LAFCO Lets Oxnard Annex Site Near Airport

A state planning agency Wednesday approved Oxnard’s request to annex a 47-acre parcel slated for development near Oxnard Airport.

The Local Agency Formation Commission voted to transfer the property from Ventura County to the city. The land is bordered by West 5th Street on the north, Olympus Lane on the west, Patterson Road on the east and Oarfish Lane on the south.

A developer is proposing a 200-home project and a 14-acre park on the land, just south of the airport. Although the project does not include a school, a provision in its environmental impact report provides for a possible elementary campus.

The Oxnard School District and the state would have to approve a school project, because LAFCO has no authority over land use issues, said Everett Millais, executive officer of the agency.

The Ventura County Airport Authority and Airport Land Use Committee have both raised safety concerns over the possibility of a school on the site.

Because the airport is operated by the county, the Board of Supervisors could address the safety issue in the future, Millais said. Supervisors Steve Bennett and Kathy Long, who sit on the seven-member LAFCO commission, voted Wednesday in favor of annexation.

LAFCO’s decision to approve the land transfer will become final in 30 days if no lawsuits are filed to block annexation and no appeals are made to the commission for reconsideration, Millais said.