Hearing on Civic Center for Calabasas Set for Today

CALABASAS — The city of Calabasas will hold a public meeting today for residents to suggest ideas for a proposed civic center.

A city overview committee will discuss the scope of the project, which will include a library and city hall, Councilman Dennis Washburn said.

The committee has been meeting since June and will continue periodically until its recommendations are completed in November, he said.

It has considered ideas for including a children’s museum, an amphitheater and a center for teens and senior citizens at the civic center, Washburn said.

“We’re dealing with needs and interests at this point--what functions need to be fulfilled,” he said.

Thirtieth Street Architects Inc. of Newport Beach is coordinating design details and square footage, Councilwoman Lesley Devine said.

Firms are scheduled to begin competing to design the civic center in December and construction should start in June, she said. “We’re trying to envision how this will fit now and the next 50 years,” Devine said. “The best way is to get everyone involved.”

The civic center will be built on a four-acre site and is part of the larger Calabasas Park Centre, a 67-acre development at Park Calabasas and Calabasas Road.

The meeting will run from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Calabasas City Hall council chambers at 26135 W. Mureau Road.