County OKs Mont Calabasas Annexation

Mont Calabasas will soon become a part of the city of Calabasas, now that a Los Angeles County agency has given its approval to the gated community's annexation.

The Los Angeles Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) unanimously voted Wednesday in favor of annexing Mont Calabasas into the city after community opposition to the proposal fell short of necessitating a neighborhood vote.

Of the 176 registered voters in the 110-home neighborhood, less than the minimum of 25 percent submitted a written protest to LAFCO, according to a staff report.

The annexation of the 493-acre community, which is located south of the Ventura County boundary, west of Las Virgenes Road and north of the Calabasas Landfill, is not final until the commission's vote is registered with the county clerk and recorder.

The approved a motion to file an application for annexation with L.A. County on May 12, 2009.

Mont Calabasas residents will now be able to vote in Calabasas elections and have the opportunity to be appointed to city commissions.

Trash and recycling services will be transferred from the county's United Waste Services to Calabasas' provider, Waste Management Inc., said Michael Hafken, a city spokesman. Also, property records are to be moved from the county to the city of Calabasas, he said.

Police and fire protection, which is provided by stations in Calabasas, as well as school district and water and sewer services, are unaffected by the annexation, Hafken said.

Officials estimate that the city will collect $123,000 in annual property taxes from Mont Calabasas.

Mont Calabasas residents already shop at local stores and drive on local roads, noted Councilman Fred Gaines. The added revenue was not the city's motive for pursuing the annexation, he said.

"I think Mont Calabasas is already really a part of the Calabasas community and now they can vote and participate in local elections like other residents of Calabasas," Gaines said.

Mont Calabasas resident Pamela Lundquist, an annexation advocate since her neighborhood approached city officials more than three years ago about joining the city, is excited that her neighbors can get involved in local politics.

“Logically, where we are located, we are in many ways a part of the city but don’t have the benefits,” she told LAFCO during a meeting in April. “We are not allowed to vote for our City Council; we have some residents that are highly qualified to serve on the local commissions.”

Thomas Shuck is a Mont Calabasas resident who has been opposed to annexation and has written letters urging his neighbors to submit protest forms to LAFCO.

In one of the letters, he wrote that essential services would remain the same and that he is concerned about "draconian building codes" that would apply to his neighborhood.

"There's no advantage to us being in association with Calabasas," Shuck said in a phone interview, adding that he was disappointed by LAFCO's decision.

A vote that could change Mont Calabasas' lighting district from L.A. County to the city of Calabasas will be conducted at a future date, Hafken said.

He added that the city plans on hosting a welcoming reception for its new residents.