Avalon Homes plan would add 56 units and conserve nearly 30 acres of coastal dunes; EIR recirculation expected spring 2025

A developer team presented plans for the Avalon Homes subdivision to the Inter-Neighborhood Council, proposing 56 detached condominium units on a roughly 38-acre site with nearly 29.58 acres preserved permanently as coastal-dune open space.

Tanner Shelton of Jensen Design and Survey said the project, led by the Oxnard Shores Company with Toll Brothers in due diligence as a potential partner, would subdivide the property into three residential development lots (about 5.7 acres), three community-amenity lots, two private street/vehicular circulation lots, and two open-space lots totaling about 29.58 acres (77% of the site). Shelton said the developer will offer the open space to the city for a deed-restricted conservation status; if the city declines, the team intends to pursue a certified land trust or conservancy as an alternative steward.

Key project features Shelton described include: - 56 detached condominium units clustered in small courts; each unit would include a two-car garage and a fenced private backyard. The project’s maximum height would be two stories. - A private, 36-foot-wide paved roadway with sidewalks where adjacent to homes; the road would be privately owned and maintained by a homeowners association (HOA) but open for public access. - A quarter-acre private pocket park with a small play area and community garden that the HOA would maintain; the developer said it would allow public access but stressed it would not be a city-owned park. - A half-mile trail loop through the preserved dune habitat, a gated trail parking area to limit access at night, and modest habitat-restoration work rather than intensive landscaping.

Shelton said the site has been zoned for residential development for roughly four decades; an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was originally prepared in February 2019 and circulated in 2020. Because the EIR has aged, Shelton said the city consultant (Rincon Consultants) will update and recirculate the EIR for public comment, with the developer hoping for recirculation in March or April 2025. After public comment, the project will return to the Planning Commission and then City Council for hearings.

Speakers at the meeting raised multiple concerns about the project’s environmental and community impacts: - Air quality and aviation lead: Several attendees asked whether leaded aviation fuel from Oxnard Airport could affect the site. Shelton said air-quality impacts are addressed in the EIR; commentators pressed for more testing and voiced concern about children’s exposure. The city’s environmental review will include an air-quality assessment, Shelton said. - Noise/flight path: Residents noted Oxnard Airport’s flight paths, referenced a Part 150 noise study, and asked how contours and noise exposure were addressed; Shelton said the EIR contains a noise analysis and that specifics would be available in the recirculated document. - Water supply: Critics asked where water for new homes would come from and whether the city’s Urban Water Master Plan and ASR (aquifer storage and recovery) wells have been funded. Shelton said the Avalon site was accounted for in the 2020 Urban Water Master Plan’s projections. He did not provide a new water-source construction timeline. - Affordable housing: The developer team said the project will pay in-lieu fees for the inclusionary housing requirement; Shelton said the fee structure was updated in prior years and the project will pay whatever the applicable fee is at approval. Attendees asked for a clear accounting of how in-lieu fees are tracked and used; Shelton did not provide specific fee amounts at the meeting. - Homeless encampments and preserve security: Neighbors asked how the open space will be secured to prevent encampments; Shelton said the plan calls for a gated trail parking area and a management plan to discourage unauthorized camping, but details will be developed with the open-space steward. - Park/amenity access and Quimby funds: Neighbors urged using existing Quimby funds (Roger Poirier said the Oxnard Dunes area currently holds approximately $680,000 in Quimby funds) to deliver larger shared amenities such as pickleball courts or a connected bike path along the canal, rather than only a small private park. Shelton said the pocket park is expected to be HOA-owned; he also said the developer intends to build the trail and parking but that final terms will depend on the chosen steward.

Additional technical points Shelton gave: site setback to adjacent neighborhood would be a minimum of 25 feet for homes backing the southern and western property lines; the private street design is intended to be narrow and walkable; stormwater will be treated on-site via catch basins and a “modular wetland” system before tying into the city storm drain and the canal, Shelton said after coordination with city engineering.

When asked whether the units will be for sale or for rent, Shelton and a Toll Brothers representative said the units are intended for sale; the developer also said it does not expect a Mello-Roos (community facilities district) assessment but the project will have an HOA.

Shelton emphasized that questions of market price and exact timing were not yet determinable because the project’s schedule depends on EIR completion, market conditions and partnership agreements. Several neighborhood leaders offered ideas for better integrating trails and neighborhood amenities; the developer said it will continue to coordinate with neighborhood councils and city staff.

Ending: Shelton said the recirculated EIR and supporting studies will be published for public comment; the developer team asked residents to submit written comments when the draft is recirculated and to participate in the planning hearings that follow.