by Council Member Christy Weir
On December 2, the Ventura City Council approved the Olivas Park Specific Plan, which will extend Olivas Park Drive to Johnson Dr, to provide a better connection between East Ventura and the Harbor area. This will be a “complete street” project, and include wide sidewalks, a landscaped median, separated multi-use trail for bicyclists, in addition to the traffic lanes. The Olivas Park Plan specifies opportunities to make improvements to this vital area adjacent to the Santa Clara River, golf course and Auto Center, to benefit the residents of Ventura.
In response to the growing public health crisis caused by vaping, especially among teens, the Ventura City Council unanimously passed an ordinance to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products, establish a tobacco license fee and prohibit the sale of all tobacco products within 1000 feet of schools. We affirmed that the City of Ventura continues to prioritize the health of our youth above the profits of businesses that sell harmful teen-targeted products.
