Slavin will not vote on Lowe’s

Robert Slavin Westlake Village City Councilmember Robert Slavin announced Monday he will not vote on the Lowe’s development due to a conflict of interest.

The recusal comes after an independent real estate appraiser hired by the city reported that the total worth of Slavin’s $2-million Thousand Oaks office building could decrease by as much as $80,000 if the Lowe’s development is voted down by the city council and competing offices are built.

On Jan. 18 the city council is expected to vote whether or not to rezone a 22-acre lot off Russell Ranch Road to allow the construction of a 168,000-square-foot Lowe’s home improvement store, with an attached 31,000-squarefoot garden center. In addition to the hardware store, Rotkin Real Estate Group has submitted plans to develop 62,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space on the property. The development will feature a 20,000-square-foot high-end car dealership.

The property in question is currently zoned for office space.

If Lowe’s is not passed, it’s likely that 376,000 square feet of office space will be built on the Westlake Village property which, according to the report, would impact the cost of other office space— including Slavin’s—in the surrounding cities.

The Fair Political Practices Commission, the state-run agency that oversees elected officials in California, says that an elected official cannot vote on an issue if the decision “will result in an increase or decrease in the business entity’s gross revenues for a fiscal year in the amount of $20,000 or more.”

In his report to the city, appraiser Ronald Laurain wrote, “. . .based on the criteria established by the Fair Political Practices Commission. . . .Councilmember RoberSlavin (has) a financial interest in the outcome of the vote on the subject issue.”

Slavin disputed the report. “I have serious issue with the (appraisal),” Slavin said. “Just in the professionalism of the data that was collected, it was pretty minimal... Laurain doesn’t know the area. He did not go to visit my building, which is the first thing you have to do when performing an appraisal.”

Slavin, an attorney who specializes in property valuation for property tax purposes, said even though he could successfully argue that Laurain’s report is incorrect, the “publicly perceived” conflict of interest was enough to force his recusal.

Slavin said he asked the city for the appraisal back in June in an attempt to avoid any potential lawsuits brought against the city by either of the groups lobbying for and against the Lowe’s development.

“The last thing I want to do is expose my city to potential litigation,” Slavin said. “I think that at the end of the day, I don’t want anything tainted in any way, shape or form.”

Because Slavin has opted not to vote on Lowe’s, the decision of whether or not to rezone the property will fall to the four remaining council members. Of the four, only Councilmember Jim Bruno has publicly stated his opposition to the project. A 3-1 vote will be needed to rezone the property.

Slavin’s recusal drew response from the project’s developers, as well as Westlake United, the ad hoc committee fighting Lowe’s.

“We respect Councilman Slavin’s decision and won’t speculate on the action the Council will take concerning the Town Center project,” said Charles Rotkin, the project’s lead developer. “We believe the Town Center is the best possible plan for this location—from aesthetics to the new services it will provide. We’re confident that we have provided the council with all the information so that they may make an informed decision as to how this valuable property should be developed.”

Mark Sellers, an attorney with Jackson, DeMarco, Tidus and Peckenpaugh, the law firm hired by Westlake United, said Slavin’s decision is welcomed by his client.

“I’m happy to hear that news,” Sellers said. “It was an issue that was out there and I think it needed to be announced or made prior to the eve of this hearing. We’re going into a number of town hall meetings, so we are certainly glad we know who are the key council members who are participating in those meetings.”

The city will host two town hall meetings to give the public information on the Lowe’s development. The first meeting will be tonight at 7 p.m. at First Neighborhood Community Center.

The second meeting will be at 10 a.m. Sat., Jan. 7 at Calvary Community Church.