Panel OKs Upgrade to Driving Range

The Agoura Hills Planning Commission voted this week to approve a request by operators of the Lindero Country Club to upgrade the club’s year-old driving range on the condition that they make some improvements to reduce the effect on area residents.

While Golf Projects International will be allowed to raise the netting nearly twice its current height to stop errant balls from sailing into homes, it also will have to improve its lighting.

Moreover, it will have to conduct a third noise study to determine the effect of the sound made when the golf club meets the ball, which brought complaints from nearby residents.

Diane Walker, a planning commission member, said the majority of the four commissioners felt that while the range was in compliance with the city’s sound ordinance, the sharp sound the club’s impact makes would be exaggerated in the quiet neighborhood.

David Smith, president of Golf Projects, said he disagrees with the decision because two studies--including one conducted by the city--have found that the sound is not intrusive. The company will comply, he said.

The changes arose from an administrative review by the city that was a condition of the project’s original approval and from a request by the company to raise its nets from 60 to 110 feet.

The commission, noting that the higher nets would not make a difference aesthetically, unanimously approved the change.

Also, the company will have to augment the range lighting to include ground lights that point upward and illuminate from below so they do not shine into residential windows.

Smith said the company plans to begin the improvements within 30 days, at a cost of approximately $125,000.