What is going on? Leave your thoughts. ( And yes, the title was made to be over the top).
Lost Canyons home bid advances in Simi
By Teresa Rochester, trochester@VenturaCountyStar.com
January 24, 2006
A plan to convert one of two courses at Lost Canyons Golf Club in Simi Valley into a multimillion-dollar custom home development, while making the other course private, cleared its first hurdle Monday night.
The Simi Valley City Council, gave Lost Canyons LLC its blessing to formally pursue plans to build 312 homes on the lesser-used Shadow Course.
The unanimous consensus of the four council members present did not constitute approval of the project; developers will now proceed with plans to seek, among other things, a zoning change.
Monday's green light came with a number of concerns from both council members and residents.
Mayor Paul Miller pointed out that when Lost Canyons was first proposed to the council in the 1990s, there were plans for a hotel, which never materialized.
Now with plans to situate custom luxury homes on the Shadow Course, which sits toward the back of the 1,770-acre site, and make the remaining Sky Course accessible only to members shelling out thousands of dollars a year, Miller posed the question: "What's in it for us? Why should we approve it?""
His questions elicited cheers from the audience.
John McClure, a senior vice president with Hillwood Capital, one of the companies that owns the club, said the city would benefit from higher tax revenue generated from the homes, the type of people the project would lure to the city and generation of local jobs through building the homes.
"I think the private club could be used for charity events,"" McClure said. "A lot of private club use comes from guests of members.""
The owners took home a long list of things to consider as they move forward, including expanding Tapo Canyon Road to four lanes, instead of the two they desire; inclusion of a dedicated bike lane, and soccer fields for the local park district either at the site or on property purchased by Lost Canyons LLC.
Councilman Steve Sojka also asked if the developer would be amenable to paying a mitigation fee for expanding Highway 118.
The majority of residents who attended the meeting were in favor of the change, while those who disagreed cited traffic and the narrow residential streets surrounding the courses as reason to block the proposal.
Brian:
I have no problem putting in 312 new homes. I just don't really like the golf course turning private.
Simi will be down to one public golf course of 6,000 yards and above for regular people to play. Also, keep in mind that changing golf technology is also making Simi Hills too small for golfers to play. Technically, Lost Canyons at 7,000 some odd yards is really in line with the changing technology of the game. It is extremely challenging to play. A great course...
Usually memberships at a private course cost between 30K-100K to belong. I am concerned this is really out of reach for a majority of the citizens that golf and live in Simi Valley.
Mayor Miller had it right when he said, What's in it for us? I support that question all the way and hope there are more questions like it.
Simi Hills is always crowded and its tough to get a tee time now. What will happen when there is only one public course in town?
What's in it for the regular citizen golfers of Simi Valley?
I wasn't at the meeting. What was the answer? Did someone from the developer's staff answer?
Mr. Miller asked tough questions, but he voted for them anyway. Does that mean he got a good answer? It is easy to ask tough questions but not vote tough.
Who is in charge of the rezoning?
What will happen? They will build another course in a place that many people hate, but argue we need it really bad.
Well, expensive golf clubs, gated neighborhoods, new private schools etc...
The group that decided that Simi Valley should grow at the rate it has is responsilble for creating a two tier society.
One tier will libe in Brentwood ( new homes in Simi Valley) go to $30,000 golf clubs, their children will attend private school, and their neighborhood will have private guards.
Meanwhile in the other areas like the Knolls, big trailer parks will be put in, and the open spaces will be built out.
I loved this town because of it's middle callss values. And we are losing that piece of the American dream.
312 homes? I say forget it. How about just one huge house with it's own private golf course.
Brian,
Like I said, the funniest thing was when Mayor Miller asked why they were not building the hotel they promised. The developer then gets up and blames 9/11 for them not building a hotel and he claimed no hotels were being built in the country since 9/11. I started laughing because I have seen Saturday Night Live skits where a Bush look alike blames everything on 9/11 and I think Doonesbury ran a cartoon like that also. In reality hotels have been built in Simi and all over the Country since 9/11. I guess the guy never heard of the new Wynn hotel in Vegas. Too funny!
I'm confused... So they're not building a 40-story mega resort/hotel/casino in Simi Valley?
I feel cheated.
I think an interesting approach would be to follow the Ojai Valley Inn and Spa approach. You keep the course open to the public year round. Keep the Inn and create a spa getaway-type program up there.
Keep in mind Ojai hosts the PGA senior tour each year and I see no reason why Lost Canyons couldn't try and attract the PGA and all the local charity work they do the week before the golf tournament. Plus, it's great publicity for Simi Valley and the Reagan library.
It'll attract more tourists.
They also attract people interested in getting away from it all and enjoying a hotel spa package while their spouse plays golf the rest of the year. It's very attractive.
Pebble Beach is a public course that also has generated a top ten rating each year for public courses. Year after year the cities and towns that surround pebble beach attract the PGA tour and the groups/revenue with it. Imagine the television PR Simi Valley would get along with the revenue of a yearly PGA golf tournament.
Being on TV also attracts corporate junkets during the year who want to play courses that the pros play.
Plus, the community gets the addded benefit of having another course open to the public to play rather than cordoned off to only those that can afford huge membership dues.
I think if Pebble beach and Ojai can stay open to the public along with other courses throughout the state that attract PGA events, Lost Canyons can do that too.
We should turn Lost Canyons into a "gem" public course to benefit the whole community and show-off Simi.
I would love to see Lost Canyons stay public, except there is no financial incentive for the developer (or City for that matter) to keep it that way. It's been a money loser since the day it opened because:
1. They didn't build the hotel, so if someone is coming from a distance, they would have to stay at the Holiday Inn Express
2. It's too dang windy most of the time - Who wants to pay $125 a round, AND use 12 balls?
3. It's $100-125 a round!
The fires didn't help by keeping one of the courses closed over a year, but Lost Canyons was doomed by lack of planning, lack of marketing, and perhaps a too challenging experience.
In other words, I've been to Pebble Beach, Pebble Beach is a friend of mine, and Lost Canyons, you are no Pebble Beach.
Tim
What about my other golfers/readers do you agree with Tim's trashing of the place?
I think the city should build minature golf courses. Those are sweet.
Paintball fields too.
Why does the company get to close it down if the city owns it?
Because the City doesn't own it - They own the zoning, but the land and golf club are privately owned and operated.
Tim
I vote for a minature golf course and paintball field. Maybe a bowling alley.
Clever developers
Re: your Jan. 24 article, "Lost Canyons home bid advances in Simi":
Not a surprise at all. Another entrance to a once-beautiful canyon and the road leading to it will now become home to an even wealthier population with the extra bonus of their very own private golf course, previously available to ordinary citizens.
Former Mayor Bill Davis' dream of turning Simi Valley into another Thousand Oaks moves one step closer to realization. Our City Council, by advancing this project, remains consistent with its practice of approving every "upscale" development set before it, regardless of whether it was part of the general plan. Even though they insist this is not an approval, it really is. Since the developer will now be spending hundreds of thousands of dollars creating the plan that will be brought back to the council for final approval, the council will have a difficult time denying the development without the threat of being sued.
Sounds a lot like the Douglas Ranch development north of Highway 118, that will soon see more than 20 feet of infill and two-story condos on top of it that also required a zoning and general plan change.
Mayor Paul Miller's remarks were appropriate and welcomed. But this, just like the Douglas Ranch development, is nothing more than changing zoning and the general plan to accommodate a developer who couldn't get his original plan approved, settled for something less to get approval and then comes back for more.
Very clever.
Judy McLaughlin, Simi Valley
while I agree somewhat with what is said by ms. mclaughlin in her letter, its apparent to me that she just can't let douglas ranch go.... and to compare lost canyons in any way with that project is just silly.... there is nothing in common between the two.... douglas ranch fit the specific plan for the site.... in fact, the developer DOWNSIZED the project to try and meet the neighbors concerns.... lost canyons is an issue about taking what is now public and turning it private... shame on you for pushing your own agenda on a project that isn't the same.
Judy, welcome to the new two tier Simi Valley society.
Any guesses when the newest private high school will open?
Brian,
A new study was published in the LA Daily News showing public school students do better in math then private school students or charter students.