Environmental Defense Center, Ojai Valley Green Coalition,The Sierra Club, SOAR, Surfrider Foundation, Wishtoyo Foundation, VCCool, Ventura Audubon Society & Ventura Citizens for Hillside Preservation

Waste of Taxpayer Funds:At a time when the City has closed a fire station and a library, and slashed funding for parks and buses, it's unwise to spend taxpayer funds on consultants to explore growing the size of Ventura. Adding these new territories would require the City to operate a new fire station and invest in many new infrastructure needs. With Governor Brown trying to abolish redevelopment agencies, it is unclear whether the City would have the funding to make improvements in the North Avenue area. If these development projects are indeed economically-viable, the property owners should pay for the necessary studies.

Poor Land-Use Planning - The City already spent more than a $1 million to update its General Plan which dictates an infill-first strategy. Despite the rhetoric among city leaders about "smart growth," the annexation plan will promote sprawl, destroy wildlife habitat, and allow homes and businesses to be built in a flood plain and in areas at risk of wildfires and contamination from past industrial uses. The City will assume fiscal responsibility for firefighting, police protection, infrastructure upkeep, and other service costs in the new parts of the City. The area's remoteness from services, schools, and shopping would increase traffic trips along Highway 33 and Ventura Avenue.

No Guarantee of Economic Boost - One developer has convinced some City leaders that an abandoned oil refinery next to the Ventura River is the ideal site for a business park and houses. Another landowner has promoted the rural Canada Larga - at risk for wildfires, floods, and mudslides- as optimal for building "executive" houses to draw commerce to Ventura. Some City officials are convinced these and other "catalyst" projects are necessary for the City to prosper, but evidence is lacking that these "opportunities" can guarantee an economic boost to offset City spending. Meanwhile, there are commercial and industrial vacancies throughout Ventura and expensive homes for sale on Ventura's hills, the Keys, Pierpont Beach and beaches north of town, as well as rurally-situated homes just a 15-mile drive away in Ojai and Carpinteria. The City should optimize existing opportunities before annexing land that is fraught with natural and manmade hazards and could drain resources and stretch public safety personnel.

Citizens Denied SOAR vote - As County land, Canada Larga is under SOAR protection and requires a vote of the citizens for zoning to be changed. By annexing the land into the City, the landowner can sidestep a SOAR vote by citizens. Approval by a citizen vote would be challenging for a developer given that the valley is an important wildlife corridor with many special-status plants and animals.