COUNTYWIDE : Court Rejects City’s Effort to Bar County From Building Jail

Santa Paula city officials have no grounds to stop the county from proceeding with plans for a new jail near the city, a Ventura County Superior Court judge has ruled.

Judge Barbara A. Lane dismissed a lawsuit Friday that had been filed against the county by Santa Paula officials to block construction of the $52-million jail southwest of the city.

Lane determined that county officials had followed proper procedures in selecting a 157-acre lemon orchard on Todd Road south of the Santa Paula Freeway for the new jail.

The city of Santa Paula and Councilmen John A. F. Melton and Alfonso C. Urias sued the county in January over the site selection, saying it went against the county’s goal to preserve agricultural land.

Facing a shortage of space in the current jail, county supervisors studied five possible jail sites last year and did a limited study on the effect that the jail would have on the environment at each site. They then selected the Todd Road parcel and purchased it.

In October the supervisors voted to amend the county’s General Plan and to change the zoning on the property to make way for the new jail. In the lawsuit, Santa Paula officials said proper procedures weren’t followed and asked the court to invalidate the amendment and zoning change.

But Lane ruled that the supervisors had acted properly and that it was within their power to determine that the need for a new jail outweighs the need to preserve agricultural land.

Urias said Tuesday that he didn’t know if the city would appeal Lane’s ruling. He said city officials planned to meet with their attorney today to consider the matter.

County Counsel James McBride was pleased with the ruling and said it frees the county to move on with the project. The supervisors have yet to consider a more detailed environmental report on the site, he said, a process that must be completed before they formally decide to proceed.