Wildlife Crossings In the News

Today's Wall Street Journal features an article on wildlife crossings in the USA. They report that data from cameras on crossings in Montana show almost 23,000 animals used the crossings in 2015 and animals, including deer and bear, appear to be teaching their young to use the safe passage over the highway.

Vehicle animal collisions have been significantly reduced according to the article. "A November 2016 Western Transportation Institute report based on five years of animal-vehicle collision data showed that roadkill numbers for large wild mammals fell 80% along sections of the highway served by three of the more prominent crossings, while such deaths increased along sections with no structures." The proposed Liberty Canyon crossing is  cited in the article along with P22, our world famous, local mountain lion. Click HERE for the online WSJ article.

In related news, the MRCA closed escrow on, June 15, on 5 acres in Liberty Canyon (APN 2052-013-040). that serve to protect the wildlife corridor from development that might discourage animal migration. See our May 25 article, "Conservancy Acquires Key Parcel." The acquisition of this property was made possible through funding from Prop 1 and Prop A.

Conservancy Acquires Key Parcel

At the March meeting of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the board voted to acquire a 5 acre parcel on the east side of the wildlife corridor just north of the freeway and along the east side of the dirt road that extends from Liberty Canyon Rd.

At a subsequent meeting, in May, they voted to allow an "Investment Appraisal" to be used to acquire the property. Apparently it is the only west side access to a much larger parcel and the county is requiring the larger parcel to have a second access point before it can be developed. 

The Conservancy's acquisition puts a cork in the bottle and stymies a potentially very large development that would access the freeway from the Liberty Canyon interchange. The "Investment Appraisal" means the Conservancy is willing to pay somewhat more for the parcel because of its unique position relative to the wildlife corridor.  The subject property is on the high ground to the right in the above photo. Any development on this parcel would be highly visible throughout the main body of the corridor potentially discouraging animal migration.

This action by the Conservancy serves to protect the already substantial public investment in the wildlife corridor. It may also insure that Liberty Canyon residents will be spared additional traffic impacts from development outside our city.

Lawsuit Filed Over Cornerstone

A group calling itself "Save the Agoura Cornell Knoll" has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court over the approval of the Cornerstone project. The lawsuit seeks to set aside the Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) and the project entitlements until a full blown Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is prepared and circulated. Although the City is the named defendant in the lawsuit, the legal costs are borne by the developer of the Cornerstone Project. No work may commence on the project until the outcome of the lawsuit is determined.

The suit alleges that the city has failed to provide a legally adequate environmental document under CEQA, The California Environmental Quality Act.  It also alleges that the city "failed to disclose, analyze and mitigate the Project's significant aesthetic, cultural, biological, land use, recreational and water quality impacts, as well as the cumulative impacts caused by allowing exceptions and increases in density beyond the limits of the Agoura Village Specific Plan." It also says that "where mitigation measures are included, they are vague, deferred, or inadequate to truly mitigate the Project's impacts."

As former Mayors of Agoura Hills, we are saddened to see legal action taking place over the development of Agoura Village. But our sympathies are squarely with the Plaintiffs. As we indicated in our previous posts  (January 13, February 26, and March 29), we do not feel that the Cornerstone Project is consistent with the letter or the spirit of the Agoura Village Plan (AVP). It strays so far from what was presented to our residents before the AVP was adopted, that many of them, who still support the plan, attended the hearing on Cornerstone to oppose the project.

In 1997, because of  important archaeological and biological resources on the site, the City's environmental consultant, Envicom, felt that the knoll was appropriate for a single building, a restaurant or bed and breakfast type of inn.

It did not have to come to this. City staff and decision makers could have worked with the developer to plan a project that would be consistent with the AVP, minimize grading, preserve most of the oak trees and scrub oak habitat, preserve the significant Chumash cultural resources, preserve biological resources like rare plant species found on the site, avoid grading and trucking 92,500 cubic yards of dirt off site, meet current water runoff quality standards for the Malibu Creek watershed, and allow for the National Park Service's planned trails from the 2008 Regional Trails Plan.

It is still not too late for the litigants in this lawsuit to get together and devise a plan that will meet the objectives of the AVP, the litigants and the community. We urge both sides to take advantage of the mandatory settlement conference likely to be ordered by the court, to agree on a scaled back development. That can put the AVP back on track to providing what our residents have been looking forward to since the Plan's adoption in 2008.

For more information about the lawsuit, go to Advocates for the Environment at: http://aenv.org/cornerstone/, or email to: SaveTheAgouraKnoll@gmail.com

City Council Approves Cornerstone

On March 8, the Agoura Hills City Council heard an appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval of the Cornerstone project. (See our previous article of February 26.) Nearly 50 people came and testified against the project. They asked the Council to slow the process and do a more thorough review of all the environmental impacts on this magnificent gateway site vs. simply declaring them mitigated. The Council denied the appeal on a 3 to 2 vote, giving Cornerstone the go ahead. Weber, Schwarz, and Koehler gave a green light to the project, while Northrup and Buckley-Weber said no.

We think Linda Northrup and Illece Buckley-Weber got it right. In our February post we gave some of our reasons for denying the project. First, the project was increased in size in 2014 by 38% over its original submission in 2007. This means that none of the many public meetings held to introduce the Agoura Village Plan (AVP) and to take public input included a project of this size. The people who approved the AVP did not see this version of Cornerstone. Many of them, who still support the AVP, were at the March 8 meeting to oppose the Cornerstone project. It was not what they were promised.

Not only was the Cornerstone project vastly changed in scope from its 2007 version, but the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), also approved in 2007, did not anticipate the impacts of a project this size. The EIR is 10 years old. Should the Agoura Village be increased by 38% based on 10 year old information? We think not. Knowledgeable testimony at the March 8 hearing brought out major discrepancies in the EIR. The Native Plant Society did a survey of the site that found rare and endangered native plants not listed in the EIR. Rincon, the city’s own environmental consultants, recommended that the knoll on the site be avoided because of significant archeological evidence. Sam Unger, the Executive Director of the Regional Water Quality Control Board and a certified engineer, testified that the plan did not meet current storm water runoff quality standards. Biologists Paul Edelman and Dan Cooper expressed concern about insufficient mitigation for removal of 29 oak trees and scrub oak habitat. Residents of the Cornell area questioned how traffic studies did not take summer beach traffic into consideration.

But perhaps the most disappointing part of the Cornerstone project is its failure to comply with the stated objectives and goals of the AVP itself. Here are some examples with quotations taken directly from the Plan contrasted with the Cornerstone project:

“Development in Agoura Village will be designed
to respect and fit into the natural surroundings
by protecting view corridors, retaining oak trees,
preserving rock outcroppings, restoring creek and
riparian habitat, and planting native landscaping.” Chapter 1, page 9

Cornerstone plans to remove 29 oak trees and 21,271 sq. ft. of scrub oak habitat.

“Strongly encourage two-story development
and massing along Agoura Road and within
the Village to bring a comfortable scale to the
street and to reduce the impact of the large
street right-of-way.” 1-11

“Reduce building heights and terrace buildings
located along the hillsides to complement the
natural terrain.” 1-11

Cornerstone has three 3 story buildings, 45 feet in height, on Agoura and Cornell Roads.

“Preservation and restoration of natural resources
such as creeks, native vegetation, trees, and unique
topographical features is an important component
of the Village vision. Natural resources should be
integrated into the planning considerations for
proposed developments in an effort to reduce the
potential impacts on these resources.” 1-13

Minimize grading and protect the natural
Surroundings” 1-13

“Properties in Zones A South, B, E, and F shall
minimize grading on existing slopes and knolls
to the greatest extent possible.” 4-46

Cornerstone, which is in Zone E, will grade 75%, 6.8 acres, of its 8.2 acre site, exporting  92,500 cubic yards of dirt. That’s over 6,000 truck loads, taking 6 months to haul the dirt away. That doesn't sound like "minimize grading" to us.

As we said in our previous post, “We recognize that development will inevitably impact the natural environment and we still agree with the original vision of the Agoura Village Plan.” The point is not to stop development, but design it in a way that minimizes conflicts with natural and historic resources, and enhances, rather than threatens, the livability of our community. That is what the Agoura Village Plan was always about and that is why it drew the overwhelming support of the community.

Lets be clear, we were not asking the Council to deny the project, but to require a new focus EIR, an alternative site plan, or additional review to address the new and significant adverse impacts that were not addressed in the proposed Cornerstone development.

We are concerned that this project will now be cited as precedent by the developers of Agoura Village projects to follow. We will be watching carefully as to the faithfulness of these projects to the vision of Agoura Village as pedestrian oriented -- a gathering place for the community, with low impact development, restaurants, shops, down-lit lighting to preserve views of the ridgelines and dark skies. A place fitting to its location as Gateway to the Santa Monica Mountains from which we take our mission statement.

To leave a comment or read the comments, click on the title of this article and scroll to the bottom.

Cornerstone Appeal Goes to City Council

On Wednesday night, March 8, the Agoura Hills City Council will hear an appeal of the Cornerstone project, a mixed use development on the the knoll at the South East corner of Cornell and Agoura Roads. Cornerstone is within Zone E of the Agoura Village Plan (AVP) and, as the first project in the AVP, will set a precedent for all projects that follow.

We have several concerns about whether the project is actually consistent with the AVP.

When Cornerstone was first introduced to the city, in 2007 it consisted of 84,457 sq. ft. of mixed used development. The Agoura Village Plan was adopted by the city in October of 2008 after considerable input from residents. But Cornerstone was changed and resubmitted to the city in 2014, this time at 116,776 sq. ft. or 38% larger. None of the charrettes, the meetings that took input from the public before adopting the AVP, ever showed a project of this size in this location. To state that this was the intention of the plan all along is just plain wrong.

Chapter 4, page 46 of the AVP requires that "grading shall be minimized by following the natural contours," and further, "minimize grading on existing slopes and knolls to the greatest extent possible." It also says "Prominent and distinctive natural features of the area shall be preserved and integrated as open space," and development is to be "clustered on less environmentally sensitive areas of the site to maximize open space and resource protection." How important is this particular site? A photograph of the knoll appears in the plan, 4-47, as an example of the unique character of Agoura Hills that is intended to be preserved. In antithesis to this requirement, Cornerstone proposes to grade 75% of the site, removing 92,500 cubic yards of dirt, or 5700 truck loads. In addition, it will remove 29 oak trees and remove 21,271 sq. ft. of scrub oak habitat and endangered plants.


We recognize that development will inevitably impact the natural environment and we still agree with the original vision of the Agoura Village Plan. Perhaps some tweaks need to be made in details of the plan, such as the ratio of housing to commercial development. But the original concept of a pedestrian oriented village that preserves the views and unique natural character of Agoura Hills should remain the objective. The Cornerstone project has many good features and could be a good start to the Village, but only if it respects the intent of the AVP and the natural features of the city and site it wants to occupy.

We suggest that the council not approve the project yet, but instead require a focused Environmental Impact Report to more fully address the adverse impacts and come up with a plan that is consistent with the vision and guidelines of the AVP.

Interim Wildlife Crossing Measures Installed at Liberty Canyon

Cal Trans has begun the project to improve the existing Liberty Canyon underpass for wildlife movement. The project was funded two years ago with a $645,000 Wildlife Conservation Board grant. The new fencing being installed now by Caltrans was part of a significant match provided by the partners for that first grant, including donations by LA County supervisor district 3, MRCA and others.

Cal Trans is removing existing fencing and relocating new, higher fencing to guide animals to use the existing underpass at Liberty Canyon. After some of the existing fencing is removed, a wider path under the 101 and between the off-ramps and the office buildings will be completed and native vegetation restored. Caltrans is being very flexible in the field in making sure the fences start and stop in locations that maximize passage sight lines and area, while keeping them off the freeway.

Caltrans is also working internally to finalize the encroachment permits so that habitat restoration can be done within their right of ways in order to re-connect the north riparian area to the south, passing between the existing off-ramp and office complex.

This project was always considered an important interim step to protect wildlife until completion of fundraising and construction of the more ideal overpass over the 101 and Agoura Road.

First Agoura Village Project Goes to Planning Commission

On Thursday, January 5, the City Planning Commission will hear a request to approve an Agoura Village Development Permit and a Tentative Parcel Map to construct a mixed-use commercial and multi-family residential project at the corner of Cornell and Agoura Roads within “Zone E” of the Village Plan. The project consists of 35 residential apartment units comprising 47,858 square feet, and retail, restaurant and office space comprising 68,918 square feet. The project requires an Oak Tree Permit to remove 29 oak trees and 21,271 square feet of scrub oak habitat.

This is the first major project to be considered for the Agoura Village Plan Area It will likely set the tone for several future projects within the Plan area and it raises some concerns. A major concern is its hope to consume all 35 of the housing units allotted for Village Zone E, leaving none for other lots within that Zone.

This sets a bad precedent and the wrong message to future developers in the Village - that our city wants more urbanization of this unique area.  To the contrary, long ago we set the vision for Agoura Hills as gateway to the Santa Monica Mountains, letting the land dictate the intensity and use.

Amending the Plan because one developer wants the whole apple in the first bite is inconsistent with the spirit and community input that developed the Plan in the first place. The original zoning, before the AV Plan was done, did not allow any housing. The two southern most, and highest, buildings could be eliminated entirely. There are 12 residential units in those buildings, which should be reserved for the other lots in Zone E. This would still allow 23 residential units and maintain the appropriate density envisioned for the Village.  It would also preserve more of the view of the mountains and natural features.

In terms of its design, the roof-lines of these two highest residential buildings present long, horizontal, unbroken lines from the freeway view. Eliminating those buildings would preserve the “village” appearance of clustered structures.

The colors also seem inappropriate - white trim, cream colored stucco - and some colonial style brick are inconsistent with the Santa Monica Mountains. As the first project to be built within the Agoura Village plan, this development will set a precedent that will surely be cited by developers who follow. It, therefore, requires very careful scrutiny. A design style that evokes the nearby iconic mountain places like Peter Strauss Ranch, Paramount Ranch, or our own city hall and event center would be more fitting.

The presence of the mountains, restored Medea Creek, and our gateway identity all provide an ideal opportunity to make Agoura Village a unique place that will be attractive to future and existing homeowners and businesses.  It deserves very thoughtful consideration as an amazing opportunity to use the Creek and mountains as a resource and a draw.  The site is too prominent and beautiful to just be graded into more multi-family housing, inconsistent with the Agoura Village theme.  It is the wrong precedent to set as we begin to develop this unique area of our city.