East Ventura Community Council
Minutes of June 15, 2023 General Meeting Via Zoom

There were 4 Board Members in Attendance, Sara Ostrander, Dean Katz, Norene Charnofsky, and John Kunsmiller

There were 19 attendees, including the Commander Weeks, Councilmember McReynolds, and guest speaker Ariana Rabago

The meeting was called to order by Sara Ostrander at 7:04 PM.

The Ventura City Police report was given by Commander Weeks. There were 10 assaults (mostly domestic), 10 property damage, 4 drug incidents, 6 fraud cases, 14 larcenies (mostly from cars), and 1 weapons violation.

There were clusters of incidents of catalytic converter thefts around Kimball and Telegraph. Back your car into driveway if you can to help avoid catalytic converter thefts.

There were several problems at 1020 Cachuma which is an abandoned house used by vagrants and drug sales. There is now a no trespass letter on file so the enforcement can be stricter. Also the house is scheduled for demolition. There were 3 arrests in 3 weeks of the same drug offender near Cachuma.

Concern was expressed about the number of traffic accidents and the electric bikes, regular bikes, and electric scooters which do not follow traffic rules. The police are not able to focus on the problem, but they will enforce if it is seen.

Police Announcements: June 28 at 6 PM at the police station, there will be a report and display of military type equipment owned by the city police

Saturday August 26, will be a Block Party at the Ventura City Police Station.

EVCC Announcements: Recognized our Anchor Sponsor – Grocery Outlet

The County Portion of Bristol Road from Ermine to Montgomery will be closed June 19 to 24. Detour will be from Montgomery to Telephone to Ramelli. Bill McReynolds noted the bids for the city portion went out today and work should be started in the Fall.

Our website is being re-designed. We need a volunteer to take photos of a list of places on the East Side.

A technology team is still needed to help with Facebook, etc.

Donations are still needed to support the Council’s budget.

Board Reports: The minutes of the May Council meeting were approved by the Board and posted on the website. The Treasurer, Norene Charnofsky reported our balance as $703.89.

Old Business: We are still looking for a replacement as Treasurer and for a new Recording Secretary. No nominations or volunteers were made. We will send out an e-mail to members asking for volunteers for these positions.

New Business: Since the website is being re-designed, we are asking for pictures both old and new which are representative of the East Side of Ventura. Several suggestions were made for locations. We also enquired about interest in a current events page.

The Board is interested in beginning Focus or Advocacy Groups. Judy Alexander mentioned that was quite effective in helping plant trees at Kimball Park. Some areas suggested are School Safety, Community Center, Playground, Senior Fit Park. Focus areas for the Congress of Councils are: Opening school grounds for public use, Reach codes, Housing, and City Staff Reports.

Guest Speaker: Ariana Rabago, Environmental Specialist with the City of Ventura’s Environmental Sustainability Division, spoke about the Food Waste Program. This is designed to reduce emissions. Food should be bagged in any type of bag and placed in the supplied containers. There was a FREE compost and mulch program initiated last month

at Cornucopia Community Gardens. You must bring your own container. Larger amounts (up to 20 cu. Yards) can be obtained directly from Agromix. There is a delivery fee of $135 for large amounts. You can watch a 1 minute video of the Food Waste Program on the Ventura website. There were questions about the Food Waste plant time schedule, the compost program, and the gathering of fruit on the ground at commercial orchards. There will be a Community Cleanup and recycling event on July 8 at 765 S. Seaward Avenue. There will be shredding trucks. You must register online.

Community Discussion: The economic development survey closes tomorrow. Future ideas for speakers were: the status of the General Plan, a Chamber report on businesses in the East End.

There were several questions and comments about the developments on Johnson and the effects on traffic. Bill McReynolds reported that the city sent a letter to Cal-Trans about the freeway access but has not received an answer. Housing unit assignment??? A 20 year lease was signed for the Cronies property but no environmental reviews have been completed pending the General Plan completion.

The Vista Del Mar Project was discussed. There was no traffic study done. Bill McReynolds mentioned that the 2005 council changed the land use on the property, but it was not submitted to the Coastal Commission. That allowed the developer to do all of the studies at their cost. There should be opportunity for public comments.

The Senior Center within the Community Center at Kimball Park was discussed. The Center is on the plan for the park. The Salvation Army facility at Petit and Henderson would make a good center, but nothing can be done without a City Manager. The City applied for a $9 million grant for pickleball courts and tennis court construction at Camino Real Park.

The 150th Anniversary of Ventura County is kicking off on June 23rd at the Museum. You can upload pictures on the anniversary website.

The Meeting was adjourned at 8:23 pm

Respectfully Submitted

Sara Ostrander