Ventura County planning commission approves major modification to Camp Hess Kramer rebuild with conditions encouraging local nonprofit use

Ventura County Planning Commission on Thursday approved a major modification to Conditional Use Permit LU10-0069 for Camp Hess Kramer, a Wilshire Boulevard Temple Camps property in Malibu, certifying a mitigated negative declaration and adding a condition that encourages use by Ventura County nonprofit organizations.

The action applies to case PL21-0051, which requests phased reconstruction and continued operation of the camp following extensive damage in the 2018 Woolsey Fire. County case planner Noah Torres described the request as “a major modification to conditional use permit LU10Dash0069.”

The modification authorizes rebuilding camp buildings, vehicle and pedestrian bridges, outdoor activity areas, and infrastructure such as water, wastewater, electrical and storm drainage systems. The applicant requested a 20-year extension of the current CUP — from its expiration in 2034 to 2055 — and the permit will retain previously approved population limits.

Why it matters: Camp Hess Kramer has hosted outdoor education, recreational programs and nonprofit partners for decades. The commission found the project consistent with applicable coastal- and overlay-zone findings after environmental review; the decision allows the owner to rebuild on place while imposing mitigation measures and operational conditions intended to limit environmental and public-safety impacts.

The planning staff’s environmental review identified both restoration and impacts. Torres told commissioners the project site encompasses about 187 acres and that restoration work along Little Sycamore Creek would cover roughly 2.87 acres and about 4,309 linear feet of creek corridor. He said the rebuild would result in approximately 2.75 acres of permanent impacts to environmentally sensitive habitat areas (ESHA) and about 5.026 acres of temporary ESHA impacts, along…