Council Turns Down Proposed Preschool
A nonprofit preschool company must consider relocating a proposed child-care center after the Thousand Oaks City Council rejected its bid to set up shop in the Conejo Valley Shopping Center.
On a 4-0 vote Tuesday, the council upheld the Planning Commission’s rejection of the proposed preschool, saying it could cause safety and noise problems for children and neighbors.
Councilman Andy Fox recused himself from the vote because he lives near the Moorpark Road shopping center.
The Planning Commission unanimously rejected the proposal in May after hearing from city staff members and neighbors who feared that putting a fenced play area for children near a parking lot used by 18-wheel trucks could be dangerous.
Councilwomen Linda Parks and Judy Lazar said Tuesday that they were rejecting the project with regret, because city residents need more child-care options. They urged Tarzana-based Woodcrest Schools to consider other locations in the city.
But the nonprofit company already has signed a 30-year lease for the Moorpark Road site.
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