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Thousand Oaks was named after the many oak trees that grace
the area, and the city seal is adorned by the symbol of an oak. The city is
part of a regional area called the Conejo Valley, which includes Thousand Oaks
proper, Newbury Park, Westlake Village, Agoura Hills, Agoura, Oak Park and
parts of Calabasas. Today the city boasts a very active, and historically
"slow growth"-minded city council. Along with the ordinances
protecting the numerous oak trees, the city's leaders and residents alike boast
of the ring of protected land, free from development, that surrounds the city's
borders and which may account for the accelerating land values in recent years.
More than 14,000 acres have been designated as "Open Space"
containing more than 75 miles of trails. Ironically, the most recent
development in the community that adjoins the Civic Arts Center, known as
"the Lakes" destroyed a grove of old growth oaks, although great pains
were taken to relocate the larger specimens. The continued existence of the
well known "open space" around Thousand Oaks will be at issue in the
future as scarce land comes under development pressure that accompanies rising
population and general demographic trends in the area. |
