Hillside’s Fate May Go Before Voters

Prompted by conflict over a plan for luxury homes, officials in Ventura have taken the first step toward allowing a public vote on development of 5,000 rugged hillside acres looming behind the city.

Under a proposal from Mayor Sandy Smith, a measure on November’s ballot will determine whether a public vote is needed before the city provides water, sewer and other urban services to the area.

A denial of such services would effectively kill any development on the chaparral-dotted slopes and canyons.

The City Council on Monday unanimously voted that an ordinance for the ballot measure be drafted. It will be reviewed by the council at its Monday meeting but would not come up for final approval until July 23.

Four family-run corporations that own the land are proposing as many as 1,900 homes, with 80% of the property devoted to open space and public trails. They have been holding public meetings on the plan, which is still being formulated, and asked in November that the issue of developing the area be brought to the voters.

City officials also said they favored a vote, but the project’s critics have expressed doubt that voters would be allowed any substantial influence.

“This should allay fears,” Smith said of Monday’s council decision. “It should put to rest the issue of whether the public will have a say on hillside development.”

If the measure makes the November ballot and is approved, it would set the stage for a later vote by the public on the development itself.

At Monday’s meeting, project opponents praised the council for giving voters the chance to be heard.

But Martha Zeiher, president of Ventura Citizens for Hillside Preservation, cautioned that her group’s approval will be tentative until members can study the wording of the proposed ballot measure.

Council members also were quick to defend themselves against the charge that, by favoring a public vote, they were dodging responsibility for a tough decision.

“I believe there are some issues that are bigger than the Ventura City Council,” said Councilman Jim Friedman.

The hillside development would increase Ventura’s area by one-third, according to city officials. Just outside the city, the land is within its planning sphere of influence and governed by city decisions.

But it would not be subject to the Save Our Agricultural Resources ordinance, which requires a public vote on development of farmland in Ventura. The ordinance applies only to land zoned agricultural; because much of the hillside property is zoned as open space, SOAR would not apply.

Smith, who is running for reelection this fall, said his measure is not politically motivated. He said that, on the contrary, his campaign advisors tried to talk him out of it.

“If you’re an incumbent mayor, the last thing you want to do is get the voters out” on an inflammatory issue, he said.