Questions About Lang Ranch Dam Proposal

Re “Why Build Dam? There’s a Better Way,” Ventura County Perspective, March 19.

At no time in the recent City Council meeting on the proposed Lang Ranch Dam were the most basic issues explained to citizens of Thousand Oaks:

* What are the specific land use and storm intensity criteria that would prompt such a huge project?

* What exactly is a 100-year storm? When was the last 100-year storm here, or is it all theoretical statistics?

* If there has been such a storm, what was its effect in the Lang Creek watershed?

* Has the Erbes Road culvert ever backed up? If so, when, and what was its effect?

I strongly suspect that if I asked six experts these questions, I’d get six different interpretations.

The City Council, staff and consultants continue to treat intelligent residents as children to be put off whenever they ask “why?” We resent their “we know what’s best for you and we’re not going to consider any more alternatives.”

What I’d appreciate is a reasonable explanation--based on historical facts--to justify a 14-acre, multimillion-dollar, twin-basin, six-story-high dam project in the middle of a residential neighborhood that would destroy an ancient oak grove and wildlife habitat, create a horrific eyesore and reduce neighborhood property values.

Council member Linda Parks has proposed a concept for a shallow bypass basin parallel to Lang Creek in a field east of Erbes Road into which excessive flow would be diverted and held until a storm emergency passes and the Erbes Road culvert could again handle its maximum designed flow.

Her concept has been validated by expert hydrologists and geo-technologists.

The council majority and county public works director rejected Parks’ concept out of hand. She saw that one coming and smartly submitted her plan directly to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which has permitting authority. She’s simply asking for a thorough evaluation of an alternative no one else had considered. If it can work, fine. If not, so be it.

A requirement for some kind of Lang Ranch runoff control has been around for two decades. Now that plans have been formulated and most Lang Ranch homeowners taxed, it’s time to take a hard look at the alternatives and move on the one that will meet the specific objective with the least damage to the environment, the neighborhood and taxpayers’ equity in the homes.

ROBERT S. KNAPP

Thousand Oaks