BUILDERS FACE GRAND ISSUES ON ALL SIDES : TRAFFIC.

Byline: Amy Collins Daily News Staff Writer

Big.

That's the word that comes up over and over and over again when talking about Newhall Ranch. Even the public reaction to Newhall Ranch has been big.

On Feb. 11, the final day of the review period, Los Angeles County received nearly 900 pages of public comments on the project's environmental reports. Criticism and suggestions have come from homeowners, farmers, environmental groups and state agencies - and in bulk as a result of letter-writing campaigns.

The arguments are both emotional and technical. The majority of the criticism has focused on concerns about traffic, schools, water and the environment.

Following is a look at the issues facing The Newhall Land and Farming Company, which will begin its formal response Tuesday.

The 70,000 residents expected to populate Newhall Ranch would add 387,000 vehicle trips each day in the Santa Clarita Valley. Ventura County, abutting the western edge of the project, claims it will see 15,480 additional trips on its roads every day.

Newhall Land plans to build all the roads through the project and would pay to expand the interchange of the Golden State Freeway and Highway 126.

But Santa Clarita maintains it would be left to repair and widen its roads as Newhall Ranch residents travel to its shopping and recreation areas.

Also, several agencies have warned that no one should expect Caltrans to widen the Golden State Freeway before commuter traffic to Los Angeles creates gridlock conditions. The widening of Interstate 5 is not in Caltrans' 20-year plan. Newhall Land has not agreed to pay for these projects.

``I-5 is going to be at a standstill. They won't be able to go to work in the morning,'' Santa Clarita Councilwoman Jill Klajic said.

However, Newhall Land claims that Newhall Ranch residents would generate sufficient tax revenue to fund an I-5 expansion, leaving $332 million for the county to pay over the 25-year development period.

Schools

Three school districts would absorb the 5,714 elementary students, 1,610 junior high students and 2,750 high school students expected to live in Newhall Ranch. Newhall Land is reserving sites for five elementary schools, one junior high and one high school.

The question remains, who would pay for school construction?

The company has agreed to help the Newhall School District pay for construction if money can't be obtained through a bond issue or state funding.

``It's 100 percent mitigation,'' Newhall Land Executive Vice President James Harter said.

However, similar agreements have not been reached with the Hart or Castaic school districts.

Water

Newhall Ranch would require 19,345 acre-feet of water annually. The region now gets its water from the State Water Project and local groundwater supplies.

Robert Sagehorn, general manager of the Castaic Lake Water Agency, said he is confident he would be able to negotiate and purchase new water sources to supply Newhall Ranch. Castaic is the region's wholesaler, which sells the state water to the area's four water retailers.

But Lynne Plambeck, who sits on the Newhall County Water District board, is among the critics who say that water will not be so easy or cheap to acquire. ``If Castaic finds new water for them, that's going to increase the costs for everyone,'' she said.

Newhall Land also plans to build a water reclamation plant for the project.

Santa Clara River 

Careening more than 100 miles from Acton to Oxnard, the Santa Clara River is the last unchanneled river in Los Angeles County. It's a source of drinking and irrigation water and home to endangered species, including the unarmored three-spine stickleback fish and the brown pelican, the least Bell's vireo and California least terns.

Newhall Land would build levees along part of the riverbank, encroaching into portions of its environmental zone. There would be significant impacts on sensitive plant and animal species, according to the company's environmental report.

Critics contend the water would also be more polluted and less sand would be deposited on Ventura County beaches as a result of the levees.

Newhall Land would restore some river habitat to make up for the development of others and would continue to monitor the area.

Air quality

The environmental report on Newhall Ranch calls the negative impacts on air quality both significant and unavoidable. Newhall Land would reduce impacts by encouraging public transportation and complying with new air quality laws.

``Almost every project you build these days can't mitigate air quality because the standards set by the (South Coast Air Quality Management District) are so strict,'' said Jeffrey Lambert, the planning manager of community development for Santa Clarita.

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Photo

Photo: While Newhall Land plans to build all roads through the ranch project, Santa Clarita residents could incur the cost of road repairs.

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