Candidates Line Up for Theater, Farmland

CAMARILLO — Again agreeing on key issues, Camarillo’s three City Council candidates Wednesday supported a proposed 16,000-seat amphitheater south of the city while emphasizing the need to preserve local farmland.

About 15 people attended the evening forum at City Hall sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce.

Candidates Chris Valenzano, Mike Morgan and Ned Chatfield, all running in the June 3 special election, said the amphitheater and golf-course project off Lewis Road would bring needed entertainment and boost local businesses.

But they also said they are concerned about the thousands of extra cars the amphitheater, proposed by the county Parks Department, would bring to Lewis Road.

And Chatfield expressed concerns about part of the project being in the greenbelt that separates Camarillo and Oxnard.

“This is a classic example of where the city and the county need to work cooperatively because part of the amphitheater project would be in the greenbelt area,” said Chatfield, 78, a member of the original Camarillo council in 1964. “But it would create jobs and be good for the county if we can make it work.”

Morgan, 50, a former mayor who left the council last year in an unsuccessful run for the county Board of Supervisors, said he had not studied the amphitheater project enough to make specific comments about it.

Valenzano, 18, a high school senior, said he does not think the amphitheater would detract from the quality of life in the Camarillo area. He said he sees the golf course as a type of greenbelt.

Camarillo still has about 2,000 acres of undeveloped farmland within city limits and its sphere of influence, the zone the city considers its future boundary.

All candidates said 258 acres north of the Ventura Freeway and west of Las Posas Road--the so-called Ponderosa Corridor--should be kept in farms for years to come. The area, just outside city limits, has been proposed for development of houses and businesses twice in recent years.

“It’s not time to look at that area for development,” Morgan said. “If we’re saying we’re ag-land protectors, if we turn around and rezone that area, we’re hypocrites.”

Chatfield said the corridor parcels should not be developed in his lifetime. He said that he supports current city planning efforts to zone the area for construction of just one house per 10 acres, which would keep it in agriculture.

Valenzano said no project should be built there for at least 15 or 20 years.

Addressing other economic issues, the candidates repeated their support for the conversion of Camarillo State Hospital to a Cal State University campus.

But they all said that state education and health officials should work together to preserve psychiatric services for local patients at a university clinic.

Valenzano was the only candidate to favor term limits for Camarillo council members, stressing the need for new ideas.

All three said they support Camarillo joining a new joint-powers authority to oversee the operations of city libraries, instead of having the city take control of its own facilities. Libraries in Camarillo are now operated by the county.

In their closing statements, Morgan emphasized his commitment to keeping the city safe and clean; Chatfield said he believes the city has grown large enough; and Valenzano said he would bring a youthful perspective to the council.

The winner will serve the remaining 17 months of former councilman Ken Gose’s four-year term. Gose died of a brain tumor in January.

The final candidates’ forum is set for tonight at 7:30 in Leisure Village.