Winds of change come to Agoura Hills

It’s election year in Agoura Hills and the citizens are getting restless.

The city has had only one new council member in the past eight years (John Edelston in 2003), and with this week’s news that longtime leaders Ed Corridori and Jeff Reinhardt will not be seeking reelection, it appears as though change at city hall is inevitable.

Perhaps it’s time.

Agoura Hills residents have become envious watching their neighbors to the east and west grow and prosper because of the popular destination centers their communities have built, such as The Commons, The Promenade, Costco and the soon-to-beready Lakes in Thousand Oaks. They’re ready for an administration that is ready to move Agoura Hills forward, to give it a focal point and to give it character.

Not that a city is to be measured by the shopping centers it builds, or in the case of Agoura Hills, the office buildings that it constructs. Corridori, Reinhardt and Denis Weber, the only incumbent who stated he will run for reelection, have done their job well by fostering smart, and not rampant growth in the community. But it’s become increasingly clear that the one project that could make Agoura Hills a first-rate community is being held back. Several developers have approached city officials with ideas for a mixed-use development along Agoura Road that incorporates townhomes, shops, fine restaurants and strolling, yet the Agoura Village concept remains perpetually mired in the planning stages.

Perhaps new blood on the city council will make a difference.

William Koehler and Harry Schwarz, veteran Agoura Hills planning commissioners, have announced their intention to run in this November’s election. Reinhardt proved that coming up through the ranks of the planning commission is good training for city council work, but we’re wondering if an outsider, someone not connected to the current administration, might not make a better candidate.

The filing period for city council candidates is open until 5 p.m. Aug. 12. Your city is calling. Give it some thought.