POLITICS

Broad coalition of organizations seeks end to Petrochem project

The owner of the former Petrochemical refinery site near Ventura is proposing a vehicle storage lot and equipment yard on 38 acres along Crooked Palm Road.

Thirteen organizations are asking Ventura County planning commissioners to reverse a decision allowing the Petrochemical Co. oil refinery site to be used for equipment and car storage yards.

The joint appeal filed Monday seeks to overturn county Planning Director Dave Ward's approval of a development permit for the idled industrial site north of Ventura. The permit allows the property to be used for a 21-acre storage lot for automobiles and a 7-acre equipment yard on 38 acres.

Ward granted the permit for operation of the facilities at 4777 Crooked Palm Road early this month, subject to a variety of conditions. He found no substantial evidence that the project would have a significant effect on the environment after a set of remedial measures is taken. 

But the coalition argues that the project will lead to continued degradation of the property off Highway 33. 

Previous: Petrochem project gets go-ahead despite protests but port out of discussion

"This use should be rejected," says the lengthy appeal from the newly formed Petrochem Appeal Alliance.

A core argument is that the application for the project is no longer "full, true and correct" after the development corporation that owns the property deleted mention of the Port of Hueneme from the description of the project. New cars would have been offloaded from the commercial port, then temporarily stored at the site before being delivered to dealerships in the county, according to the application for the project submitted in 2016.

Petrochem Development 1 LLC of Moorpark excised the port's name from the application on the day the project went to a hearing in mid-October, Ward said. 

John Hecht, a consultant working with Petrochem, said at that hearing that there were other potential customers for the facility, including car museums and dealers. But the alliance argues that the project needs to be sent back to planners for a new environmental review.

Previous: Opponents argue against proposal for former Petrochem site

"How do you base an environmental review on a project that is not going to happen?" said Marie Lakin, executive director of Climate First: Replacing Oil & Gas or CFROG.

The alliance cited 14 grounds for the appeal, arguing that the environmental review failed to include an adequate description of the facilities to be built, the transportation study is flawed and that additional review of the impact of the project on steelhead trout needs to be done.

The appeal also raises questions about the effects on air and water quality; fairness to the nearby Ventura Avenue area with large numbers of low-income and minority residents; and concerns that polluted floodwaters from the site could reach the nearby Ventura River. 

Located at 4777 Crooked Palm Road, the 38-acre site on unincorporated land holds the remnants of the Petrochemical Co. oil refinery and an ammonia plant opened by Shell Chemical Corp. 

Previous:Critics fighting proposal for Petrochem site in Ventura, citing air quality issues

Both facilities closed decades ago and a cleanup to remove oil and oil-contaminated materials has been done to federal regulators' satisfaction. County supervisors last year rebuffed a proposal to use the property for housing, citing safety issues and land-use policies that direct development toward cities. But the storage and equipment yards fit with the existing zoning for heavy industry, planners say. 

Members of the alliance fighting the latest proposal include the Westside Community Council, which advocates for the nearby Ventura Avenue area; social and racial justice organizations including the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE); the Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation; the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura; and a variety of environmental and conservation groups.

Among the latter are CFROG, the Environmental Coalition of Ventura County, Friends of the Ventura River, the Los Padres chapter of the Sierra Club and the Ventura Land Trust. 

Ward said the appeal would not go to a hearing until next year, perhaps by late February or early March.

Kathleen Wilson covers the Ventura County government, including the county health system, politics and social services. Reach her at kathleen.wilson@vcstar.com or 805-437-0271.