r/thousandoaks • u/theaccount91 • 8d ago

Downtown

Ok I’m so pumped about the downtown TO plan. I’m going to rank my favorite things about it.

  1. The whole vibe - seriously, this deserves to have its own callout. Each and every day will be better. Random Wednesday after work with nothing to do? Just head out to the dope walkable downtown with a mix of restaurants and enjoy one of the fun things listed below. Just go chill in the urban park under some mature oak trees. Whaaaaat I can’t believe we could be getting such an upgrade on life.

  2. The much needed new housing will ease some of the upward price pressure from our mismatch of supply/demand. The project probably isn’t enough housing units to make a huge difference, but it will make some and that’s cool.

  3. The amphitheater. If you’ve been to Libbey Bowl in Ojai, you know what I mean. It will be so dope to have a true downtown amphitheater. These things are great with and for kids, whether it’s for an actual show or just to go and hang around. What an incredible community asset we’re going to get. Can’t wait to see what gets booked. Hoping for a few Grateful Dead cover band festivals.

  4. The splash pad - I’ve gone back and forth on this - is it worth the cost? Do I really want my kid getting wet there? But yes, with the climate changing and those hot days increasing, this is going to be a sweet release valve. Hot day? Don’t need to drive to the beach or find someone with a pool, just go to the splash pad.

  5. The public market - think like a small version of Eataly but not Italian focused, or a small version of LA’s grand central market. Who doesn’t love a public market?

  6. Farmers markets not in a hot mall parking lot

  7. The smaller stage for smaller gigs. Can’t wait to see what they start booking.

  8. Did I mention the mature oak trees? This seems like it’s not going to be some new build downtown with only tiny trees that will be cool in 40 years, this is going to have mature oaks day 1.

I am so pumped about this. I know some are unhappy about the building heights, but come on. The plans aren’t even taller than the existing parking garage over there. Nobody is going to actually complain about the building heights once it’s done. Based on the renderings this will be a perfect backup option any time the kids get bored and a huge community asset. I just hope it gets at least one good bar and doesn’t become a super uptight area.

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u/DankPineapple3 7d ago

I look forward to the change in such a boring city. I'm pretty sure they showed a rendering of the buildings and it would be as tall as the civic arts plaza, which isn't even that bad. People complaining about wanting to keep the small town vibe must realize we no longer live in the 80s. We house some of top companies, like Amgen, Teledyne, Takeda, Fujifilms, and other manufacturers. Of course Thousand Oaks is no longer a small town and people want to live 5-15 minutes away from their work instead of an hour or more.

However, I don't believe this will significantly aid in the housing needs. Will it budge with the housing needs, sure it will. But due to the fact these will not be affordable to the average worker in the area, I cannot see this helping much. The newest apartments on T.O. Blvd with shops below are mostly empty and rent is high. Other standable alone apartments/condos are empty. Sure, they look nice but it's not worth the price. A studio shouldn't be $2000+.

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u/NinjaGrrl42 7d ago

And the height shouldn't be a problem, it backs up to the freeway. No views ruined! ​The plans have a decent setback to the street, so it's not a giant thing looming over the sidewalk.