THOUSAND OAKS : Dos Vientos Project Hearing Postponed

A last-minute filing by a local chapter of the Sierra Club has prompted the postponement of a Thousand Oaks City Council hearing on the first phase of the proposed 2,350-house Dos Vientos development.

Cassandra Auerbach of the Sierra Club’s Conejo branch said the environmental organization submitted a letter to the city that disputes the validity of an environmental report on the project.

She said several changes had occurred since the report was approved five years ago that had not been taken into account, including changes in the project and other external issues such as the prolonged drought. The letter also said the council and Planning Commission had not provided adequate notice about the Dos Vientos hearings.

The council rescheduled the hearing for Jan. 26. The council had expected to take up the development Tuesday.

Dick Clark of the Roberts Group, construction manager for the Dos Vientos project, said the Sierra Club filing was a surprise.

“We thought that everything was moving along,” Clark said.

It was another setback for Dos Vientos, planned along Portrero Road about one mile west of Reino Road in southwestern Thousand Oaks. On Nov. 23, the Planning Commission recommended that the first phase of the development be rejected, overturning the favorable recommendation of city planning staff.

Commissioners were concerned they had not had time to review last-minute changes in the development plans.