Category Archives: City News

New City of Ventura Economic Development Manager

Estelle brings a strong background in strategic marketing and effective collaboration.

Ventura Community Development Director Jeff Lambert has announced that Estelle (Diaz) Bussa has been named as the City’s Economic Development Manager and will start in her new position on May 7. This selection fills a key management position in the City and supports the City Council’s priority of Creating and Maintaining Economic Development and Vitality.

Estelle is a fourth generation Ventura native and has a strong background in strategic marketing and effective collaboration. In her new role, she will focus on updating and implementing the City Council’s 5­Year Economic Development Strategy, including retention, expansion and attraction of businesses in Ventura. Estelle will work closely with the City Council Economic Development Committee, the Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Ventura Partners, Visit Ventura, the Ventura Port District and other business partners. As a member of the Community Development Management Team, Estelle will work closely with the Planning and Building and Safety Divisions to support the City’s efforts to encourage private sector investment in Ventura.

Mayor Neal Andrews said, “Economic growth is vital to a healthy and vibrant business community and allows us to maintain city services and a high quality of life for our residents. We are pleased and looking forward to working with Estelle and our other community partners to further the City’s adopted strategy and to build upon the economic strength of our great city.”

Estelle previously worked four years at Patagonia where she served as International Planning Manager, Ecommerce Forecast Planner and Senior Supply Chain Analyst. She also has experience working for Adidas Group as a Senior Project Manager in Brand Harmonization. Jeffrey Lambert, Community Development Director, said, “Estelle is a unique and exciting choice for this position; her deep knowledge and commitment to Ventura and its prosperous future and her personal experience at Patagonia and beyond will support the City’s economic development goals.”

Estelle received her Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Operations Management, from the University of Portland and a BA in Social Sciences from San Diego State University. She is proud alumni of Ventura High School and Ventura College, where she was a back-to-back State Champion in Woman’s Basketball.

“Ventura is a great place to live, work, and do business. I am excited for this tremendous opportunity to join the team and build upon what has been accomplished and to further the economic development related goals of the City,” said Bussa.

City of Ventura to replace Downtown parking pay stations with new, improved model

The City of Ventura is replacing Downtown parking pay stations with a new, improved model that is compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). The new technology offers enhanced screen displays and options for future software upgrades such as pay-by-cell. There are no changes to the current parking program rates and hours of operation.

Much like cell phones and computers, pay stations and pay station system technologies are rapidly evolving. The current base operating system on the original pay stations will no longer be in compliance with the PCI DSS therefore, the pay stations will be replaced. This recommendation is supported by the Downtown Parking Advisory Committee.

All net revenue from the parking pay stations goes back into Downtown and funds a police officer who is dedicated to making downtown a safer and cleaner place to visit. Parking revenue was recently used to install security cameras, lighting upgrades, and other improvements. The pay stations help to create turnover and open parking spaces allowing customers to find parking close to merchants.

Grand Opening of Kellogg Park

It was an immensely joyful and exuberant celebration for park that has something for all ages.

by Amber Hansen

The City of Ventura and The Trust for Public Land held the long-awaited and highly anticipated Grand Opening of Kellogg Park on Saturday, April 14, from 10 am to noon. The event began with an official ribbon cutting and speeches by: Nancy O’Connor (Director of Parks, Recreation & Community Partnerships, City of Ventura), Matt LaVere (Deputy Mayor, City of Ventura), Mark Martinez (on behalf of Congresswoman Julia Brown), State Senator Hanna-Beth Jackson, Guillermo Rodriguez (California State Director of The Trust for Public Land), Sedrick Mitchell (Deputy Director of External Affairs, California State Parks), Mr. Yukio Shinozaki (Senior Vice President and General Manager, Mitsubishi Corporation), Michelle Newell (Public Affairs Specialist for Aera Energy), local donors David Hilty and Steven Peterson, and community member Jackie Pierce.

Nestled between rolling green hills, on the corner of Kellogg and Ventura Avenue, the park features state of the art amenities including: two playgrounds (for ages 2-5 and 5-12), nature play areas, permanent cornhole stations, chess and checker tables, outdoor fitness equipment stations, an amphitheater, and ¼ mile walking path.

Aside from the man-made amenities, Kellogg Park is built with 1.5 acres of native plants. The park is built with water efficiency in mind and the grass play areas are drought tolerant. 95 new trees have been planted on the property, which will provide shade and a splash of greenery on the Westside in the years to come.

The park also features a new community garden with 47 plots available for members of the public to rent. The garden focusses on organic practices, free from the use of pesticides, and includes composting bins for community gardeners’ use. Attendees of the Grand Opening were able to tour the new garden space and obtain information about renting a plot.

Nancy O’Connor, Director of the City of Ventura’s Parks, Recreation & Community Partnerships Department, said “Kellogg Park is an exciting addition to the Ventura Community. The variety of play amenities, the walking path, and the amazing views reaffirm the City’s commitment to our residents and their quality of life.”

The opening was packed with excited families taking full advantage of the new play areas, workout stations, and other amenities. A live band provided entertainment for the public and free goodies were handed out- it was an immensely joyful and exuberant celebration.

Matt LaVere, the Deputy Mayor of the City of Ventura, stated “what makes Ventura such an incredible place to live is its amazing collection of parks, beaches and open space. Kellogg Park is absolutely beautiful and I know children, families, and seniors on the Westside are going to love this latest addition to their neighborhood.”

For more information about Kellogg Park or to make a donation, visit www.cityofventura.ca.gov/KelloggPark.

The Trust for Public Land creates parks and protects land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come. Millions of people live near a Trust for Public Land park, garden, or natural area, and millions more visit these sites every year. To support The Trust for Public Land and share why nature matters to you, visit www.tpl.org.

Kellogg Park Timeline

2012 Kellogg St. parcel listed for sale

2013 Ventura City Council approves purchase of the site. Trust for Public Land (TPL)and City receive $1 million grant from the State of California

2014 TPL and City receive $584,000 grant state of California

2015 Pacific Coast Landscape and Design hired to design park. Ventura Community Partners Foundation begins major fundraising campaign

2016 TPL and City receives a second $230,800 grant from the State of California and $1.5 million grant from the Land and Water Conservation Fund through the US Department of the Interior

2017 Construction begins on Park. Kellogg Park receives additional funds of $240,000

April 14, 2018 Kellogg Park opens to the public

Mayor Neal Andrew’s State of the City

Mayor Andrew’s at the Ventura Chamber’s State of the City breakfast. Photo by Dan Holmes

At both the State of the City presentation made during a City Council meeting and the Ventura Chamber State of the City breakfast on March 29, at the Crowne Plaza, Mayor Neal Andrews delivered a powerful and up-lifting outlook for Ventura.

This are highlights of his presentation.

“Now, as you all are aware, a fateful event occurred on the evening of December 4, 2017. As much as I might have wished, it was not my election as Mayor of our terrific city. Having been elected Mayor, I was in the process of making a few remarks, mostly thanking my colleagues for their confidence when I looked up to see virtually everyone in the room walking out. As you might imagine, I guess my mouth may have dropped open a bit, but I quickly finished the few necessary remarks and invited those few remaining to join us for some cookies and lemonade.”

“Someone mentioned then that there was a fire out in a small canyon in Santa Paula and that our executives and other key staff had gone to open the EOC as a precaution. There didn’t seem like there was much reason at that point to hang around City Hall, so I wandered out to the parking lot. As I did so, I saw every light in the city go out, and the generators at City Hall powered up. In that instant I knew that we faced some sort of a crisis. We were about to experience the terrible wrath of the Thomas Fire.”

“There were three other seminal events that occurred in 2017. In addition to the fire, the voters had approved Measure O, they had adopted a fundamental change to election of the City Council by districts, and the City Manager had announced his retirement.”

“Each of these events had a major meaning for 2018.”

“However, despite the challenges these implied, the City had had a pretty good year in 2017 and was set to begin 2018 with strength and optimism.”

“Now let me turn the presentation over to the executive staff to fill you in on some of the details of what they had achieved until then and some of their efforts since. I hope you will appreciate how strong we are and how strong we will continue to be. “

“We’ve talked about the challenges that were the legacy of 2017 – the Thomas Fire of course, the hope that new revenue from Measure O will help meet long pressing needs, the impact on our traditional electoral system of the change to district elections, and the vital task of finding a new city manager will meet the needs and expectations of our citizens.”

“There is one over-riding implication in all of these that I want to emphasize. They will demand time and attention from our Council and city leadership and they will draw heavily on the time, talent and resources of the city as a whole. “

“Finally every new mayor has goals and aspirations, and I want to share some of mine with you. The first of mine is to try to strengthen and build upon our sense of community. I’m going to be doing my very best to reach out to build bonds among our friends. We have for years suffered strains across our community. It’s time to pull together, to show one another the mutual care and concern that is the characteristic of a healthy society. “

“We also need to focus on building prosperity within our community. Our restaurants and retail stores are beset on all sides by big chain operations with much larger marketing budgets and immense buying power. While it’s helpful to encourage folks to buy local goods and services, we need to join together in support of our business community. We need to find ways to help them compete, to bring more traffic to their stores, and to supplement their marketing investments. Over the longer term we need to radically increase our local investment in supportive technology and broad band. “

“Lastly, we need to open our eyes to opportunities inherent in the long-term future our community. We are no longer a quaint little beach town. We haven’t been for decades. We are a city of over 100,000 people. We are among the 10% of the largest cities in California. “

“To realize the promise that we are being offered as we progress into the future, we need to take steps now to restore the vital connection between the bulk of the city and the oceanfront. That single step, while it will take decades to achieve, is the single greatest contribution this generation can make to the future of our city and the benefit of our children and grandchildren. Please join me as I try to lead us in these new directions. Thank you and may God help us take the first few steps. It is as much as I can hope to do realistically in my brief time as your Mayor. “

“Ventura Strong! You can keep it so!! “

Ventura City Fire announces community emergency response team training

The Ventura City Fire Department invites community members to participate in the next Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. Ventura Fire, in coordination with FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), assists residents with disaster preparedness education and training through the CERT program.

The training covers the following topics:

  • Disaster Preparedness
  • Fire Safety
  • Disaster Medical Operations I and II
  • Light Search and Rescue
  • CERT Organization
  • Disaster Psychology
  • Terrorism

The training will be held at Police/Fire Headquarters located at 1425 Dowell Dr. The training will kick off on April 10 and will be held on six consecutive Tuesdays from 6:00-9:00 pm and the series will wrap up with a Simulation Skill Review exercise and graduation on Saturday, May 19.

Learn more about the program at https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/188/Community-Emergency-Response-Training-CE. Enrollment is limited and classes will be filled on a first-received basis; applicants are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible. Priority registration is given to residents of Ventura and first-time students. Participants must be at least 18 years old to participate.

Residents can apply online at: https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/FormCenter/Fire-Department-10/Community-Emergency-Response-Team-CERT-T-69. For more information please call 658-4717 or email [email protected].

2018 Corporate Games kick off

Large crowds of people lined the stage area to watch the presentations.

On March 24, the City of Ventura’s 29th Annual Corporate Games kicked off with opening ceremonies Community Park located at 901 S. Kimball Rd. Deputy Mayor Matt LaVere officially opened the games during the torch lighting ceremony .

The Corporate Games opening ceremonies highlighted its 2018 theme, “Where Work Meets Play”, with a business and fitness fair from 10 am to 2 pm. Those attending enjoyed live music, dance performances, demonstrations, jolly jumpers, interactive games, arts and crafts, food trucks and more.

Eighty Ventura and Santa Barbara County businesses will participate in the six-weeks of friendly competition. The actual games to be played on this day were canceled due to the soggy grass from the previous two days rains.

Photos by Bernie Goldstein

Ventura City Fire announces community emergency response team training

The Ventura City Fire Department invites community members to participate in the next Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. Ventura Fire, in coordination with FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), assists residents with disaster preparedness education and training through the CERT program.

The training covers the following topics:

  • Disaster Preparedness
  • Fire Safety
  • Disaster Medical Operations I and II
  • Light Search and Rescue
  • CERT Organization
  • Disaster Psychology
  • Terrorism

The training will be held at Police/Fire Headquarters located at 1425 Dowell Dr. The training will kick off on April 10 and will be held on six consecutive Tuesdays from 6:00-9:00 pm and the series will wrap up with a Simulation Skill Review exercise and graduation on Saturday, May 19.

Learn more about the program at https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/188/Community-Emergency-Response-Training-CE. Enrollment is limited and classes will be filled on a first-received basis; applicants are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible. Priority registration is given to residents of Ventura and first-time students. Participants must be at least 18 years old to participate.

Residents can apply online at: https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/FormCenter/Fire-Department-10/Community-Emergency-Response-Team-CERT-T-69. For more information please call 658-4717 or email [email protected].

Kellogg Park Grand Opening & Ribbon-Cutting

Explore the park and all of its new amenities.

Let’s play! The City of Ventura Parks, Recreation & Community Partnerships Department is proud to announce the official Grand Opening and Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for Kellogg Park, located at the corner of Kellogg Street and Ventura Avenue, on Saturday, April 14 from 10 am-noon. Opening day festivities include live music, games of cornhole and chess, free snacks and giveaways (while supplies last). Explore the park and all of its new amenities including play and exercise equipment, a walking path, turf slide, public art, and an amphitheater.

Tours of the new Kellogg Park Community Garden will take place during the opening celebration from 10 am-noon. Garden plot rental fees will include raised planter boxes, water, and gardening equipment to grow healthy, organic fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

For more information about the park or grand opening, visit the Kellogg Park website.

City of Ventura Barranca Vista Imagination Center classes

Check out hundreds more on web-site.

Call 658-4726 or 654-7553 to register, if you already have an ACTIVENET account online, visit www.cityofventura.net Classes and events held at the Barranca Vista Center ~ 7050 Ralston St. unless otherwise noted

Billy Clower Parent & Me Movement 18 months-2 years with adult

3/16-5/11 F 9-9:45 am $80 #10551

Bond with your child in this 8-week class as they discover movement and expression in a fun upbeat class with weekly themes. Your child will dance, tumble, stretch, play and imagine with instruments and props. Wear comfortable clothes that you can move in. Wear comfortable clothes that you can move in. Instructor Sage Schneiderbauer.At BVC. * No class 4/6.

Billy Clower Broadway Babies 2.5- 5 years

3/16-5/11 F 9:45-10:30 am $80 #10553

This 8-week class introduces your toddler to the world of Broadway Musicals! Students will dance, act and sing along to famous Broadway songs while building confidence in and exploring their talents. Dancers should wear a t-shirt with leggings/shorts and will go barefoot during class. Instructor: Sage Schneiderbauer.

Billy Clower Cirque Du Ballet 3-5 years

3/16-5/11 F 10:30-11:15 am $80 #10555

Step right up for this 8-week Circus themed Ballet Class. Students will learn ballet vocabulary, positions and dance while having fun walking on a tight rope, performing with hula hoops, and being graceful with scarves. They will also gain flexibility with beginning acrobatics and partner stretching. Dancers should wear a leotard or t-shirt with leggings/shorts and will go barefoot and use our classroom set of ballet shoes during class. Instructor: Sage Schneiderbauer.

Spice Blending Workshop

3/18 Su 2-4pm $40+$20 supply fee due to instructor at start of class

In this workshop, students will get to smell and taste all sorts of spice blends from around the world. Make and blend your own dip mixes, rubs or Dukkahs and spice blends. Students receive a notebook of spice blends and directions on what to do with them. Instructor Annie Koretz. To register call 658-4726.

We look forward to your participation in the 2018 Corporate Games

by Eric Burton-Recreation Supervisor Adult Sports

The field is set for the 2018 Corporate Games with 80 businesses from Ventura, and Santa Barbara Counties registered to participate in the upcoming competition. There will be over 27 different events that will be held over the five weeks of competition. Here is the break-down of competition by division:

  • Division AA (251- 500+ Employees) 9 Businesses
  • Division B – (150-250 Employees) 13 Businesses
  • Division C – (51-150 Employees) 35 Businesses
  • Division D – (10-50 Employees) 23 Businesses

Companies participating in the Corporate Games and the general public are invited to attend Opening Ceremonies on Saturday, March 24 from 10am to 2pm at the Ventura Community Park, in Ventura. Enjoy the Business & Fitness Fair, live demonstrations on the mobile stage, food trucks and Family Splash Time at the Aquatic Center. Get your company team and family together for Corporate Games Opening Ceremonies and Torch Lighting! For additional information download our Corporate Games Opening Ceremonies Flyer and visit the City of Ventura’s Corporate Games website where you will find a wealth of information.