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Public Invited to Mayor Erik Nasarenko’s State of the City Address February 29

Ventura Mayor Erik Nasarenko will present the annual State of the City address in Council Chambers at City Hall, 501 Poli Street, on Monday, February 29, 2016 at 6 pm.  A brief reception will be held after the address, followed by the regularly scheduled City Council meeting.

The address, titled “Invest in Ventura, Now and For a Strong Tomorrow,” will focus on themes related to investing in our community and a proposed sales tax measure.  “The City of Ventura responded early and decisively to the economic downtown by implementing cost-saving measures, eliminating and reducing programs, and deferring much needed maintenance. Protecting our most essential city services like infrastructure, crime prevention and programs for seniors and youth with a stable funding source that is guaranteed to be spent locally will ensure a strong tomorrow for Ventura,” said Mayor Nasarenko.

The public is welcome and encouraged to attend.  The State of the City address will be broadcast live on Channel 15 within Ventura city limits, and rebroadcast thereafter. It can also be accessed online by visiting the City’s website at www.cityofventura.net and clicking “Videos.”

 

Harbor Waterways Entrance Now Open

Harbor Waterways Entrance Now OpenThe Ventura Harbor waterways entry is open for normal boating traffic as of Friday, February 19 at 2 p.m.

The dredging at Ventura Harbor will remain in and around the harbor for the next month to continue efforts to remove hazards in the harbor entrance.  Boaters should be aware and carefully navigate around the dredge and its equipment.

The modified Safety Zone will remain in effect to warn boaters of the hazards associated with the dredge and its pipes, but otherwise allow for boaters to maneuver through the entrance with caution.  The dredge can be contacted on Marine Channels 16 & 67 for questions or passing instructions.  Information on the Safety Zone can be locatedatwww.venturaharbor.com  under News.

Ventura Harbor businesses are fully operational in the Harbor including all boatyards, fuel docks, restaurants, shops, activities, hotels, excursions, and onsite events. Inner Harbor boating and paddle craft traffic is allowed.

On February 9, 2016,  the District was advised by Congresswoman Julia Brownley that the 2016 FY U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Work Plan includes an additional $2.5 million for the dredging project currently underway. This brings the total dredging allocation for this year to $7.3 million.

Manson Construction, who was contracted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, began mobilizing their equipment in the Ventura Harbor the week of January 25, 2016 and is currently dredging in the harbor entrance. Once Manson completes the dredging in the main channel, the Safety Zone initiated by the U.S. Coast Guard will be lifted. The second phase will include dredging of the sand trap. Dredging is a 24hr. operation (weather permitting) and will continue for approximately thirty days.

The District is grateful to Congresswoman Brownley and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for their efforts to secure the supplemental funding to adequately dredge the channel entrance and sand trap.

Harbormaster John Higgins states three factors which have led to making the entrance very dangerous — unusually large waves and swells from the El Nino condition, shoaling and a strong current running along the inside of the breakwater.

Dredging Manager Richard Parsons and Ventura Port District Commissioners Everard Ashworth and Greg Carson have met with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who are responsible for the dredging of the harbor, that helped secure the additional $2 million for dredging.

The depth of the entrance channel, normally about 40 feet, was as shallow as 14 feet and narrow to the point that two boats could not safely pass one another in the entrance, said Higgins.  The district estimates there were 900,000 cubic yards of sand in the harbor sand trap and entrance.

The Corps contract calls for dredging 460,000 cubic yards of sand. And with the additional funding, 340,000 more cubic yards of sand is scheduled to be dredged.

The Harbor Patrol can also be reached on Marine Channels 16 and12 and at(805)-642-8618. Business assistance opportunities for those affected by the closure, please visitwww.venturaharbor.com  and click on the News article for thelink.

Channel Islands National Park Comes “Ashore” to the Museum of Ventura County To celebrate National Park Service’s 100th Anniversary

On Sunday, February 28, from 11 am to 5 pm, the Museum of Ventura County, in partnership with the Channel Islands National Park, hosts a fun-filled day for families with the theme of “Island Chumash Traditions.”  This is one of four Sundays that the two organizations will jointly host in celebration of the Channel Islands National Park’s 36th anniversary, amid thousands of nation-wide commemorations of the National Park Service’s 100th Anniversary.

Essentially ‘kicked-off’ by Grand Marshall Ken Burns at the Rose Parade in Pasadena, the 2016 centennial brings special attention and education to Americans about its National Park System.

And Ventura boasts one of the most beautiful —the Channel Islands National Park.  The wonders, traditions and lore of the Channel Islands National Park can be experienced at the Museum of Ventura County on Sunday, February 28th at the museum.

Activities include:

  • Learning about the Chumash culture through traditional demonstrations and ceremonies, led by Chumash elder Julie Tumamait
  • Cave painting and an archeological dig in the museum’s Chumash Garden
  • Group readings of the beloved children’s novel “Island of the Blue Dolphins” which is set in the Channel Islands
  • Traditional craftmaking, such as necklaces made with shells and beads, and crafting dolphin masks and tomols (small canoes)
  • Learning about the Junior Park Ranger Program
  • You can even dress up as a sea otter!

Park Rangers will be on hand with museum volunteers to teach children about the islands.  Refreshments will be available for sale from Aaron’s Tacos food truck and Kona Ice.  Adult admission is $5 each; kids under 18 are admitted free.

The Museum of Ventura County is located in downtown Ventura. Hours are 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sundays of every month are free general admission for the public.

The Beach Cities Neighbors and Newcomers Club meeting Mar. 2nd

The Beach Cities Neighbors and Newcomers Club, (BCNN ) is a group of active women of all ages who live in Ventura, Oxnard, or Port Hueneme and enjoy activities such as hiking, bridge, dining, wine outings, reading, mah jong, cooking etc.For more information, please come to our monthly meeting on March 2, 2016 from 9:30 AM to 11AM…    Meeting will be held at the Ventura Museum Pavilion located at 100 E. Main Street, in historic downtown Ventura   No charge for meeting and no reservation is required.     Diane Sansen -Subject:Aging Gracefully
For additional information, please visitbcnnwomensclub.org . Or call:  805-988-0795

Trailer side swipes hydrant causing geyer and flooding

Pictures from , Tuesday, February 16, , near the Servants of the Father of Mercy, 1544 Morse Ave.
At about 2:30pm a trailer side swiped a fire hydrant near the corner of Callens and Market Street.  It set off a huge water geyser about two and a half stories high and flooding the street down Callens into the field at the Amtrak rail tracks.  Police arrived at 2:40 and Fire Department arrived at 2:45.
Photo and info courtesy
bro. gary joseph
Servants of the Father of Mercy

Local Entrepreneurs Join Forces to Host Free Community Event

Three recent graduates of WEV’s Self-Employment Training (SET) Program will join forces in a free yoga and coffee event for the community.

For those with a love for both yoga and coffee, three local entrepreneurs are hosting the perfect event. On Saturday, February 27th, WEV Self-Employment Training graduates Michelle Nouraei, Marilyn Hefferen, and Ashley Tindall will combine their passions to provide the community with a leisurely afternoon of yoga and coffee.

The event will kick off with a relaxing yoga class taught by Hefferen, an instructor at Yoga Rhythms. After the session, attendees can enjoy a delicious cup of hot coffee made from Tindall’s coffee and yoga business, Soul Bean, while shopping the latest trends in yoga apparel from Nouraei’s online yoga clothing store, Funk Zone Fashions.

Date: Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: 1593 Santa Ynez Street, Ventura, CA
Cost: Free admission, RSVP encouraged but not required

For more information or to RSVP, contact Ashley Tindall at (303) 815-6265 or ashleytindall77@gmail.com.

About Women’s Economic Ventures (WEV)
Women’s Economic Ventures is dedicated to creating an equitable and just society through the economic empowerment of women. WEV provides training, consulting and loans to help entrepreneurs start, grow and thrive in business. WEV serves all of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties from offices in Santa Barbara, Ventura and Santa Maria. While WEV targets its services toward women, it serves men as well, and provides many services in English and Spanish.

Since 1991, WEV has provided business training and consulting to over 14,000 women and men throughout Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, and made more than $4 million in loans, assisting over 4,000 local businesses. WEV is a U.S. Small Business Administration’s Women’s Business Center, and a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI).

A pioneer in the field, WEV was founded by Marsha Bailey, a nationally recognized advocate for women business owners. Marsha is the board president of the national Association of Women’s Business Centers, and sits on the National Women’s Business Council.

Mika Harmony’s “Love in Full Bloom”, solo exhibit at Capriccio Restaurant

art Harmony“Artist Mika Harmony’s “Love in Full Bloom”, solo exhibit will be featured at Capriccio Restaurant at 298 E. Main St. now through March 20th.

Being raised on Maui by two artistic parents influenced her love of all things creative. Mika’s mother is a photographer/printmaker and her father is a songwriter, which is where the Harmony comes in.

Now calling Ventura home, Mika was inspired to create this series “Love in Full Bloom” while thinking of Spring and the feeling of music in her heart.

This mixed media series combines: antique sheet music, original painting, things with wings, Iconography elements, poetic phrases and hearts, on 12×12 canvas.

Mika has participated in juried national exhibitions at Bergamot Station, Santa Monica, Frameworks, Santa Barbara, Buenaventura Art Gallery in Ventura and San Louis Obispo Museum in San Louis Obispo as well as exhibited in galleries in California and Maui.”

Local artist-sculpture Lynn Creighton closing gallery-studio Studio1317

art CreightonLocal artist-sculpture Lynn Creighton has closed her gallery-studio Studio1317. She is still available at www.lynncreighton.com to see, and purchase her wonderful ecstatic female figures that she has been creating since 1990. Creighton’s work has been exhibited nationally at museums and galleries from New York to California. Selected international exhibits include showings in Japan, France, and South Africa.

In describing her work she stated  “The figures in this gallery are experiencing the vibratory rate of their own life force. That vibration is the energy of the divine slowed down so that it may be seen.  It is the creative core at our center.  It contains the truth of our soul. I create the female form from a sacred source of  life, inspiration and commitment. This work has evolved from my deep inner conviction that female energy, fully aware of itself, will contribute essential wisdom to critical issues facing the planet.”

You can meet Lynn at the Ventura Avenue Adult Center (550 N Ventura Ave.)  when the Potters’ Guild presents  her on Monday February 22. Doors open at 7 pm and program begins at 7:45 pm. She will share her journey from potter to sculpture… featuring her flowing, modernist female figures that are both spiritual and sometimes playful in nature.

 

The Arts Collective-Pacific View Mall

art mallDon’t miss out . . . reserve your class space today!

The Arts Collective-Pacific View Mall,  On Level 2, adjacent to Sears- 676-1540

Pacific View Mall Events Directory

Beginning Thursday, March 3 to April 21- Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain

An exciting 8-part Series-Thursday, March 3 – 6:30pm – 8:00pm

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is the world’s most widely used drawing instruction book.  Whether you are drawing as a professional artist, as an artist in training, or as a hobby, this book will give you greater confidence in your ability and deepen your artistic perception, as well as foster a new appreciation of the world around you.

Early Registration fee $140 for 8-week series on or before Tuesday, March 1  I Regular Registration fee $160.  Materials fee $10.

Coming Soon! Lunchtime Coloring Sessions for Adults

You can do it alone or with a group of friends ~ Coloring feeds the creative side of your mind ~ There are no rules. You can color inside the lines, outside the lines, in one color, in dozens of colors.  We have the designs for you to choose from and the pencils in an array of beautiful colors for you to use.  Bring your lunch and join us.  $5 materials fee.  Specific dates to be announced soon.