CITY PANEL ENDORSES HOME PLAN; ADDITIONAL 632 UNITS BACKED FOR PROJECT.

Byline: Sonia Giordani Daily News Staff Writer

Courtly Homes won a hard-fought battle before the Thousand Oaks Planning Commission, which voted 3-2 on Monday night to allow 632 more single-family homes in the Dos Vientos development.

The commission's approval settled the final phase of an agreement between the city and Courtly Homes to build about 1,200 of the 2,350 units in the Dos Vientos project. Operating Engineers, the developer of the remaining units, gained approval for its projects last year.

``For the most part, Courtly Homes . . . is basically set to where they can go forward with their plans, and they will either build or start selling off those units for other builders to complete,'' said commission Chairman Ronald Polanski.

He said the city can expect the developer to come back with some minor revisions, including the details for a day care center on a 50-acre parcel set aside for a commercial center, park and elementary school.

City staffers had recommended the commission's support, stating that the environmental impact report was complete and revealed no additional harm to the environment.

City planner Greg Smith said the report studied the effects of the additional homes on wetland and riparian habitats, and on local schools, and determined the houses could be accommodated.

But Monday's public hearing also raised questions about the project's long-term impact on local roadways - issues that pushed commission Vice Chairwoman Marilyn Carpenter to cast a dissenting vote.

Carpenter questioned the city's traffic model, saying it may underestimate the number of cars that will use the city's thoroughfares, especially Borchard Road and Wendy Drive.

``For me, it came down to the question of whether the supplemental EIR was adequate and whether the city's traffic model works,'' she said.

``I think the staff . . . relies on computer modeling to help determine what a project's impacts will be. But they make some assumptions that may not, in reality, be good,'' Carpenter said.

But Polanski noted that previous EIRs addressed traffic and that city staffers reaffirmed their confidence in their models.

``The fact is that these are models and errors are common. But when you are trying to think about traffic X years from now, you have to make an educated guess which is what models help you do,'' he said.

The city will file the commission's vote with the county clerk this week and local groups or residents can file their comments about the project within 10 days. A public hearing has been tentatively scheduled before the City Council in the event that an appeal is filed.