City Panel Rejects 67-Home Project

Citing a series of problems with a Newbury Park housing proposal, the Thousand Oaks Planning Commission has unanimously rejected a developer’s 67-home project.

West Venture Homes of Burbank wanted to build the homes near Newbury Park and Ventu Park roads, on 15.4 acres in the western part of the city.

But planning commissioners decided late Monday that aside from being too dense, the development did not meet the mix of one- and two-story houses the city wants in its neighborhoods. And commissioners said the need for recreational areas was not addressed.

“There was a laundry list of deficiencies and shortcomings,” Planning Commissioner Forrest Frields said.

The two-story homes in the tract would have been spaced too close to each other, Frields said. He also wanted to see a small children’s park built at the site.

Planning Commissioner Dave Anderson said a development made up exclusively of two-story homes would have been a first in Thousand Oaks.

“This could have been a precedent-setting development,” Anderson said. “That’s why I think it went down.”

West Venture Vice President Matthew Breiner said he was surprised by the unanimous rejection.

He said his firm planned to build a channel to prevent flooding and followed the city’s guidelines on such items as open space requirements and sidewalk construction.

“We’re a little flabbergasted,” Breiner said Tuesday. “We thought we’d met all the concerns to provide a quality project.”

West Venture is considering an appeal to the City Council, Breiner said.