Huey Lewis and the News will be on the grandstand stage at the Fair on Friday, August 4.

Everyone knows kids 12 and under are admitted completely free on Kid’s day at the Ventura County Fair. But this year on Friday, August 4, even grown-ups become kids again because everyone 13 and older is admitted for the regular kid’s price of only $9.00, a 25% savings over the regular adult admission price of $12.00! Come out and enjoy all the Fair has to offer, including great rides and games, food, competitive exhibits, livestock, shopping, contests, headline entertainment, fireworks and more!

“We want to create more value and more opportunities for families with and without kids to be together at this year’s Fair,” said Barbara Quaid, the Fair’s CEO. “What better way than with free admission for those 12 and under and kid’s price for kids 13 and older?”

Many Fair departments offer special activities for kids on Kid’s Day. Please visit www.VenturaCountyFair.org or call 648-3376 for more information.

This year, to add more value to purchasers of our unlimited ride promotion wristbands, each purchaser of a wrist band will receive two free midway game plays with the purchase of two midway game plays during the unlimited ride promotion hours. An unlimited ride wristband is $30.00 and allows the purchaser unlimited access to all rides on the midway from opening until 7:00 PM on Thursday, August 3rd, Monday, August 7th, Tuesday, August 8th, and Thursday, August 10th. With each wristband the purchaser will receive coupons good for the free midway games. Wristbands must be affixed and free game offer is good only until 7:00 PM on the day issued. Midway coupons required to purchase game plays, no cash is accepted at midway game booths.

“Our game operators are offering thousands of free game plays with this new promotion,” said Barbara Quaid, CEO of the Ventura County Fair. “We are unaware of any other fair in California offering buy one get one free games in conjunction with unlimited ride wristbands.” The Ventura County Fair runs August 2nd through the 13th this year but the promotion is only good on Thursdays, Monday and Tuesday. Visit www.VenturaCountyFair.org or call 648-3376 for more information.

Focus Area One will bring business, jobs and revenue to the City. Photo courtesy of City of Ventura

by Gail Field

Action has begun on a project slated to bring business, jobs and revenue to the City of Ventura. The project, called “Focus Area One,” will expand the Auto Center and create space for additional commercial sites by developing the adjacent vacant area and extending Olivas Park Drive.

“This is a project planned to bring jobs and dollars to the City of Ventura,” says Community Development Director, Jeff Lambert. “The development will provide an integrated mix of automobile sales and retail establishments to meet the needs of the residents of the City of Ventura and surrounding communities.”

The project is bounded on the south by vacant land and on the north by US 101 near the Johnson Drive on- and off-ramps with visibility from the freeway. The site will have excellent access when the new freeway ramps are constructed as currently planned.

“In addition,” says Lambert, “we plan to apply a high level of design standards in order to ensure creating an aesthetically pleasing area that will enhance the entry point for the east end of the City.”

City planners face some constraints in developing the Auto Center project.

Some of the challenges have to do with roadways. The area has excellent visibility from the freeway, but access is constrained by the configuration of the Johnson Drive interchange. However, the site will have improved access once the new on-off ramp is constructed as currently planned. Also, overhead utility lines on the north side of Auto Center Drive will be removed to permit road widening. The lines are proposed to be located underground. The plan also includes improving the signage, making it more visible from the freeway and attractive to destination retail.

Ventura city council member Matt LaVere expressed his enthusiasm for the project. “One of my top priorities as a new council member is economic development and ensuring that our City’s economy is strong. Commercial and industrial space is at a premium in Ventura. Bottom line, we need more of it. A lot more.”

LaVere speaks from his perspective as a business attorney who represents many Ventura-based businesses and believes this project will be a boon for the Ventura economy. “A thriving economy not only creates a larger sales tax base, but ideally, it creates the jobs that allow Venturans to live and work here,” he says. “I hate to hear stories about how so many Venturans are forced into long commutes for their jobs. Not only does that create the traffic congestion we all despise, but it means less time for these individuals to spend with their family or giving back to their community.”

“I am particularly excited about the interplay of Ventura’s auto center and Focus Area One,” says LaVere. “The Auto Center is the number one sales tax generator in Ventura and provides close to a thousand jobs. Together, the new Focus Area One and a strong Auto Center have the potential of being the economic center of east Ventura.”

All in all, the project is set to encourage a stable, diversified, and well-balanced economy, to add to the job base within the city and to create a more beautiful shopping area going up according to plans.

There’s more than video happening at the CAPS Media Center.

Everyone has a great story to tell and CAPS Media is the place for you to share it. All types of storytellers are invited to get into the fun: videographers, documentarians, radio DJs, journalists, musicians, photographers and more are all encouraged, trained and supported at the CAPS Media Center at 65 Day Road in Ventura. Member/Producers are guided by the very knowledgeable and friendly CAPS Media staff in the art and fun of media production with hands-on training in videography, video editing, radio production and more. Once trained member/producers check out CAPS Media’s video cameras, tripods, audio gear and other production equipment to record their story and then book postproduction editing suites to craft the stories they want to tell.

There’s more than video happening at the CAPS Media Center. The recently launched and highly successful CAPS Radio station (KPPQ-LP, FM 104.1) gives Member/Producers a dedicated and professionally equipped studio to record and produce the radio programs they want to share with the community. Experienced and aspiring DJs are trained by the talented CAPS Media staff in all aspects of radio production. After a few hours of instruction Member Producers are ready to produce their own radio programs. The program formats, topics, guest lists and more are all up to the desires and direction of the individual CAPS Radio Producer/Members.

In a few short months FM 104.1 is already alive with locally created and produced programs in talk, music, information, education and more. Check out CAPS Radio on FM 104.1. Radio orientation and training classes will be held July 26 & 27 at 6pm at the CAPS Media Center. The two-part class provides Member/Producers with the tools needed to produce original radio shows.

On the video side, upcoming CAPS Media Member/Producer video classes include: new member orientation, August 3, HD videography/camera, August 10 and postproduction editing, August 17. Go to www.capsmedia.org to see a schedule of upcoming programs on Channel 6 & 15, search the archives for past programs, get info on upcoming video and radio classes and much more.

Recent CAPS Media productions included programs on the Two Trees planting, the groundbreaking of the new Gold Coast Transit Center, and the Mayor for a Moment Class of 2016-2017 compilation video featuring 5^th graders from elementary schools throughout the city.

Upcoming CAPS Media productions include live coverage of the annual Ventura County Fair Parade on Saturday, August 5. The festive event with floats, horses, marching bands and more will kick off at 10AM and CAPS Media will be on the scene at the corner of Main and California broadcasting live on Channel 6. If you are in the parade, give us and the community watching at home a big wave.

Tune in to Channel 6 for CAPS Media Member/Producer original programming throughout the day including the latest episodes of ECTV, Mayor for a Moment and Ventura Legacies. And to see what’s happening at the city, county and school government centers check out Channel 15.

CAPS Media is a nonprofit, membership organization located at 65 Day Road on the east side of Ventura College. Anyone who lives, works or attends school in the city of Ventura is eligible to become a Member/Producer at CAPS Media. Annual fees are only $25 for an individual and $75 for a non-profit organization. CAPS Radio is an additional annual fee of $50 for DJs. For complete information go to capsmedia.org.

Pam Baumgardner, Staci Brown and Diane Brown enjoying a previous Pier Under the Stars.

Tickets are now on sale for Pier Under the Stars—the 24th annual benefit for the historic Ventura Pier on Saturday, October 7th, from 5-8 PM. Each year more than 800 residents and visitors attend this beachfront culinary fair adjacent to the pier to sample the county’s best food and spirits provided by over 50 area businesses. This year marks the 24th anniversary of Ventura’s premier wine, beverage and food event.

Restaurants, cafes, wineries and breweries serve their signature dishes and beverages from tented booths along the seaside Promenade while guests enjoy live music, dancing under the stars and an amazing silent auction. It’s a community celebration to honor the City’s 144 year old pier.

The sell-out event hosted by Pier into the Future–-a non-profit 501 c (3)—“is a much anticipated community gathering of friends that raises funds for our beloved Pier”, said Pier Into the Future Executive Director Jenise Wagar. The organization was founded by a group of dedicated community leaders, in partnership with the City of Ventura, to establish an endowment fund to maintain and enhance the historic Ventura Pier for future generations to enjoy. The organization has contributed over $540,000 to the City of Ventura over the last 24 years to enhance the Pier.

General admission tickets are $75.00 and include food and beverage tasting and a commemorative Pier wine glass. A limited number of VIP tickets are offered at $150 each. VIP tickets include all of the benefits associated with General Admission, plus early entrance to the event at 4:30 pm and a reserved seat at a VIP table along the promenade. Local restaurants, wineries and breweries who are interested in sampling their food/drink at the event can call 804.7735.

Tickets are available on line at www.brownpapertickets.com or by calling 800.838.3006. Visit www.pierintothefuture.org for more information.

Chef Amy inspires you with new recipes at downtown spice store. Photo by Michael Gordon

by Jennifer Tipton

Spice-Topia is the quaint little shop downtown on Main Street where fresh spices from all over the world, a variety of teas, infused olive oils, tasty balsamic and many other items tempt your culinary curiosity. One cannot walk by without being drawn in by the inviting scents of cinnamon and assorted spices, offering an invitation to create new recipes or bump the old ones up a notch or two!

Looking for new recipes or inspiration? Cooking classes are offered at Spice-Topia by either Chef Amy or Chef Lu usually every other week in the evening 6:30-8:30. These kitchen divas attended the same culinary school, both are personal chefs and have their own catering business.

The classes are demos so that the students participate like a live studio audience with attendees from all age groups, gender and cooking experience. Complimentary herbal iced tea is served and the menus range in theme from “Gourmet Italian” to “Taco Night” with special holiday menus such as “Sweetheart Supper” and the one I recently enjoyed, “Summer with Chef Amy”. This was a celebration of summer that offered Bloody Mary Tomato Crostini’s, Sticky Balsamic Ribs, Corn Skewers with Cilantro Lime Butter, 5 Bean Salad with Smoked Paprika Vinaigrette and Blueberry Peach Portable Pie – oh yes!

As the chefs demo the preparation, students learn the fundamentals of chopping an onion (without crying), peeling garlic the easy way and other tricks of the trade such as proper technique and safe food handling. These types of lessons might be useful if you are deciding to open a restaurant. Make sure that you buy all the relevant equipment before deciding what food to serve. So, why don’t you have a look for this equipment at somewhere like Nella to get you on your way.

Chef Amy teaches about the origin of certain foods and emphasizes the importance of certified organic produce, the best cuts of meat, best places to shop and don’t even get her started on GMOs … Chef Amy states, “It’s okay to disagree with me, but remember, I have knives!”

Both chefs stress the importance of checking expiration dates which prompted me to tear through my pantry only to find a can of baking powder from 1986, (maybe that’s why my cakes kept falling) and maybe that’s why everything at Spice-Topia is so fresh and aromatic.

Although the classes are demos, all items on the menu have been pre-prepared, students are served samplers of everything and sent home with the recipes. Classes are only $35.00 and everyone gets 15% off their store purchase the night of the class. Such a deal!

Check their website for details: www.spicetopia.com