UPDATE: The one-year review hearing for the Lockwood Animal Rescue Center (LARC) will be held October 30, 2014 in Ventura. See this week’s issue of The Mountain Enterprise for details.
Lockwood wolf-dog rescue wins permit with 1-year review
November 21, 2013— The Mountain Enteprrise
By Patric Hedlund
Almost seven hours of testimony were heard about the merits and problems of the Lockwood Animal Rescue Center (LARC) at the Ventura County Planning Commission on Thursday, Nov. 14. It ended with the commissioners asking stiff questions, then granting a 10-year conditional use permit (CUP) to the facility, but with a requirement to return for another hearing in one year to confirm whether improvements have been made and conditions met.
In his own testimony, LARC co-founder Matthew Simmons admitted that he is the source of much of the friction and miscommunication with his neighbors. They complain of falsehoods, explosive temper, reckless speeding on private dirt roads, escaped wolf-dogs in their yards and promises unkept. Simmons told commissioners that his behavior is a result of his illness and “where I am in my recovery.” Simmons has used his personal story in countless national news and public relations efforts to promote LARC and a parrot sanctuary. In a Veterans Administration Facebook site and a veterans-oriented magazine, Simmons said he met his wife—LARC co-founder Lorin Lindner, a Ph.D. eco-psychologist—as a U.S. Navy veteran at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center while being treated for heroin use, substance abuse and PTSD. He said caring for parrots and wolf-dogs has been therapeutic for him and other veterans.
LARC’s new CUP will enable it to bring up to 60 wolves and wolf-dogs into the compound.
Neighbors emphasized that “this is not an empty space,” saying there are 60 homes in the area. They tried to keep the hearing focused on land use issues. They said the facility has a negative impact on the peaceful use of their own property. They spoke of safety concerns, inadequate supervision at the site and unrealistic evacuation plans for the animals in the case of a fire or earthquake.
Ramona Moloski spoke of the many years she has spent preparing the property that borders on two sides of the parcel now owned by LARC. The other sides are bordered by mining interests. Moloski, 75 said LARC’s arrival has eroded her family’s ability to use their property as they had planned.
Several neighbors said privately they felt their message was drowned out by the many people from Beverly Hills, West Los Angeles, Silverlake and San Diego County who came to speak about veterans’ issues and animal welfare instead of land use concerns.
In a private interview one ardent supporter proudly said she was from Silverlake, “known to be the hippest place in the U.S.,” and had never been to Lockwood Valley or LARC but came to the hearing to support the application, “because these people are so ignorant about animals.”
She was referring to rhetoric used in the LARC newsletters seeking donations for lawyers to assist with obtaining the CUP. The fundraising letters characterized LARC’s Lockwood Valley neighbors as wolf-hating ranchers who hunt wolves as trophies.
Bob Barker, the 90-year-old multimillionaire game show host and animal activist, sent a letter to the commission that was read aloud in support of the CUP from Ventura County for the keeping of inherently dangerous animals. Barker is said to have donated over $100,000 to the facility.
Simmons said the 501(c)(3) charity is supported by private donations, a grant from the Annenberg Foundation for employing disabled veterans and large donors such as Bob Barker, with no funds from government sources.
Neighbors near the facility at 15660 Curtis Trail, near the intersection of Lockwood Valley Road and Adams Trail, said their private one-lane dirt road with drop offs on either side is being damaged by big trucks coming and going from LARC, causing noise, hazard and dust.
Stan McCuen said when a vehicle gets stuck on the narrow throughway, such as in the snow, no one else can get in or out. He said he is concerned about safety for all residents and the animals in the case of an evacuation situation.
Commissioner W. Stephen Onstot (appointed by Kathy Long, the area’s representative on the Ventura County Board of Supervisors) asked Simmons about the poor relationship with neighbors. “I’ve done a lot to promote dissension by not talking with people…I’ve soured relationships,” LARC’s co-founder said.
Three members of the Mountain Communities SPCA spoke in favor of the rescue facility, including Mar Preston and Leslie Bricker. Neighbor Marcus Beale said he did not object. He saw the facility when working there as an electrician.
There were several anecdotes in the testimony and a letter with photos referring to escaped wolf-dogs being found on adjacent properties, including one said to have made its way to Pine Mountain (but never captured). Lindner and Simmons denied any of their animals had ever escaped.
Neighbor and retired veterinarian Alan Smith said he did not think this is an appropriate site for the facility but doubted the county would deny the CUP. He said wolves can run 40 to 50 miles in a day and that there needs to be an emergency alert system to notify families when wolves or wolf-dogs have gotten loose.
Moloski said afterward that she is still troubled by untrue statements made by LARC in its CUP application, such as that they are surrounded by national forest, that their existing pens were 42 feet from the property line rather than five feet and that they are on a county road.
Commissioners voted 4-0 to allow the CUP but said a hearing must be held in one year to get an update on the facility. Onstot said a road maintenance agreement between the neighbors needs to be developed. Nora Aidukas said she wants to see a monitoring program in place to confirm the public is not invited to the facility.
Photo captions:
Left, neighbors respond to testimony by Matthew Simmons and Lorin Lindner (above) about their wolf-dog rescue plans, saying none have escaped their facility. Neighbors disagree.
(l-r) Ventura County Planning Commissioners Stephen Onstot (appointed by Lockwood Valley’s County Supervisor Kathy Long) and Nora Aidukas of District 2 asked probing questions about the facility after listening to a day of comments in the 7-hour hearing for the wolf-dog rescue’s CUP.
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This is part of the October 17, 2014 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.
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