The City Council Needs You’re Help

The City Council Needs You’re Help


We need to once again, go out and Police the actions and intentions of the City Council.
They intend to change the general plan of this little town. What do the have in mind????
What changes to our lifestyle and our property values are they intending to change? Regardless of what we say?
If you look carefully, you will see that the council is changing the rural setting of the area to an urban city. Is that what you moved here for? Is that why we elected them to office? To change this place to be just like the place we left behind..

Rural
–adjective
1.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the country, country life, or country people; rustic: rural tranquillity.

2.
living in the country: the rural population.

Urban
–adjective
1.
of, pertaining to, or designating a city or town.

2.
living in a city.

If you want to keep Agoura a rural community, you need to come to this meeting and tell the five council members to stop! If you want to live in Agoura City with its 24 hour downtown and all of the other happenings of an Urban Agoura City, then stay home on December 15th and watch the values and the property values of Agoura slip away.

Agoura to host General Plan update meeting
A General Plan update community meeting will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Wed., Dec. 13 at the Agoura Hills City Council chambers in city hall, 30001 Ladyface Court.
At this joint meeting of the City Council and Planning Commission, the public can learn more about the General
Plan update process and share opinions about land use, circulation and other planning issues in the city.
For more information, call Allison Cook, senior planner, at (818) 597-7310, e-mail acook@ci.agoura-hills.ca.us or visit www.ci.agourahills.ca.us.

The Devil is in the details

RARE Mixed use land in Agoura! : Property in Agoura Hills, CA$9,999,000.00 Seller: NUMBER1EXPERT (0) sell.com classifieds Real Estate Land 22HSMB
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Asking Price:
$9,999,000.00
Quantity For Sale:
1
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Item Location:
Agoura Hills, CA [USA]
Refund Policy:
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Date Posted:
Mon 27-Nov-2006
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Sign-in Name:
NUMBER1EXPERT (0)
Member Since:
17-Feb-2005
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RARE Mixed use land in Agoura! : Property in Agoura Hills, CA

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Address: Agoura Rd, Agoura Hills, CA 91301MLS #: 2056493Excellent Oportunity To Own A Proposed Mixed Use European Style Development. Cornerstone At Agoura Village In The Center Of The Approved Retail & Entertainment Zone In The Village Of Agoura Hills. 6.89 Acres Consists Of Retail 23,426 Sf, Office 18,509 Sf, Residential 42,300 Sf(41 Units)*Entitlement In Process*Plans,Studies & Info Avail. Listing Agent and Office: Renit Zoldan, Rodeo Realty.Agent/Broker Contact Information:Coldwell Banker Regional BrokerageSuzanne Grace & Associates805-341-46441620 Newbury Road, Suite 6, Newbury Park, CA 91320

The Numbers Dont Lie

Survey says
During the summer of 2005, the city of Agoura Hills conducted a survey of residents, and the results are very interesting.
The top values are quality of life, low crime rate and the quality of the schools, all by a very large margin. The least desirable aspects were the Kanan Road interchange, traffic congestion and too much development.
So why did the council vote 50 to approve Agoura Village, a mixed-use, high-density project that could lend itself to 1.5 million square feet or more development and generate over 17,500 vehicle trips a day, and allow 45-foot-high buildings in front of Ladyface Mountain?
Many concerned citizens addressed the council, yet members still voted in more traffic, more crime, more air pollution and overcrowded schools. Thank goodness Mary Altmann filed a lawsuit to stop this project.
The most important function of the city council is to regulate development. The current City Council has consistently proven they cannot be trusted to uphold the key values of our community.
At the next available chance, we should elect people who will.

Joe Dallacqua Malibou Lake

Agoura Village 'myth' debunked

Agoura Village 'myth' debunked
Last week's Acorn editorial infers the Agoura Village Specific Plan down-sizes development the city can approve on the affected acreage. This is contrary to the actual AVSP language.
The AVSP first allows commercial development roughly equal to that previously allowed -approximately 950,000 commercial square feet. It then allows bonus incentives to certain parcels, and allows the City Council to give discretionary increases to any parcel owner, with no squarefootage cap.
In addition to all commercial square footage, the AVSP then allows 293 new residential dwelling units-with no square-footage cap. An alternate plan allows for fewer dwellings, but adds a hotel. Neither the commercial nor residential square footages include anticipated garage structures.
The AVSP also allows buildings to exceed previous height limits, increasing overall size perceptions, making the project more urban, and affecting views of the southern foothills.
Using reasonable projections for residential units, the combined commercial and residential square footage "allowable" on the land could be 50 percent (or more) than what could have been constructed under prior regulation.
The city may be hard-pressed to legally deny any application on the basis of square footage or mass, so long as it complies with the AVSP's design parameters.
The Acorn is our community's source of local information and should present facts as contained in the AVSP. It should not simply parrot the mantra of proponents who paint a portrait of "less dense" development
A city survey of residents (results of which were recently released for public consumption) shows almost unanimous opposition to development of more residential units in Agoura Hills. This survey data was accumulated long before the AVSP was approved, but it was not discussed at AVSP public hearings.

Howard Littman Agoura Hills

Stick to the plan

Stick to the plan, Agoura
The Agoura Village Specific Plan is about as "eclectic" as what was approved on the north side of the freeway-a mass of apartments and commercial development in spite of the Riverwalk project and/or recreational use that was possible there.
The plan currently challenged in court allows 60 percent building coverage with 45foottall buildings, not including parking structures. The General Plan for this same area allows for an average building coverage of 20 percent and a height limit of 35 feet.
"Citizens for Sensitive Development" are in favor of sensitive development to highlight and augment our beautiful surroundings. We don't want 45foothigh apartments on sensitive land, nor the 24hour nightlife that will attract crime, heavy traffic and all sorts of pollution where rare and endangered species live in the town we call home.
It is important you e-mail or call your City Council members, (818) 597-7300, and ask them to follow the current General Plan guidelines for Agoura Village, and ask them to keep the zoning and density the same in the updated General Plan. Mary Altmann Agoura

Residents clash with city over 'village'

Opponents are stepping up their fight against the Agoura Village Specific Plan, a long-range document that sets the stage for the development of an eclectic, mixeduse town center south of the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.
Opponents believe the plan violates the city's General Plan in several ways, posing safety, traffic and environmental problems.

A community meeting was held Oct. 26 at the Malibou Lake Country Club to rally support against the village plan.

Malibou Lakeside resident Mary Altmann formed a watchdog group called "Citizens for Sensitive Development" and has filed a lawsuit against the city of Agoura Hills in an attempt to slow the center's progress.

The suit challenges the city's certification of an Agoura Village "Program Environmental Impact Report," which opponents believe is inadequate, but city officials say is simply misunderstood. The report analyzes how the center will affect the environment.

Altmann was among about 35 residents, mostly from the Malibou Lake area, to attend the October meeting. "We're trying to fight city hall," said Joe D'allaqua, a longtime resident who believes the Agoura Village plan doesn't offer enough details and is worried that some established businesses would be forced to leave, a charge the city denies.

"If they choose to leave, or choose to redevelop, it's totally up to them to make that decision," said Mike Kamino, Agoura Hills' director of planning and community development.

D'allaqua also said the city has made "backdoor deals" with developers.
Kamino said three developers have been working with the city in an attempt to get the village underway. Each project, Kamino saidwould require separate environmental reviews, including California Environmental Quality Act documents. Each property owner must undergo hearings and obtain separate approval for their project"The Specific Plan is a tool," said Allison Cook, senior planner for Agoura Village. "It's up to each applicant to move forward or not."
The Agoura Village plan does not allow industrial uses. Existing storage businesses have been "grandfathered in," and will be allowed to operate in the area as long as their owners desire.

Steve Hess, a member of the Las Virgenes Homeowners Federation who opposes Agoura Village, said the concept has changed considerably since it was first introduced by former Agoura Hills mayors Fran Pavley and Louise Rishoff and other city leaders.
"This is not what they had in mind," Hess said.

Rishoff worked on the Agoura Village Task Force in developing the current plan.
"I continue to support the original concept, but the devil is in the details," Rishoff said.
She said the development will unfold as each application comes before the city planning commission.
"The first (project) in will set the standard for everyone that follows," Rishoff said
.
Opponents are concerned about traffic and believe a proposed roundabout at Kanan Road will create more problems than it solves.

A traffic study predicts more than 17,000 additional car trips each day from the village, but the number is small in comparison to the existing traffic, Cook said.
Kamino said the level of traffic flow would be considered average under the Institute of Traffic Engineers' nationwide standard rating system.
One area, however, will fall below the "C" traffic level. Agoura Road between Kanan and Cornell roads will not be widened and traffic will be slower. Flow in that area is projected at level "D," officials said.
"We do not want cars whizzing by," Kamino said. The goal for the area is to make it "pedestrian friendly," he said.
Cook said the plan includes the worst case scenario and doesn't account for people walking in and out of the village area.
One person at the meeting suggested the proposed roundabout was a ruse to eventually install a sixlane intersection.
"...The intent of a roundabout is to facilitate the movement of traffic," Rishoff said.

Altmann said the 45-foot-high, three-story buildings allowed by the plan-which are a violation of the city's 35-foot height limit-would be made possible if developers provide a "bonus" to the city such as public art, creek restoration, horse trails or other projects.

The design elements required under the Specific Plan will force developers to include balconies and elements that present a more varied look than a master-planned mall.

And while opponents worried about density problems, officials say the Agoura Village "floor area ratio" (the size of a building compared to its lot) is about one-third less intense than what is allowed under the city's current General Plan.

"It won't be a massive, monumental look," Cook said.
The city's goal is to allow the project to develop "organically," and to avoid a "cookiecutter" design, Cook said.

By Stephanie Bertholdo

Residents clash with city over 'village'

Residents clash with city over 'village' By Stephanie Bertholdo bertholdo@theacorn.com
Opponents are stepping up their fight against the Agoura Village Specific Plan, a long-range document that sets the stage for the development of an eclectic, mixeduse town center south of the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.
Opponents believe the plan violates the city's General Plan in several ways, posing safety, traffic and environmental problems.
A community meeting was held Oct. 26 at the Malibou Lake Country Club to rally support against the village plan.
Malibou Lakeside resident Mary Altmann formed a watchdog group called "Citizens for Sensitive Development" and has filed a lawsuit against the city of Agoura Hills in an attempt to slow the center's progress.
The suit challenges the city's certification of an Agoura Village "Program Environmental Impact Report," which opponents believe is inadequate, but city officials say is simply misunderstood. The report analyzes how the center will affect the environment.
Altmann was among about 35 residents, mostly from the Malibou Lake area, to attend the October meeting. "We're trying to fight city hall," said Joe D'allaqua, a longtime resident who believes the Agoura Village plan doesn't offer enough details and is worried that some established businesses would be forced to leave, a charge the city denies.
"If they choose to leave, or choose to redevelop, it's totally up to them to make that decision," said Mike Kamino, Agoura Hills' director of planning and community development.
D'allaqua also said the city has made "backdoor deals" with developers.
Kamino said three developers have been working with the city in an attempt to get the village underway. Each project, Kamino saidwould require separate environmental reviews, including California Environmental Quality Act documents. Each property owner must undergo hearings and obtain separate approval for their project"The Specific Plan is a tool," said Allison Cook, senior planner for Agoura Village. "It's up to each applicant to move forward or not."
The Agoura Village plan does not allow industrial uses. Existing storage businesses have been "grandfathered in," and will be allowed to operate in the area as long as their owners desire.
Steve Hess, a member of the Las Virgenes Homeowners Federation who opposes Agoura Village, said the concept has changed considerably since it was first introduced by former Agoura Hills mayors Fran Pavley and Louise Rishoff and other city leaders.
"This is not what they had in mind," Hess said.
Rishoff worked on the Agoura Village Task Force in developing the current plan.
"I continue to support the original concept, but the devil is in the details," Rishoff said.
She said the development will unfold as each application comes before the city planning commission.
"The first (project) in will set the standard for everyone that follows," Rishoff said.
Opponents are concerned about traffic and believe a proposed roundabout at Kanan Road will create more problems than it solves.
A traffic study predicts more than 17,000 additional car trips each day from the village, but the number is small in comparison to the existing traffic, Cook said.
Kamino said the level of traffic flow would be considered average under the Institute of Traffic Engineers' nationwide standard rating system.
One area, however, will fall below the "C" traffic level. Agoura Road between Kanan and Cornell roads will not be widened and traffic will be slower. Flow in that area is projected at level "D," officials said.
"We do not want cars whizzing by," Kamino said. The goal for the area is to make it "pedestrian friendly," he said.
Cook said the plan includes the worst case scenario and doesn't account for people walking in and out of the village area.
One person at the meeting suggested the proposed roundabout was a ruse to eventually install a sixlane intersection.
"...The intent of a roundabout is to facilitate the movement of traffic," Rishoff said.
Altmann said the 45-foot-high, three-story buildings allowed by the plan-which are a violation of the city's 35-foot height limit-would be made possible if developers provide a "bonus" to the city such as public art, creek restoration, horse trails or other projects.
The design elements required under the Specific Plan will force developers to include balconies and elements that present a more varied look than a master-planned mall.
And while opponents worried about density problems, officials say the Agoura Village "floor area ratio" (the size of a building compared to its lot) is about one-third less intense than what is allowed under the city's current General Plan.
"It won't be a massive, monumental look," Cook said.
The city's goal is to allow the project to develop "organically," and to avoid a "cookiecutter" design, Cook said.

More of this to come

Apparently, the Renaissance Agoura Hills Hotel wants to staff its driveways with Valet Girls, which according to their all-Flash website, is:

Our Valet parking team is comprised of stunning women that are models, singers, actors & dancers. We don't just park cars, we provide entertainment. All the beautiful ladies are professionally trained in providing the highest level of guest service and safety. Clients may request from a variety of uniforms such as: Chic & Elegant (all black attire), Tank tops, Capri pants, camisoles, mini skirts, bikinis and lingerie. Clients may customize a uniform for their event. No men. No red vests... just a team of gracious, sexy and skilled women.

If this is going on basically right next door to City Hall, what do you think the 24 hour area of Agoura Village is going to bring to our quiet bedroom community?

Stand with us and stop the Agoura Hills City council’s plans to line their pockets and the pockets of the developers as the strip this community of all that is good.

78 Votes was the difference

LVMWD - Board OF Directors DIV 3
Candidate

LEE RENGER 1591 Votes %51.26

MARY ALTMANN 1,513 Votes %48.74

Registration 7,836
Precincts Reporting 11
Total Precincts 11
% Precincts Reporting 100


Congratulations Mr. Renger

One of Us, Supports One of Us.

Copy from The Acorn November 2, 2006

Vote for Altmann

In a political climate where there is not always a good choice of candidates for elected office, I am pleased to support Mary Altmann for the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District Board of Directors.

Mary has the intelligence, communication skills and strong commitment to our community and environmental values essential to the role of an effective director. She will be an excellent advocate for and representative of the people of our district.

Please join me in voting Mary Altmann on the board of the LVMWD.

Steve Hess Agoura

Cydney Cornell's thoughts



What are the stores proposed?
Cold Stone Creamery?
Victoria's Secret?
What do we need that we don't have in Agoura?
A WholeFoods Market, a Teen Center or Bowling Alley? Maybe.
There are unfilled parking lots at the Topanga Mall and the Oaks Mall.
Have any of you ever been outside of the USA? This building mania is not necessary.
Just because we have the open space doesn't mean we have to fill it up with junk like our backyards or garages.
If Agoura needs the revenue to stay in business, I vote for paying higher taxes, not putting up more junk stores to get revenue from the ignorant. I would rather not buy cheesy foreign made clothes that fallapart after a couple of washings.
I would rather not take my family to a resturant that doesn't care about nutrition or flavor.
It is a great responsibility to have undeveloped landand we must intelligently approach that responsibility with the future of our children's welfare in mind.
Once our land is covered with cement we have destroyed it forever. I don't believe a traffic circle could be gracefully managed by the honking morons whom I encounter everyday at that busy corner of Agoura Road and Kanan Road.
I do not want to drive through a shopping mall to take my child to and from school each day.
This plan is not respectful, beautiful or responsible.
I want to see an accurate rendition of what is intended to be built.I want to know that the city of Agoura doesn't have a hidden agenda or self serving advocates of the project.
I want to know that bids have been submitted competitively for "potential construction".:
I want to know that this is really what the citizens of Agoura and Agoura Hills need and want.
Why don't we modernize the existing malls on Kanan surrounding Thousand Oaks Boulevard?
What is to become of those shops if we build new ones on theother side of the freeway? Derelict?
I want to know that all those impacted have had fairwarning.

Cydney Cornell
Proud 7 1/2 year resident of Malibou Lake MountainClub