We are totally opposed to what the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is trying to ram down our throats restricting the use of the Ridgelines in the Santa Monica Mountains, and worse, making it impossible for any new changes to your present property if you have already graded 15,000 square feet. 15,000 square feet is a house and a driveway. What if you want to make an addition, add a pool, and build a guesthouse. Sorry-out of luck!
My family and I have lived in the Santa Monica Mountains for almost 30 years. We have lived at our present location for 19 years. We moved into the area because of its beauty and tranquility. The steps that the board is contemplating taking in the Santa Monica Mountains with the Grading and Ridgeline ordinance is an incredible over-kill. We supported the North Area Plan that has a minimum of 10-acre lot size, which would keep the development down. Now they come in with this and turn on us. We are not developers. We are simply private homeowners.
With this ordinance, they are in fact reducing our property values. With this ordinance, they are making it impossible for the little guy to improve his property or make any additions or improvements to our present house.
It has been brought to my attention that the county has recently enacted ordinances in other areas that are far less stringent than what you are proposing here. These are:
1) The County’s Draft Castaic Significant Ridgeline Ordinance which exempts from the Ridgeline 50-foot setback, new single-family homes (if developed by one person on one lot) and additions to existing homes if not more than 25 percent of existing house, and all accessory structures.
2) The County’s Hillside Ordinance which also exempts all accessory structures, new single-family homes (if developed by one person on one lot) and additions to single family homes.
We urge everyone to write to your supervisor and ask them to reconsider this highly unfair and arbitrary ordinance. We love our mountains, but they are taking them away from us.
George and Pam Cavanah’