The City of Ventura has cancelled the billing program associated with the Fire Hazard Reduction Program (FHRP) effective immediately. During a special meeting on December 19, 2022, the Ventura City Council voted to stop billing charges and refund all fees paid by property owners for the program.

“This period of inflation is impacting the cost of everything, and our community members are feeling the effects of higher prices as well as rising insurance rates for those living in areas of high fire risk,” said Mayor Joe Schroeder. “The City Council unanimously supported the immediate removal of billing fees associated with the Fire Hazard Reduction Program to help alleviate extra costs for over 6,000 property owners. It was timely to make this change now because every day that goes by means more and more people are paying billing fees.”

The Fire Hazard Reduction Program, commonly referred to as FHRP, is the cornerstone of a Wildland Fire Action Plan intended to protect life and property by removing flammable brush, reducing vegetation density, and creating 100 feet of defensible space around structures.

“Removing flammable brush, reducing vegetation density, and creating defensible space around structures is critical to slow or stop the spread of wildfire. It helps safeguard homes, businesses, and valuable property from catching fire caused by direct flame, wind-driven ember cast, or radiant heat,” said Fire Chief David Endaya.

In response to the devastating Thomas Fire, the City expanded its defensible space inspection program from 600 inspections to include more than 6,000 properties in the “High” and “Very High” Fire Hazard Severity Zones as identified by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). These maps are used to assist in determining defensible space requirements, wildland-urban interface building codes, and the State Minimum Fire Safe Regulations.

During its regular meeting on May 24, 2021, the City Council approved the City’s Fiscal Year 2021-22 Master Fee Schedule, which included a fee to property owners for defensible space inspections and authorized the Ventura Fire Department to bill for those inspections. Fire inspections for all affected properties were billable at $38.97. Fire Recovery USA, a third-party service, was hired to administer all defensible space billing on behalf of the Fire Department.

While the Fire Department will continue to perform defensible space inspections moving forward, billing charges for inspections have been terminated effective immediately. The City will notify affected property owners and implement a process to refund monies already paid. These actions do not limit the Fire Department’s ability to impose fines for non-compliance with the FHRP.

“The Fire Department will continue to work with property owners in creating and maintaining defensible spaces while also educating community members on how to prepare for wildfire,” said Chief Endaya.

For additional information on the Fire Hazard Reduction Program, call the Fire Prevention Division at 805-658-4717 or visit www.CityofVentura.ca.gov/FHRP.

Several Downtown Ventura businesses have partnered with Ventura Unified School District (VUSD) in the second year of the Vision to Marketplace pilot program, which matches local merchants with VUSD Career Technical Education (CTE) students.

This pilot program introduces and teaches students about entrepreneurship, product design, development, and delivering products to market. Career Technical Education students go through the process of evaluating market demand, visioning, prototyping, manufacturing, marketing, and selling wholesale products to participating Downtown businesses for December holiday sales. Funds from the wholesale purchases go back into the participating CTE programs.

Dr. Rene Rickard, VUSD’s Chief Innovation Officer, shared that “the goal of this collaboration is to provide authentic opportunities for students to pursue their passion in Career Technical Education. We are grateful to the business owners who have been so generous with their time and expertise as they provide students with real-world experiences. We look forward to continuing to expand this program in future years.”

Students met with Downtown business owners to determine viable products for sale in their shops. Participating businesses then provided mentoring and feedback on prototyped manufactured products and placed orders. Students produced and delivered products to the stores at the end of November in time for holiday sales.

To help facilitate production, participating students were provided access to the new IDEA Center manufacturing lab in the heart of Ventura’s Westside. The IDEA center is a dedicated community center for Innovation, Design, Entrepreneurship and Art, created by the non-profit organization STEMbassadors. The center provides training and access to industry-standard equipment such as laser cutters, CNC routers, direct-to-garment printers, 3D printers, and other advanced machinery.

Angela Rosales, owner of Very Ventura Gift Shop & Gallery, has helped bring this program to life. “As entrepreneurs ourselves, we enjoy the opportunity to give back to our community by sharing our experience and knowledge with students. While it is a learning process for all of us, it’s been impressive to see the creativity and initiative the students have put into their designs. We are excited to be selling their locally crafted products in our stores, and the customer response has been great too.”

Student-made products created through the Vision to Marketplace program are available at several downtown businesses, including Very Ventura Gift Shop & Gallery, Betty Belts, Ecugreen, Plum Gift Boutique, and Sea Things Ventura.

Businesses interested in participating in Vision to Marketplace may contact Joe Bova, VUSD’s CTE Administrator, at [email protected].

The fall and winter holidays are a time filled with family, friends, and shared meals. While enjoying these celebrations, it is important to keep in mind the journey your food has taken from the ground to your plate, and its life beyond the plate as well. 20% of the material Ventura residents send to the landfill from their homes is made up of food waste. Half of that is inedible food scraps, but the other half is preventable, edible food that could have been saved from going to waste.

Food sent to the landfill decomposes and emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Methane has 84 times the warming potential as carbon dioxide in its first 20 years in the atmosphere. Not only is the methane created by food waste in landfills a considerable driver of climate change, but it is also representative of other resources lost, including, but not limited to, fresh water, energy, land, and labor.

Fortunately, Ventura residents have options to combat food waste in landfills. To prevent edible food waste, consider the following:

Plan your meal in advance. A lot of food waste can be prevented simply by not overpreparing too much food for your gathering.

Store leftovers properly. The way leftovers are stored can have a significant impact on how long those leftovers stay fresh. Visit SaveTheFood.com, use the FoodKeeper App, or check out our website for storage tips.

Get creative with leftovers. Leftover rolls can become bread pudding; mashed potatoes can become fritters – have fun with your leftovers so you enjoy eating the extra food before it starts to turn.

As for the inedible food scraps or food that does go uneaten before it turns, Ventura residents can utilize the residential food waste recycling program.

Bag up the scraps (any bag will do).

Toss it into your yard waste bin or your designated food waste container, depending on your waste service.

The food waste recycling program accepts all food, including cooked or raw meat and bones, bread, dairy, fruits, and vegetables. Go ahead and toss that turkey carcass in there! The collected food waste will be recycled into soil amendment products that benefit our soil and environment.

Lastly, for those who want to ensure their food scraps stay as local as possible, City of Ventura residents are invited to join the Ventura Compost Co-op, where members can drop off their food scraps at Cornucopia Community Gardens to be composted on-site.

Ventura City Council approved a settlement agreement and general release with its City Manager, effective on Tuesday, December 13, 2022. In the agreement, McIntyre agreed to resign from his position effective at the close of business on December 13, 2022.

“Mr. McIntyre has indicated a desire to resign from his employment with the City of Ventura,” stated City Attorney Andy Heglund. “The City Council voted 7-0 to approve and authorize Mayor Sofia Rubalcava to execute a separation agreement and general release to avoid the expense of litigation that could exceed $100,000.”

The City Council agreed to pay Alex McIntyre a $150,000 settlement to waive any claims against the City. Since November 14, 2022, Alex McIntyre, has been on paid administrative leave.

“The Council and I have full confidence in the organization’s leadership and dedicated staff who continue to carry the City forward positively and productively,” stated Mayor Sofia Rubalcava. “We remain focused on preparing our City for the future and continuing the great things we’ve accomplished.”

McIntyre started in Ventura in November 2018 after serving as the City Manager in Menlo Park. He began after City Manager Mark Watkins retired in 2017.

Recently McIntyre was abruptly placed on paid administrative leave after a unanimous vote of the City Council.

Assistant City Manager Akbar Alikhan was selected to serve as the acting city manager, Heglund said.

The city attorney did not elaborate further on the reasons McIntyre was placed on administrative leave. The mayor and the council members did not address the decision.

According to McIntyre’s original contract on October 2018, he agreed to work at the will and pleasure of the City Council. “He may be terminated, or asked to resign, at any time, with or without cause,” according to the contract.

In August, McIntyre was given a 5% raise and his annual salary increased from $280,000 to more than $294,000. He also received an additional lump sum payment of more than $5,200.

Earlier this year, several incidents involving McIntyre drew the attention of residents.

In March, some members of the City Council took a trip to Washington D.C. for legislative matters. Council members on the trip violated the Brown Act, the state’s open meeting law, by holding meetings without proper notification and agenda publication. McIntyre later apologized for giving bad advice to the council that led to the violation.

In a separate September 2021 trip, McIntyre used his state-issued credit card to pay for dinner and wine for eight people during a business trip to Sacramento.

McIntyre eventually apologized for the credit card use and reimbursed the city for the wine and excessive tip. The $711 meal included a tip of $234.60, which McIntyre explained was a miscalculation because he did not realize the tip was already included in the tab.

The City of Ventura’s planned water reuse program, VenturaWaterPure, anticipates $14 million in federal funding from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s (BOR) Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse Program.

VenturaWaterPure is among a shortlist of projects funded by the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, pending Congress’ approval. This award is in addition to the combined $4.2 million that the City received from the program in 2018 and 2021.

“We are thrilled that VenturaWaterPure has been selected again for this federal funding program,” said Mayor Sofia Rubalcava. “This grant helps support our community’s need to create a local and sustainable water supply for our future generations.”

“As California works to become more drought-resilient in the face of climate change, securing sources for clean drinking water is a huge priority for the Central Coast. I’m glad that the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has delivered $14 million to the City of Ventura and their VenturaWaterPure Program. With this grant award, VenturaWaterPure will be able to continue their work developing sustainable solutions to combat droughts and water shortages in the Central Coast, and provide residents consistent access to clean water,’ stated Congressman Salud Carbajal.

Through the Title XVI program, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation provides grants to communities to reclaim and reuse wastewater, impaired groundwater and surface water. Funding may be used for the planning, design or construction of water recycling and reuse projects.

The VenturaWaterPure Program is also pursuing a low-interest loan through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program. This loan will also support design and construction of the program’s Advanced Water Purification Facility.

VenturaWaterPure will recover, treat, and reuse water that is currently discharged to the Santa Clara River Estuary. At a new purification facility, water will be treated using advanced technology for potable reuse. The multi-benefit program will create a new local water supply, meet legal requirements, improve water quality for Ventura customers, and deliver up to 20% of the City’s water supply.

The program remains in the design phase, with construction anticipated to begin in 2023. To learn more about the VenturaWaterPure Program, visit www.VenturaWaterPure.net.

The Ventura Police Department will increase patrols throughout the community and provide other traffic safety programs to help reduce the number of serious injuries and deaths on roads.

“This grant funding allows us to support our ongoing traffic safety efforts in the community,” Sergeant Mark Knackstedt said. “Our intent is to stop the most unlawful and dangerous behaviors that put people at risk and create an environment where everyone feels safe traveling.”

The grant will provide additional programs and resources, including:

• DUI checkpoints and patrols focused on stopping suspected impaired drivers.
• High visibility distracted driving enforcement operations targeting drivers in violation of California’s hands-free cell phone law.
• Enforcement operations focused on the most dangerous driver behaviors that put the safety of people biking or walking at risk.
• Enforcement operations focused on top violations that cause crashes: speeding, failure to yield, stop sign and/or red-light running, and improper turning or lane changes.
• Community presentations on traffic safety issues such as distracted driving, impaired driving, speeding, bicycle and pedestrian safety.
• Officer training and/or recertification: Standard Field Sobriety Test (SFST), Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) and Drug Recognition Expert (DRE).

The grant program will run through September 2023.

Ventura Police Department received a $63,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for a traffic records improvement project to improve the timeliness of reporting crash and citation data.

“Accurate and timely data is critical to identifying and prioritizing traffic safety issues,” Records Supervisor Paulette Halverson said. “The community will benefit greatly from this funding, which will allow us to increase our ability to identify problem areas and provide traffic safety resources where they are needed most.”

Grant funds will pay for a new electronic crash and citation data reporting system.

Funding for these programs were provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.