L.A. Opposition Dominates Hearing on Newhall Ranch

Opposition from Los Angeles County groups dominated a hearing on the massive Newhall Ranch housing project Monday, temporarily sidelining Ventura County concerns about the project, which would be built on the doorstep of the Santa Clara Valley.

Angered by what they claim is a lack of concern for the children of the Santa Clarita Valley, about 30 people picketed outside a public hearing before the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission to protest the plan.

Also speaking out against various aspects of the project were conservancy groups and a Los Angeles County Fire Department forester, said Carla Bard, an environmental analyst with a Ventura public interest law firm.

“This is the first time we’ve seen other agencies from Los Angeles rear up on their hind legs and announce in public they have serious concerns about the Newhall Ranch project,” she said.

Comments by those groups meant Ventura County residents will not have a chance to comment until the hearing continues Sept. 3.

However, Ventura County officials sent a letter protesting that the agreement between the developer and Los Angeles County is “significantly flawed” because it fails to address the project’s impact on Ventura County.

Written by Supervisor Kathy Long, whose district includes the Santa Clara Valley, the letter points out that the agreement makes no provision for how the county is to deal with the added burden of tens of thousands of vehicles driven by Newhall Ranch residents. Neither does the agreement talk about protection of open space on adjacent land in Ventura County, despite the likelihood it will induce growth, Long wrote.

“We have received no response to our comments and observe that neither the Los Angeles County staff nor Newhall Land Co. has proposed changes to . . . address any of our concerns,” Long wrote.

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Bard wasn’t surprised by the lack of reaction to the county’s concerns.

“It’s my opinion that unless Ventura County is prepared to sue, they’re going to go on ignoring them,” she said. “Each meeting we get to makes it more clear that Newhall and the L.A. County Planning Department have taken a joint position that if Newhall says there isn’t any impact on Ventura County, then there isn’t.”

Members of Keep Kids First, a group of parents and homeowners, claim that the project’s developer, Newhall Land & Farming Co., is unwilling to pay to “adequately equip” the schools needed to service the 24,000-unit project.

“All the developer wants to pay for are the school buildings,” said Lorrie Baldwin, one of the protesters. “Schools need other things like playgrounds and books. Our children need and deserve more than what Newhall Land is willing to pay for.”

Marlee Lauffer, spokeswoman for Newhall Land, said the company has been negotiating with the William S. Hart Union High School District for about a year and has offered to pay more than state requirements.

“Our company cares about the quality of schools for its home buyers,” Lauffer said. “But what this boils down to is a difference of opinion between what the state says is adequate and what the district wants.”

Sitting on 12,000 acres near Six Flags Magic Mountain and adjacent to the Ventura County line, the Newhall Ranch project is expected to add 60,000 people to the already overheated growth inside the Santa Clarita Valley over 25 years.

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A development of that size is expected to bring 10,000 school-age children--from kindergarten through high school--into the area over the same period, said Robert Lee, superintendent of the Hart high school district.

On Monday, Lee told the Planning Commission that the single junior and senior high schools the developer agreed to pay for would not be enough to service the huge influx of students. The negotiations between Newhall Land and the Hart district are at an impasse, Lee said.

“We truly believe that this agreement will handcuff and handicap our ability to offer students a quality education,” Lee said.

John Hassell, a member of the Hart district school board, said the district is willing to sue to ensure that Newhall Land pays what he called their fair share. But members of the Planning Commission said that they hope litigation can be avoided and asked representatives from the district and Newhall Land to try and reach an agreement before that happens.

The commission continued the hearing to 9 a.m. Sept. 3 at the Hall of Records.

Greg Sandoval is a Times staff writer and Nick Green is a correspondent.