Ventura community group files lawsuit over 6-story apartment building in downtown

A Ventura community group is suing the city of Ventura over its approval of a six-story apartment project with some affordable units.

Livable Ventura filed the lawsuit on Sept. 8 in Ventura County Superior Court, alleging the city's Planning Division and City Council violated state laws on housing density and environmental review in approving the downtown project.

The complaint also says the city and its representatives violated the California Coastal Act and left residents without a minimum procedural due process, including the right to a fair hearing before the Planning Commission and City Council.

The project, developed by Vince Daly of the Daly Group, will build 94 multifamily units, of which 13 are designated very low-income. The project is located on the northeast corner of Thompson Boulevard and Figueroa Street.

The project also has seven live-and-work units, 3,181 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and 96 parking spaces in a parking structure.

The Planning Commission approved the project in May, but a resident who opposed the development appealed the decision to the City Council. In August, the City Council denied the appeal and approved the project in a 4-2 vote despite opposition from more than 30 speakers at the time. Mayor Joe Schroeder and Councilmember Mike Johnson cast the dissenting votes, while Councilmember Liz Campos recused herself because of comments she made prior to the council review.

According to a council report, the project exceeded the maximum allowed height of four stories because it provided a certain number of affordable units. That allowed the developer to request a size increase under the state bonus density law.

The density bonus law encourages new housing developments to incorporate subsidized affordable units in exchange for more density or relief from development standards through concessions and waivers, according to the lawsuit.

The project "purports to provide 15% (translating to only 13) very-low income affordable units which the city determined to allow a 50% increase in density," according to the lawsuit.

According to the complaint, the city abused its discretion in finding the density bonus law-mandated approval of the project.

Ventura resident Carol Spector, who opposes the project and appealed it to the City Council, is a founding member of the community organization Livable Ventura. She appealed the project, saying in August it obstructs public views of the coastline, isn't compatible with the area’s character and didn't evaluate traffic safety impacts at evacuation routes.

After the meeting, Spector said she was looking at all available options.

On Monday, she said via email she could not comment on specific questions about the lawsuit because of the pending legal matter. She has not heard back from the city with a response.

Ventura City Attorney Andy Heglund said by email Monday the city has received the lawsuit and is in the process of evaluating it. He said the city still believes it approved the project legally and conducted a thorough review before approving it.

"The city stands behind the approval of the 211 project," Heglund said.

The City Council will discuss the lawsuit in closed session Monday, according to an agenda report.

A phone and email message to Livable Ventura attorney Sabrina Venskus were not returned.

The state's coastal act requires the city to protect against incompatible development in the coastal zone, a legally designated area along the California coast from Oregon to Mexico that is supervised by the state, according to the lawsuit.

The project, located in the coastal zone, "will significantly block views of the coastline and from a public roadway" while "the existing buildings in the viewshed are predominantly 2 to 3 stories in height and do not significantly block views towards the coast," the lawsuit says.

The project is also incompatible with the city's General Plan, and the city determined the project to be exempt from environmental laws, according to the lawsuit.

The complaint calls for the court to declare the project approval unlawful and order the city and the developer to halt any construction or development action unless lawful land use approvals are granted.

Additionally, Livable Ventura requests the city to pay for legal fees and "other and further relief as the court may deem just and proper."

Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at wesley.woodsii@vcstar.com, 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Livable Ventura group sues over 6-story apartment building