City Council votes 5-0 to consider rezoning former Technicolor campus
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

The Camarillo City Council voted 5-0 last week to consider plans to rezone the former Technicolor campus along Mission Oaks Boulevard from its current designation as industrial to a mixed-use site that would include both residential and commercial properties.

The City Council also agreed to hear out the plans to rezone a small patch of land currently zoned for office use located at the intersection of Earl Joseph Drive and Las Posas Road to make way for a retirement home.

The council, however, voted 32 to reject plans for the redevelopment of 210-acres of farmland tucked between the 101 Freeway and Pleasant Valley Road just south of Old Town Camarillo.

Representatives from Port Huenemebased real estate developer Marathon Land Inc. approached the City Council with plans to rezone a large swath of farmland in the southeastern part of the city to allow for both homes and industrial properties.

The property, designated for agricultural use, is owned by Jurgen Gramckow.

Council members Mike Morgan, Jan McDonald and Kevin Kildee opposed the Marathon project, while Mayor Charlotte Craven and Councilmember Don Waunch voted to give the developer an opportunity to present more detailed plans at a later date.

"A lot of questions need to be answered before this comes back to staff for referral," Morgan said. "I can't do it now."

City officials were worried that, because the property is bordered by Union Pacific Railroad tracks, the needed negotiations between the city and Union Pacific may muddy the deal. Camarillo has a tumultuous history with Union Pacific, according to City Manager Jerry Bankston.

"(Union Pacific) is not friendly as much as they took us to court," Bankston said of earlier legal wrangling between the city and the Nebraska-based transportation company.

Kildee said he was worried about traffic congestion and wanted to hear public input from Camarillo residents. McDonald said she didn't want to spend valuable staff time and money on a project that could lead nowhere.

Waunch said investing city resources to look further into the feasibility of the project is simply a necessary first step in the proposal.

"We're not approving the project (tonight)," Waunch said. "If we can, we should do a referral with the condition that we need to look at everything. Every piece of property in Camarillo is a challenge . . . but I look at this project as something we have on the horizon."

The City Council was less apprehensive about converting the former Technicolor campus from industrial to mixed-use and gave the go-ahead for city staff to look into the property owner's plans to redevelop the 70acre site. Santa Monicabased real estate investment firm Sandstone Properties bought the property in the city's business district last year for a reported $95 million.

The City Council also voted to have the city staff look into a request by landowner Duane Wasden to rezone a 1½-acre lot off Las Posas Road, currently designated for office use, to allow for a high-density senior living home.

McDonald and Kildee, who cast the two dissenting votes, said the busy intersection at Las Posas Road and Earl Joseph Drive could be a hazard for older pedestrians.