FILLMORE : Mining, Elections Are on Agenda

A gravel mining operation that could increase truck traffic on California 126 by 500 round trips a day will be discussed at a Fillmore town hall meeting Wednesday.

The meeting in the Senior Center on Santa Clara Street will begin at 7 p.m.

Also on the agenda is a discussion by County Supervisor Maggie Erickson Kildee, and elections for the Valley Advisory Committee, a citizens’ group formed last year to discuss growth in the Fillmore-Piru area.

The gravel mining operation has been proposed by Southern Pacific Milling for about 500 acres west of Fillmore. A fact sheet circulated by the company outlined a 30-year plan to mine the property in 50-acre sections, with the balance planted in commercial orchards.

Company spokesman Vic Westerberg said the proposal is still being revised. The latest plan includes 16-hour operations six days a week and an annual water use of about 600 acre-feet. An acre-foot of water supplies two typical families for about a year.

Elections for the 16-member Valley Advisory Committee are being held to determine if new representatives should replace those on the board, said member Mary Ann Berrington, a Piru area citrus farmer. The committee was formed after a series of Ventura County planning meetings on a proposed greenbelt between Fillmore and Piru last year. A majority of ranchers and property owners who attended the sessions said county planners did not consider local concerns.

Representatives from the city of Fillmore, the unincorporated town of Piru and five areas surrounding the two communities have met twice a month for a year. Berrington said the group has studied ways to increase local influence on planning decisions.

Erickson Kildee is expected to speak on Ventura County planning guidelines. Her administrative assistant, Al Ecoto, said the supervisor’s remarks will probably not include county recognition of the advisory committee, which members have said is a primary goal.