not inside the city’s boundaries. But it is within Thousand Oaks’ sphere of influence--the area the city ultimately expects to develop--and officials said the county has indicated it would cede the land if requested.

Slow-growth advocates have assailed the housing project, saying it would slice into the county’s slowly evaporating open space, harm wildlife habitats and place additional strain on an already overtaxed city infrastructure.

“This is really not a good thing for Thousand Oaks,” said Dan del Campo, one of the project’s most vocal critics. “It’s going to change things in ways that neither the city nor the county is ready for.”

Del Campo said the project would effectively eliminate the moat of scrub grass, coyote brush and gentle hillsides that have separated the city from Simi Valley and place heavy demands on area schools, roads, water and sewage systems.

“We’re already too impacted to be allowing this kind of development [to go] on in Thousand Oaks,” he said.

But, according to Smith, an environmental study submitted to the city in May found that impacts from the project would be minimal.

Regarding area roads, Smith said, increased traffic would be negligible as would the burden on the city’s water and waste management systems.

Although an influx of people to the area would result in an increase in school enrollments, Woodridge Associates has agreed to pay more than $300,000 to offset the burden, Smith said.

“Those issues are really just a matter of perspective,” he said. “Of course, with any development you’re going to have certain impacts, but it’s been determined that with the project in question, they will be minimal.”

If the commission approves the rezoning and subdivision, the project would be sent to the City Council for final consideration.