City Considering Greenbelt Ordinance

City officials are discussing a greenbelt ordinance to protect more than 30,000 acres east of Fillmore and west of the Ventura County line.

If passed, the agreement could not be changed without first notifying the public, proponents say. For instance, ads in newspapers would have to be taken out before any changes would be considered, said Mary Ann Krause, who is overseeing the proposal for Supervisor Kathy Long.

Controlling urban sprawl and defining growth are the catalysts for the ordinance, said Councilman Roger Campbell, who sits on the greenbelts subcommittee along with City Manager Roy Payne and Councilman Scott Lee.

Fillmore officials want to limit the types of development allowed before they could support the ordinance, Campbell said. Currently, everything from strip mines to dumps are considered acceptable and neither makes a good neighbor, he said.

“[County planners] are always talking about protecting agriculture and open space,” he said. “I say they should put their votes where their mouths are.”

Protecting open space is one of Fillmore’s goals for this year and a top priority for managing growth, Campbell said. The city does not have a SOAR growth-control initiative.