Rodgers to Take Part in Development Vote

City Councilwoman and Realtor Debbie Rodgers plans to participate in tonight’s City Council meeting where the Moorpark Highlands development will be on the agenda, though Rodgers’ involvement in land-use decisions has come into question in the past.

In previous hearings where the Hidden Valley Creek Ranch was discussed, Rodgers disqualified herself from voting, upon the recommendation of the state Fair Political Practices Commission. The commission advised Rodgers, a manager for Coldwell Banker Town & Country, to recuse herself in December 1997 to avoid a potential conflict of interest, since she or her firm could benefit financially from the development’s approval.

Rodgers said the difference between the Highlands and Hidden Creek Ranch developments is the size of the two.

“It’s the sheer enormity of Hidden Creek Ranch,” she said. “[The Highlands] project is maybe one-fifth the size of that.”

The Highlands development would add 652 houses and apartments to the city, while Hidden Creek Ranch proposed 3,221 houses and apartments. The city currently has about 7,447 houses and 1,164 apartments.

Rodgers said her profession has been singled out even though others are affected by land-use decisions.

June Barlow, vice president and general counsel for the California Assn. of Realtors, agreed.

But Richard Francis, an Oxnard attorney who led a countywide effort to change the way land-use decisions are made, believes real estate agents should be scrutinized more.

“Local government has, as its primary function, land-use issues to deal with,” he said. “And no one stands to benefit more directly than a real estate agent.”