Ahmanson Foes Vow to Continue Fight

Community activists vowed Thursday to continue the fight against the massive Ahmanson Ranch project, despite a California Supreme Court refusal this week to hear an appeal on a lawsuit dismissed by a lower court.

Representatives of Save Open Space said they were not surprised the Supreme Court would not hear the appeal, but said they will not let the issue die.

SOS founder Mary Weisbrock said the group is gearing up for “Act 2 of the Ahmanson Ranch saga,” likening the battle to a drama.

“This didn’t deter us at all,” she said. “This just thickens the plot.”

In December, the group requested that the Supreme Court consider its case against 2nd District Court of Appeal Judge Paul Coffey’s dismissal of a lawsuit against Ventura County, which approved the 3,050-home development.

SOS representatives said Coffey did not consider two key environmental factors in his decision: that the site could have been contaminated by materials from the nearby Rocketdyne rocket-testing facility, and that the development would threaten endangered species that inhabit the area.

Mary Trigg, spokeswoman for Ahmanson Ranch, said that with the court’s decision, and since the development’s environmental impact report was approved, there would be little room to fight on that front.

“We feel we have a real affirmation of what the environmental impacts if any would be, so I don’t know where they would go,” she said.

Weisbrock would not discuss other actions being considered, but SOS attorney Rosemary Woodlock said another avenue the group might take is to the federal Fish and Wildlife Service.

In an unrelated matter, the city of Calabasas approved a motion Wednesday night to send a letter of non-opposition to Ventura County officials regarding an amendment to the Ahmanson Ranch Specific Plan that the developer is expected to file with the county. The amendment would allow Calabasas to contract the road work, though the developer would pay for it.