Talks Underway to Acquire Open Space

City Councilman Andy Fox is spearheading negotiations with Shapell Industries in Beverly Hills to acquire 266 acres of land the company owns on the Western Plateau.

The site, at the western end of the city and west of the Rancho Conejo open-space area, was recently selected as the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency’s top priority for acquisition. It is home to a variety of wildlife, including mountain lions, deer and bobcats, said Tex Ward, general manager of the Conejo Recreation and Park District.

Fox has been interested in helping the city acquire the property for the past four years.

“It has been recognized and identified by several community groups, environmental activists and the equestrian community,” Fox said. “Anybody involved in open-space acquisition will tell you it’s a really important component to the city’s completion of the ring of open space on the west side of the city.”

Shapell Industries bought the property in the early 1980s from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and soon received approval from the City Council to develop an access road and 147 homes on the property. MGM had bought the land in the 1960s from Janss Corp., Ward said.

But in recent years, the city has wanted to cut a deal with the company so it can maintain the nearly 5,000 acres of open space surrounding that property and add the land to the city’s 14,000 acres of open space. City officials say the company has realized that building a development on the property isn’t easy. Installing utilities and building the access road would be an expensive task because of its remote location, officials said.

Shapell officials could not be reached for comment.

Fox said the company initially had little interest in talking with the city about making a deal. Although Fox would not disclose specifics on what the city would give the company in return for the property, he suggested that the company might find some value in other city-owned areas.