The City of Thousand Oaks has almost reached the status of a “completed” community in that all larger development projects envisioned by the General Plan have either been completed or have broken ground. This plateau of “build out” leaves our community with a huge inventory of open space. Other than Boulder, Colorado, which has unbuildable steep terrain as open space, Thousand Oaks has a higher percentage of its city dedicated to open space than any other city in the United States. This is a source of community pride and the reason many of us live here. TOBA supports the preservation of our open space as a significant part of our community identity and an enhancement to the quality of life for our citizens.

We also propose to improve the visual ambiance of our City and Boulevard by encouraging a continual updating to add to its attractiveness and utility and to avoid the visual deterioration present in other cities.

“Build out” does not mean that development stops or has been completed. “Infill” is the process of filling in those empty lots left from the initial surge of city development. Redevelopment is the process of updating structures or areas that are in need of revitalization. Redevelopment may require tearing down of existing structures and replacing them with more appealing, safer and more modern structures.

American cities are in a constant motion of revitalization as we redevelop areas within our borders to comply with new laws, to enhance existing structures, to better traffic flow and parking, to underground unsightly overhead utility lines, to improve area landscaping, to provide better safety and to provide more current and efficient methods and means for an ever-changing society.