Civic Arts Plaza again drains money from the city budget

There's a barroom sign that says, "A boat is a hole in the water into which money is poured." The same kind of comment can be made about other luxuries in life, such as motor homes, ATVs, campers, motorcycles, jet skis, snowmobiles, golf equipment, guns and fishing tackle.

The fun things in life can be expensive.

At other times, the very roof over our heads can be a sponge for money.

The city of Thousand Oaks is again forced to pour cash into the Civic Arts Plaza. (See story on page 1.) T.O.'s home for municipal government and cultural and entertainment events is getting another $5 million in fixes and improvements.

Critics have called the complex a white elephant because things went sour almost from the beginning. The city even won a settlement to make repairs. The chief problem was a leaky roof. It caused subsequent damages, and the repairs continue to this day.

Built in 1994 at a cost of $63 million, the building is only 14 years old. By construction standards, the Civic Arts Plaza is still in its infancy.

It's been an expensive baby.

We hate to say it, but there are tract houses in Thousand Oaks that have stood the test of time better than city hall. While nobody expected the Civic Arts Plaza to be a monument to modern day architecture and construction, they also didn't expect it to be a black hole for tax dollars.

We appreciate that big building on the boulevard, but we sure hope the repairs and renovations can last this time around.

It might be the curse of the radiator, that ugly, rustylooking accessory that faces the freeway on the backside of the building.

In future budgeting, when revenue is exceeding expenses, maybe someday we can fix that.