1642 Larkfield Ave., Westlake Village

Listed at $1,495,000 by Dana Olmes, Ewing & Associates Sotheby’s International Realty.

Map: 1642 Larkfield Ave., Westlake Village, CA

At the time, the City of Thousand Oaks wanted to save the Wildwood Mesa on the west end of Avenida de los Arboles as open space, so the city reached an agreement with the owners of Wildwood Mesa. Wildwood mesa agreed to allow homes to be built in the North Ranch area. As part of the agreement, Conejo Recreation and Park District would agree with the city and Mesa owners only if they could have the original fire station site to add to their park site. Therefore, a second fire station site was agreed upon, which is the northeast corner of Kanan Road and Upper Ranch Road. This is the site of today’s fire station: Fire Station 37.

Many residents of North Ranch and throughout the Conjeo Valley live in a Wildland Urban Interface, that is, bordering a natural area. Many others live within a mile of a natural area – the Ember Zone – and are at risk of embers blown from a wildfiare. It’s comforting to know that in North Ranch we have a great fire station ready to service our area if we need help. And by the way, this stations doubles as a polling center on Election Days.

Information retrieved from: North Ranch Living, October 2010.

Paris Jacket with Knotty Shirt

CAbi. It’s a noun, it’s a verb. It’s even an adjective. Carol Anderson by Invitation. For the unitiated, Carol Anderson has been designing women’s clothing for three decades. She first displayed in Nordstrom, and then other retailers as well. She is well known for her reversible skirt.

In 2001 she reinvented herself, going directly to her customers. Now CAbi is sold only through in-home parties. It’s a marketer’s conundrum: Women who shop for sale merchandise all the time will go to a friend’s house for a CAbi party, have a glass of wine, try on clothes in front of each other, and pay full price. In this stubborn recession, CAbi enjoyed its best August in its history.

I have CAbi-ed for seven years at my friend Betsy’s home in North Ranch – twice a year, rarely missing a show. Last night Betsy’s CAbi rep, Debi Rote, unveiled the new fall collection. The theme this season is New York: Soho, Chesea, Madison Avenue – you get the idea – and the color is black. As the rep said, black is the new black. There were black stretch pants, black skirts, black sweaters, black dresses, black tubes, black jeans – with interesting colors such as spruce, blueberry and hot tamale sprinkled throughout. (Carol’s colors are never simply green, blue and red; even black is not black; it’s licorice.). You can see the collection online, but you can’t buy it there, and in truth the online presentation doesn’t do it justice. In fact, it’s not supposed to: You have to go to a party and get inspired, get undressed and get your wallet out. In short, you have to CAbi.

Prices aren’t cheap, but they are easy to justify. The fabrics are soft and non-wrinkly. The styling is detailed and glides sinuously over all types of bulges and bumps. And for those who really do their homework, CAbi leggings, for example, are at least $40 cheaper than a recent number at Nordstrom, and Carol’s Paris jacket a bargain compared with a dashing Nanette Lepore at the same store.

So 13 women, some plump, some skinny, some tall, some short, some 20-something, some “we shall not whisper their age,” some friends, some strangers – CAbi-ed last night. It was great fun, and I know those black leggings and that Chanel-like jacket will look smashing. And think of all the money I saved!

Little Hudson stepped out into his yard early in the morning, as he usually did, at his home in North Ranch. And, as usual, his owner watched him more closely than he watched the three big dogs who lived there alongside Hudson, who is, after all, only 15 pounds of much-loved white fluff. Suddenly a great shadow loomed over Hudson: a red-tailed hawk, commanding a wingspan of three feet, swooped down to seize its breakfast. Only the dog’s owner’s quick hands saved him from a terrifying flight.

 It seems the hawk, along with Hudson and other family pets,  now resides in the vicinity of Fairway Ct. and Golf Course Dr., in North Ranch – a reminder that we all live within a few feet of wildness.

Sprouts, now in Thousand Oaks

The second specialty market brand developed by the Henry Boney family, who sold their Henry’s Farmers Markets in 1999, Sprouts has sprouted onto the scene as an alternative food store of healthy, organic, local, fair-trade options (did I miss any buzz words?). Located at the site of the old Circuit City, in Thousand Oaks near The Oaks Mall, Sprouts is definitely a destination store – and it’s worth the trip. There are gluten free products, local produce at, believe it or not, local prices, fresh (really fresh) meats and fish. Oh, yes, there’s a selection of low-carb food too, as well as “bin” coffee and grains.

Prices are surprisingly modest. Some would say (although lately the charge is not entirely fair) that Sprouts is Whole Foods without the whole paycheck.

Take a check, check it out, and enjoy a fresh Sprouts meal tonight.

Europa, in Westlake Village

Located in the North Ranch Shopping Center, in Westlake Village, Europa is owned by Jorge Gruener, a professional chef and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park, NY. “Good coffee is my passion,” he explains. “I wanted a European-style coffee house where you could get a great cup of coffee with light, healthy food.”

Indeed, the coffee and teas (all loose leaf) are organic and certified fair trade. Gruener orders the coffee on one day, and the next morning it is roasted and delivered in the afternoon. Each cup of espresso is made with a Rancilio espresso machine – Italian and the best in the world, Gruener says – and served in a biodegradable cup. The panini is made on the premises with La Brea bread, and the pastries come from a boutique bakery.

Outdoor seating and soon-to-come wireless Internet service complete the café. Europa is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, and perhaps later on weekends.

Europa Cafe, 3945 E. Thousand Oaks B.vd, Suite A, Westlake Village 805.494.1089

North Ranch Center

Earlier this month the 462 property owners within the North Ranch Property Owners’  Association received a packet via mail  containing the proposed new CC&Rs and By-Laws. Within the week another smaller package arrived in the mailbox via hand delivery, this one asking for a vote to disapprove the proposed CC&Rs and By-Laws.

The letter accompanying the first package explained that the current CC&Rs, being more than 30 years old, predate California state statutes governing all homeowner associations.  New documents, the letter explained,  are  needed for the association to comply with state law. Furthermore, the current documents are sometimes ambiguous and not “user-friendly,” the cover letter stated.

The bone of contention prompting the second letter focuses on the storage of recreational vehicles.  The proposed new documents would allow for such storage provided RVs are not visible.  The 14 property owners who issued the vote-to-disapprove  letter argue that commercial storage is available for recreational vehicles and therefore no RVs should be allowed within the neighborhood.

Another issued posed by the concerned 14, which includes two current Board members, is the power Board members would gain in the new documents to create new rules without a vote of the property owners. In addition, the proposed By-Laws state there shall be one vote per lot, and that for election of Board members, owners may cast one vote for each open position but may not cumulate their votes for any one candidate.

In a letter to all property owners dated March 16, 2010, attorney Glen Kulik, whose law firm participated heavily in the development of the new documents, issued a rebuttal. In a nutshell, he indicated homeowners can disapprove just the items they dislike without disapproving the entire document, that banning RVs would be held illegal if challenged, and that other concerns would violate California Civil Code.

While this may be turgid stuff, if you are a North Ranch property owner, be sure to review the proposed package and subsequent letters, and then cast your vote – yeah or nay, no later than May 1.

If you are hoping for the CliffsNotes on the significant changes, you won’t find them.  There are too many changes to itemize them, according to North Ranch Center staff. For other questions, call the North Ranch Center at 805.373.3725 between 1:00 and 5:00 PM Monday through Friday.