Greenbelt sparks fiery debate
By Sylvie Belmond belmond@theacorn.com

County officials voted 4-1 to meet with representatives from Moorpark, Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley to see if they will agree to turn into law the 20-year-old Tierra Rejada Valley Greenbelt Agreement.

The greenbelt agreement between the Ventura County Board of Supervisors and the three city councils concerns development of agricultural and open space areas beyond city limits.

The proposal would take what is now a "gentleman's handshake agreement" and change it into an enforceable law, said Supervisor Linda Parks, who chairs the board.

The new law could mandate a four-fifths vote of the councils and the board before changes can take place in the Tierra Rejada Valley.

"The key is to make the policy of nonurbanization and nonannexation that were already agreed upon enforceable by law," Parks said.

If approved, the ordinance could also prohibit new sources of highintensity night lighting, mandate greater protection for the land around the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library near Simi, and preserve wildlife corridors.

According to Supervisor Peter Foy, who cast the sole opposing vote, "The handshake agreement works well, so adding layers of government isn't necessary."

Guidelines were already developed to protect open spaces through the Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources law, said Foy, who owns a ranch in the valley.

The supervisors are "a day late and a dollar short," said Moorpark Councilmember Keith Millhouse, because the county has already permitted a hodgepodge of development in unincorporated areas.

County standards are generally far weaker and much looser than city standards, said Thousand Oaks City Manager Scott Mitnick, pointing to ridgeline development.

"The Thousand Oaks council would never have approved the type of land use approved and developed in both the Santa Rosa and Tierra Rejada valleys. It illustrates the extreme differences between being a city and unincorporated area with respect to development standards," Mitnick said.

But Parks said the higherdensity development takes place in cities."The county doesn't build shopping malls and buildings."

Parks' request coincides with efforts by the National Park Service, the Santa Mountains Conservancy and the Nature Conservancy to acquire easements and key parcels to ensure wildlife connectivity and trail access in the Tierra Rejada Valley.

It also overlaps with a request to include the Reagan library in Simi Valley's sphere of influence.

A city may provide comments on use of land within its sphere of influence and that land may be annexed at a later time.

The Local Agency Formation Commission, which oversees city and county boundaries, heard a proposal on April 18 to include the 100acre Reagan library and surrounding parcels- 68 acres and six residential lots on Presidential Drive- in Simi Valley's sphere of influence.

The agency, known as LAFCO, postponed the discussion for two months so that issues regarding the Tierra Rejada Greenbelt can be reviewed first, Parks said.

Some procedural issues must be resolved before anything can happen, said Hugh Riley, assistant city manager for Moorpark. The greenbelt agreement sets out procedures that cities should follow, but Simi Valley officials didn't do that, he said.

"They were supposed to confer with other cities but they went straight to LAFCO," said Riley. "Moorpark officials want to dot the i's and cross the t's, although they're not opposed to the annexation," he said.

Linking the greenbelt discussion with the library annexation issue is not appropriate, said Glenn Becerra, Simi Valley council member.

"The library should not be used as a political football. It's a wonderful regional asset to this whole county that happens to be located at the doorstep of the city of Simi, with all services being provided by the city," he said.

LAFCO recommended the annexation because the city of Simi Valley already provides water and sewer services to the library. The city even paid to pave a portion of the county road leading to the library, Becerra said.

But Parks said her support for the annexation is contingent on the land being protected through deed restrictions or covenants before any boundary changes are made.

"Any annexation brings potential growth," she said.

If Simi annexes the library and properties around it, the change will affect nearby cities because they won't be able to influence what happens there, said Janice Parvin, Moorpark council member and alternate LAFCO commissioner.

"From a LAFCO perspective the annexation makes sense, but commissioners want to review what will happen to surrounding properties, many of which are now in Moorpark's sphere," she said.

Current Simi Valley officials may promise not to develop the land, but no one knows what future councils may do, Parvin said. The greenbelt discussion gives cities an opportunity to review all proposals for that land, she said, and gives the public a chance to have imput.