Taking Aim at Fantasy Island

The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday urged the Regional Planning Commission to update zoning regulations in rural areas to better balance development, recreation and environmental interests.

The unanimous vote came in direct response to a long-brewing dispute between a professional party host in Agoura and residents of the rustic canyon neighborhood near his property. County officials say they have been hampered in controlling celebrations at the controversial venue, Fantasy Island, because of its zoned use as a “resort and recreation” area that dates from the 1920s.

“The resort and recreation zone standards, written in an earlier, less crowded time, need to be reviewed by county agencies,” said Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, whose district includes the contested site near Triunfo Canyon in the Santa Monica Mountains.

For more than five years, canyon homeowners have lodged hundreds of complaints against Fantasy Island and its owner, Avi Datner.

Neighbors contend that the weddings, bar mitzvahs and other catered affairs on the 23-acre property regularly subject them to loud noise and blocked traffic throughout the night.

But under the current ordinances, their complaints--such as music blaring from loudspeakers--are hard to address because there is no specific law against them, county officials said. Datner has denied causing undue disruptions, and has even claimed he no longer runs the operation. But he has been criminally charged with running the retreat without the proper permits. Neighbors say he would be in violation of far more laws if appropriate ordinances were on the books.

The dispute may come to a head this week when both sides have been ordered by a judge to either announce a resolution of their differences or prepare for a jury trial.

But county officials also have tried to referee the dispute through zoning laws.

Issues such as hours of operation, traffic congestion and the maximum number of guests such a facility should be allowed to have all could be addressed by more modern and workable “resort and recreation zone” package of ordinances, according to Yaroslavsky.

The supervisors also recommended that the Planning Commission hold public hearings to review the resort and recreation zone and make “any appropriate recommendations” to the board.

“The time has come for the county to review the recreational and amusement zones in rural areas,” Yaroslavsky said after the vote. “It’s clear that there are conflicts that need to be resolved.”