Runkle Canyon work not for development, mayor insists

Mayor Paul Miller this week cautioned residents living near the Runkle Ranch development in the south end of the city that there would be heavy equipment activity on the property in upcoming weeks, but he assured them it would not be related to grading.

Directing his comments to "folks who live up near Runkle Canyon and have had a concern about the land up there," the mayor said the work is for the purpose of geological soil testing, and not "work in pursuit of development."

"Take heart, it is not grading that they're doing," Miller said at Monday's council meeting. "Basically, they're clearing the land so they can get the drill rigs in and do the soils testing that is necessary."

Those tests, added city manager Mike Sedell, have nothing to do with Rocketdyne or the search for toxic contamination.

"That soil testing is not for chemical contents; it's for geological purposes," explained City Manager Mike Sedell. "It has been requested by the city and has to do with making sure the land is stable enough to construct buildings on."

Though no grading will take place, Sedell said that the developers would have to do some earth moving and brush clearing in order to properly do the tests, but would have a water truck on site to limit the amount of dust released into the air.

Last month, the City Council announced that Runkle Ranch home builders KB and Lennar Homes had agreed to delay grading until the city had time to ease the concerns of both residents and others by having scientific data on the site reviewed by four outside agencies, two with the state and two with the federal government.

KB and Lennar plan to build 461 homes on 10 percent of the 1,500acre property, leaving the remainder as open space.

That property-which was originally scheduled for grading this winter-has been under scrutiny in recent weeks because of its close proximity to the now-defunct Santa Susana Field Laboratory.

A study released Oct. 5 provided scientific evidence of a link between contamination at the former Rocketdyne testing site and

a high rate of cancer in communities in the nearby San Fernando Valley, despite the fact that a previous Environmental Impact Report on the property concluded it posed no threat to future residents.

Clearly anticipating how concerned residents might react to the sight of a water truck and bulldozer going in and out of the property, the mayor said he wanted to try to nip in the bud any possible anxiety.

"We want people to know what's going on," Miller said.

The city's website currently offers a link at the top of its home page where visitors can see "what's going on" with Runkle Canyon. It can be accessed at www.ci.simi-valley.ca.us.