Letter to the editor

Re: Homeless at 81 (article in previous Breeze by Jennifer Tipton)

Edison Electric Company in Ventura offers a medical baseline discount for people like myself. Once approved the bill does go way up the first month- using my oxygen concentrator in the first month. Month 2 the bill is shockingly low, month 3 on Edison provides a very good on going discount.

Thanks, so much Mr. Brown for publishing article. Many Ventura Breeze readers made reservations and attended Gabriel’s house fund raiser. A grateful good thanks to them.

Joan Lucas

Sheldon

Why can’t Carol have her own thoughts instead of lifting it from an article of CNBC? And thank you again Sheldon for considering my feelings. I didn’t realize the Breeze was to be one sided by others. My only hope is that we can agree to disagree and get some work done. If my candidate would have lost, I would have kicked off the dust and been supportive of ideas for all of our greater good.

Let’s hope we can move forward for our Veterans and homeless. Orange County is doing a really good thing in a short amount of time with industrial space to clean up their river trail. Great idea!

Thank you again for all you do. I’m sitting here with my coffee and Breeze now!

Trudy Smith

Trudy:

Carol is, obviously not as brilliant as you, me and Trump. Hope you didn’t spill your coffee on the Breeze.

Sheldon

Editor:

Here he goes again!  Our Commander in Chief who insists he be treated with respect, loudly disrespects highly decorated military heroes.  Didn’t Mr. Trump learn from his debacle of criticizing Senator McCain’s military service because “I like people who didn’t get captured”!

Now he dares criticize Retired Navy Admiral William McGraven because “he didn’t capture Bin Laden sooner”!  And, in the next breath, Mr. Trump boasts how he “supports” our military.  What hypocrisy!

Judith A. Beay Ventura

Dear Folk,

Yippee!  They got him. They got him good — by the cojones!

Cohen has confessed to lying and helping Trump work with the Russians. And the Democrats have the House, so they can Impeach, unless he has that major stroke.

He looks so sick and terrified and the mouth doesn’t stop running. Never in my life have I detested anyone in this fashion. Never knew I could take pleasure in someone else’s pain.

This guy deserves everything that’s coming his way.

Let’s all go out in the middle of street and dance……Yippee Yiippy Ya

Es and Les and Doggies
Ventura, CA

Dear Councilmember:

Those of us that are residents in the Pierpont area are most impacted by STVRs. We were given our chance to voice our position during the STVR working group. I know because I was a participant. The survey that the city is disseminating on STVRs does not in any way shape or form represent what was presented to you as a result of the working group. We clearly and unanimously in writing and discussions voiced our position. We do not want more regulations or enforcement on STVR nuisance. We want an end to STVRs in our neighborhood. We simply want the city of Ventura to strictly enforce the zoning codes as written. That’s it. If there is an R in the zoning then business is prohibited.

The multi- billion dollar vacation rental industry is clearly behind the writing of this sham survey. It doesn’t come close to asking the right questions. I would answer none of the above to virtually every question on it as would a vast majority of residents in the Pierpont neighborhood. Where are the real questions? Like: Do you think grey market, unregulated hotels should be allowed in a residential area despite public opinion. Or how about: Should out of town STVR investors be able to gobble up the available ” executive housing” the city so desperately craves? Or how about: Do you think there should be a nightly rate for the view overlooking the Pierpont Elementary school playground?

We want and will eventually get what Santa Barbara got. An end to the destruction of our coastal neighborhoods and a restoration of true zoning enforcement. Give them a couple of years to unwind. And then give us back our neighborhood!

Thanks

Tim Colavito and family

Breeze:

I decided to run for the Ventura School Board for a few reasons which I was able to bring light to and talk about in open public forums and hopefully get the attention of those parents and elected officials to act on them.

I ran because of social justice issues which affect our community, explicitly kids who are falling under the radar. There is a lack of communication between teachers, school counselors and school psychologists. Part of this missing communication is our staff is overworked to actually identify issues and give attention needed to our students. I also, ran to ensure that the after school program ASES continues to be funded and open to all students who may need the after school help. I know that most of our community are working families and the ASES program is such an asset to our community. I wanted to see our students be encouraged to become engaged in civics at the local level during election time and education of on the importance.

I ran on environmental justice issues that must to be addressed at our schools. Some of our schools are lacking proper recycling programs on campus. All of our schools are utilizing single use plastics and Styrofoam containers, which are either being littered or going straight to the landfill. I wanted to see a city bus voucher program to cut down on pollution and the amount of cars coming on and off campuses. I wanted to see Green Technologies offered at the High School level with a new Green focused vocational and trade school in the future. The Farm to School Program is a great mechanism that we have going at some of our local schools, but I wanted to see that expanded upon; as well as, offering plant based vegetarian options in the cafeterias.

Lastly, it was a non-partisan race, but I let people know that the ideas and principles I was running on were part of the Green Party’s platform. I hope I encouraged others to look into joining the Green party and being part of the true political revolution!

Keep being the change that you want to see

Anthony Krzywicki

ear Editor:

Who likes the Ventura River interface with the city?  Imposing walls of rip rap and long lengths of barren dirt keep people strictly apart from a natural River experience.

Up until now, the Santa Clara River has avoided the same fate.  Its north bank is not artificially channelized, and hundreds of acres have been acquired in anticipation of a future nature and recreation corridor.

Not for long.  The city plans to channelize the Santa Clara River with a levee made of boulders and barren dirt to expand the auto center.  Nevermind that levees as flood protection are a losing battle, the city proposes to make this ill-conceived project part of the Olivas Park Drive Extension and Olivas Park Specific Plan (OPSP).  Heard about it?  Unlikely.   Ventura community development manager has kept public engagement on this project extremely minimal.  Even more disturbing is that, if approved, an OPSP revision will give the community development manager authority to make final project approvals and take away that authority from Planning Commissioners and Design Review Committee members.

On 10/17/18 the project was on the joint planning commission – design review committee agenda.  Panelists expressed a great deal of concern to the community development staff about the levee.  They pointed out the short sightedness of ignoring the River value and the failure to provide public access with just even a bike path along the crest!  Among other things, the commissioners instructed staff to get the word out to the public about the Olivas Park Drive project.

Time to stop repeating history destroying our last natural resources for development!  Sierra Club and Friends of the Santa Clara River want a living Santa Clara River and are working with National Parks Service to produce a concept for a Santa Clara River Loop trail.  Join us.

Thank you,
Nina Danza, PE

Dear Sheldon,

Are playing you devil’s advocate by placing those pro-Trump letters in the Breeze today? I’ll only refute one point in Ms Smith’s letter; the one about Trump not needing money. He’s raking in the dough at his properties, including Mar-a-Lago, which Trump calls the “Winter White House,” (which has doubled its membership fee to $200,000), and Trump International Hotel, (whose managers market it as a destination for diplomats, has raised room rates almost 60 percent).

In amounts large and small, Trump takes in money from political allies, and from the government he leads.

The Republican National Committee rents space in Trump Tower. So does the Pentagon. So does China’s largest bank.

The government of Qatar this spring paid $6.5 million for an apartment in Trump World Tower — joining the governments of Saudi Arabia, India and Afghanistan there.

Trump businesses overseas have gotten foreign government help, too.

China’s government is reportedly lending $500 million for a Trump-linked development project in Indonesia. China has also approved dozens of trademarks for Trump family businesses since he won the presidency.

In two “emoluments clauses,” the Constitution forbids the president from taking money from individual states or from foreign governments

Responding to those restrictions, the Trump organization has pledged to donate profits derived from foreign entities to the U.S. Treasury. In 2017, that donation was $151,000 — less than one-half of 1 percent of the $40 million in hotel income the president reported.

A federal lawsuit filed by Democratic members of Congress and one filed by the governments of Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia accuse the president of violating the emoluments clauses.

While those cases await trial, the power of the presidency remains a major financial asset for Trump.

“The stars have all aligned,” Eric Trump said last year. “I think our brand is hotter than it’s ever been.”

Much of this was lifted from an article that I read on CNBC.

Carol Spector

Carol:

Not playing devil’s advocate. Our readers have the same right to express their views as I have. Some folks don’t think that I should have the right.

Sheldon

Greek philosophers’ liar’s paradox “I always tell lies,” a man says. Is he lying or telling the truth?

Editor…..Please stop with the political drivel in your column……..We all know that you are more liberal than Bernie Sanders….but to quote Eugene Robinson?   If Kanya West is an Uncle Tom, then  Eugene is an Auntie Tommie…who can only write stuff that Bezos tells him to write…He has not had an intelligent piece since USA Today started putting him in our local paper……Why does he not start doing something for the Black people?   Because he is already in the top 10% of money makers and

is not interested…..

You have a nice community paper which gives us local happenings….so knock off the political pap that you try to sneak in ……

Richard Pillow, CPA.Ventura

Richard:

Not sure what you mean “try to sneak in” it is not written in code, you managed to find it. I assume “political drivel and pap” is anything that you don’t agree with.

The fact that I can express my opinion and you can express yours is what the freedom of the press is which makes this a great country (they don’t have this in China, North Korea, Russie, etc., etc. I’m sure that you wouldn’t want to live there). So I will continue to “sneak in” my “drivel and pap” and you can continue to criticize it and have it printed in the Breeze.

Sheldon

Here’s why I love Trump!

1. He is the first person in politics, either side, that I have ever been able to understand when he speaks. He’s not censored or pre-rehearsed at all. I think that’s what bothers people. They “can’t handle those ruff words or the truth!”

3. Start by building the wall. We can’t possibly deport those we don’t know are here or logistically can’t. Trump got our attention though by saying that. Children left at the border that we are traumatizing? Really? Where did that start? Seems with their parents. Vetting, placement or sending them back needs to continue. 

Can we go to any other country in the world and just start a life, use all the services for free, and stay for as long as we want or whenever? I think not. 

5. Question……how can we keep paying for all of this. The left thinks, what…..we just keep borrowing money, printing it, or taxing people here who already struggled to pay their own bills?

6. Russia…….I voted, Russia did not influence me on my decision.
This topic is an insult to me. 

8. I love that Trump doesn’t need the money. All the other people do. Who’s he working for? Us! Finally someone that’s calls everyone out right or left. 

9. Oh my and its criminal what was done to Kavanaugh and his family.  Granted something happened to her, but to accuse and try to ruin someone with no evidence or proof and doing it now?

I love that you continue to produce our lovely, informative Breeze in the day and age of skyrocketing costs to produce it. 

Thank you!
Trudy Smith

Some of her points were deleted not editorialized but just because they were too long. That is why there are numbers missing.

Dear Ventura Breeze

How nice to read such a lovely article on Mary Jane Mitchell (in last Breeze issue). Wow – so many years of memories.

I well remember meeting Jane, and her late husband, Jack Tobias, for the very first time. There I was – a young city girl from south Philly, Pennsylvania – and proud of it – being introduced to a new town and way of life, surrounded by farmland. Jane and Jack were among the nicest people I came to know. Jane was always gracious and welcoming. Jack was a real down-to-earth guy (with a very cool hat collection), who spent many a morning at the wonderful Doc and Sandy’s Cafe, in “downtown Saticoy”, enjoying “shooting the breeze” with other country gentlemen like himself. Doc and Sandy went on to a well-deserved retirement, and most – if not all of the original Saticoy Coffee Gang – are now gone, yet they all continue to be remembered fondly.

It’s so good to know that Jane remains in her family home, where – from her front-row seat in a cozy chair- she continues to witness the many changes of years gone by. Bless you, Jane, and………thanks for the memories. Thanks, again. Just love the Ventura Breeze.

Grace Baskin, Ventura

Correction:

In our last issue we had the wrong time for this event. On Nov.8, from 5-7pm, Community Memorial Hospital (CMH) will have an open house.

Also there will be an Art Open House on Tuesday Nov. 27, from 4-7pm which will specifically highlight the over 600 pieces of local and regional art that have been installed in the new hospital. A great opportunity to appreciate our local artists.

We think too much and feel too little.
~ Charlie Chaplin

Editor:

The Clean Power Alliance is made up of 31 jurisdictions and the counties of Los Angeles and Ventura, awarded Calpine Energy Solutions a four-year contract to provide data management and call center services to an initial 1 million customers.

Ventura, Camarillo, Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks have joined the Clean Power Alliance, which offers an alternative to Southern California Edison and other traditional power companies.

So, how does this affect fire protection / safety if fire fighters have no power or water pressure as we saw during the Thomas Fire?  More generators and pumps on fire trucks?

Is it So Cal Edison’s call over Clean Power Alliance to discontinue service?

Love your coverage and always look forward to reading the Breeze.  Happy Anniversary and Thanks!

Mike Merewether
Ventura

Mike:
Only Andre-Marie Ampere might know.

LOCK YOUR CARS!!!!!!

Lock Your Cars Lock Your Cars Lock Your Cars No matter how many times you see this message, some of you just don’t get it. You complain that people take things out of your car at night, BUT you don’t lock your car!!! People roam around my neighborhood at night, and cars are ransacked due to the fact they are not locked!!! Lock you cars please. Maybe if they find No Unlocked Cars they might stop roaming around!

Sally Fisher

Even if you do lock your car don’t leave anything that you value in it. Amazing the valuables that people leave in their cars.

Juries scare me. I don’t want to put my faith in 12 people who weren’t smart enough to get out of jury duty.
~ Monica Piper

Sheldon

Who did the research on Padre Serra? No name is mentioned. It goes to show you how false press is released to the public and how uneducated certain people are. The Padres including Padre Serra helped Native Americans against the abusive and cruel Spanish Soldiers. It was the Spanish military who treated the Indians so badly and, many Native Americans were decimated because of illnesses the Spanish military brought with it.

W. Moyer

Moyer:

First let me explain that none of the comments about Padre Serra were mine. I have nothing against him. My article was about Stanford University removing his name from many of their buildings, so a name was mentioned. Stanford University is hardly uneducated and considered one of the finest colleges in the United States. If you disagree with their decision you should be contacting them. By the way, many other organizations are coming to the same conclusion.

The funny statue was just that and meant no disrespect for the padre.

Thank you for your comments.

Sheldon

District 1 Conflict of Interest

In elections, a conflict of interest, whether legal or the mere perception of conflict will taint the entire process. In Ventura City Council District 1 race, the Executive Director of the Downtown Ventura Partners, Kevin Clerici, is running to represent the downtown and the Avenue area of Ventura.

There is nothing against Mr. Clerici personally. He is a good person and means well. However, just because the FPPC says he can run, his actions, both on the dais and behind the scenes, are open to question, no matter how innocent his intentions might be.

The Downtown Ventura Partners receives 40% of its operations revenue through a special tax. That tax is voted on by downtown property owners. The City of Ventura controls 33% of the downtown properties. When there is a vote within the special property district, the City of Ventura, directed by the City Council, votes as a block and therefore controls the outcome. When only 72% of the property owners vote, the City’s 33% becomes 46%, in effect. That means the City needs another 5% of the downtown property voters to vote yes. Therefore, the City Council has almost total control of the downtown special tax vote.

With the special district tax, the Downtown Ventura Partners (DVP) receives $485,186 in annual special taxes. On top of that, the Ventura City Council also awards DVP another $172,000. Of their entire budget, the Downtown Ventura Partners (DVP) receives over 52% of its revenue, either directly or indirectly, from votes by the Ventura Council. Therefore, Mr. Clerici would be voting on his own livelihood.

Mr. Clerici receives a salary of $85,000 from the Downtown Ventura Partners (DVP). Therefore, even if he recluses himself on downtown issues, the citizens in District 1 will be underrepresented with Mr. Clerici as their representative.

Bob Alviani Ventura

The Breeze asked the Downtown Ventura Partners to respond. Mr. Clerici’s candidate statement is

in this issue.

RE: Alviani Letter to the Editor

Mr. Alviani is confused about the downtown Ventura special district and the non-profit, Downtown Ventura Partners (DVP) that contracts with the city to manage it.

The city’s Property-Based Improvement District (PBID) straddles three of the new city council districts (1,2 and 7) and no single council member will be the exclusive representative.

Mr. Alviani states that “The City of Ventura directed by the City Council, votes as a block and therefore controls the outcome (of the PBID elections).” He bases this on his erroneous assumption that the city owns 33% of the property within the district when the real number is less than 23%. If just 25% of the other property owners voted contrary to the City Council, those owners would prevail.

All future city council votes on the PBID and other DVP programs will be controlled by a permanent majority of council members from the eastside. If either the city or property owners conclude that there isn’t appropriate value for their investment, they may terminate contracts with our non-profit or overturn the PBID at any time.

The DVP board asked its executive director Kevin Clerici to reach out to the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) and the City Attorney to provide preliminary advice on potential conflicts prior to Mr. Clerici filing as a city council candidate. If he is elected, there will certainly be votes on which he will have to recuse himself but it does not disqualify him from running or serving.

Meanwhile, DVP will continue to make downtown a clean, safe and vibrant hub for all of Ventura.

David S. Armstrong, President
Downtown Ventura Partners

There is no exquisite beauty without some strangeness in the proportion.
~ Edgar Allan Poe

Hi
I enjoyed your 9/12-9/25 edition including the article on rainwater & greywater harvesting, an important topic for our drought-prone area.
A minor correction needed on Page 8 however:
The URL for more info is misspelled; it should read “greywateraction.org”, not “grewateraction.org”

Thanks!

Gary B.

Oh y did we leave out y?

Publisher:

Just wanted to drop you a thank you note regarding some comments you made about homelessness and a recent 9th Circuit Court ruling.

You comments were, in my opinion, completely spot on and I appreciate your understanding (particularly on the role and constraints on our Police Department).

Thanks again and keep up the great work…I look forward to your paper every new edition.

Regards,

Quinn Fenwick

Does one life matter?
A hungry child or senior that happens to be poor did not choose poverty or going without. All lives do matter and with the aid of a few good people, lives could be enhanced greatly-and yes with charity.
We (those of us) that live in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties can do good works to end hunger right where we live.
Take an example of a woman living in the deep south (southern USA) that worked her whole life to save enough money and create a food share program to feed hungry children. She collects donated food, she prepares meals (300) of them and drives 100 miles a day to make deliveries. Why? Because she feels it is her duty.
Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties are among the most prosperous counties in California and yet there are 1000’s of families that go to bed hungry—something is wrong with this picture and some good-hearted souls will come together and change the outlook for many disadvantaged people. Yes, it will take some organization, planning, and execution, but, this writer will volunteer his time to help organize—
Jay North Ojai

Breeze:

Just wanted to say thank you for running the press release about our free Tai Chi classes for seniors. With your help, they have filled up which always makes the volunteers teaching them feel accomplished, appreciated and like they are making a difference. They truly do. We couldn’t do it without your help.

Thank you.

Marisue

Breeze:

The current administrations acceptance of Neo-Nazi, Fascist, and White Supremacist ideals will never make America great again.

Critical thinking, an informed citizenry, fair and just implementation of law, is what is required to overcome what ails our country. A good start would be to undo Citizens United, including changing the Electoral College to a popular vote system, free access to healthcare and education for all, raising taxes on corporations and wealthy individuals in order to support socially responsible programs and maintain the infrastructure is what will make the country a better place for all.

JB

Readers: The Breeze accepts all opinions as long as they use acceptable language and are not inflammatory. Let’s hear from those who agree or disagree with JB. We don’t usually put in letters with only initials but JB requested that so we did.

We must bring our own light to the darkness.
~ Charles Bukowski

Editor:

I have seen videos on U-Tube that show dramatic results of people with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) who have dyskinesia and after partaking medical marijuana products and choosing to buy weed online, their bodies calm down and the involuntary movements pretty much stop. I think it is really wonderful that it helps them with what can be an extremely debilitating symptom.

However, there are so many symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease, and no one has exactly the same issues, so I strongly agree with the Michael J. Fox Foundation’s recommendations as the side effects of medical marijuana can cause or exacerbate some of the very symptoms that accompany Parkinson’s in many of the folks who suffer with it. Using gummy edibles for other issues is fine, but in this particular niche more studies need to be carried out first.

The other issue I and many doctors have are concerns about the quality of the medical marijuana; is the dose going to be consistent every time? Parkinson’s symptoms are so difficult to regulate with the medications developed specifically for PD that the last thing needed is another “unknown” affect from introducing something new and possibly inconsistent in dosing.

The Ventura Parkinson’s Disease Support Group strives to stay updated on the research projects on medical marijuana and the many other potentially life-changing FDA controlled drugs, such as those found in edibles online, being researched to help improve the quality of life for people suffering with Parkinson’s Disease, and hopefully some day, a cure!

Talk to your doctor if you’re thinking about medical marijuana. Your personal physician can help you review the latest research, the pros and cons, and how the therapy might fit into your regimen. If you are someone who already receives medical marijuana and you want to check on your card status, you can use this online florida medical marijuana registry, or one similar depending on where you live and your medical practice, to see if you are still eligible. Medical marijuana is not for everyone but discussing it thoroughly can help you make the right decision with the best support.

Patty Jenkins – Volunteer Coordinator for the Ventura PD Support Group.

Breeze:

I read that the closed Top Hat Restaurant located on Main might be included on the National Register of Historic Places. Which means it would need to be part of any new development there.

Personally I think the Top Hat is just an old plywood non-descriptive building that should be torn now. Just because it is old doesn’t make it historic Ventura has lots of old buildings.

If it must be saved why not move it to the outdoor area at the County Museum right up the street?

Thanks

Ernest Lewis Ventura

Dear Breeze,

For eight months after the fire we had no leaf blowers in Ventura and everything looked clean and neat anyway. Then the ban was lifted and now we have them all over town again blowing dust everywhere, polluting the air with their inefficient motors, causing noise pollution and stinking to high heaven. When will Ventura put a ban on them? And when will landscapers and those who don’t want to just sweep begin to use electric blowers instead?

Mary Volpe Ventura

All the things I really like to do are either immoral, illegal, or fattening.
~ Alexander Woollcott

Dear Sheldon,

Isn’t it a waste and a shame that the Foster Library has to CLOSE for the day when the temperature gets HOT?

Why can’t air conditioning be installed? Wouldn’t it be worth the cost, particularly for the children? Contacting some Indoor AC specialists can help officials decide the best route, keeping the library open and at safe temperatures for everyone.

Suzanna Ballmer

Suzanna:

We contacted city staff regarding this and received the following replies.

It has been priced but I don’t remember the cost. The newer library branches may be air conditioned but I am not sure. I will ask, may make more sense to move more programming that is there during the summer. Councilmember Cheryl Heitmann

Yes, it’s been priced. It’s on our library capital project list, but not funded. Councilmember Christy Weir

Every branch is air conditioned except Foster. And, it has been costed out, about 1.5 million. It is something I am actively working on with Nancy Schram, Director of the Ventura County Library System. We are trying to cobble funds together. Nancy O’Connor Director Parks/Recreation and Community Partnerships
.

Breeze:

Figures posted at highwayrobbery (dot) net show that red
light camera ticketing is way up in Ventura.

When March – July 2018 figures are compared to those for 2016 and 2017,
the ticketing from two of the eighteen cameras has more than tripled and
at two others the ticketing has more than doubled. Only one camera is
ticketing less than it was. The overall/citywide increase is 40%.

Regards,
Jim

Jim: Maybe the cameras have a quota or they get fired.

Dear Sheldon,

Our solution to the 12 days of Fair fireworks was to load our dog into the car at three minutes before the show and then drive towards the east end of town for 8 minutes. It got old quickly. Coming so soon after the loud bangs on July 4th and 5th and 6th….(you get the idea), our boy had PTSD. Any loud bangs terrified him. And, it’s not just five minutes, it’s 5 minutes times 12. So….here’s one Venturan who is glad they were shortened.

Carol Spector

Sheldon.. great work on once again calling out the City of Ventura and its water manager Kevin Brown in the current publication.. As a victim of the Thomas Fire (Ondolando Area) it is sad to know that not one house has been started on our street of Colina Vista….One house is being framed on Via Ondolando.. and you know the lack of numbers in housing permits being issued. It is pretty evident that the city does not want the fire victims back I their homes.. they want us to sell and make a huge gain on the new buyers with their $$$$ million dollar plus homes… the permit process is long, complex and very very discouraging to those of us that once believed in those that promised us a seamless and easy rebuild process… Finally be sure to post/print: all of the local town meetings or dates for the debates amongst the City Council candidates.. I plan to attend everyone of them and let my voice be heard… thanks.. Chris..

Chris R. Dryden

Chris:
Not sure if I agree with all that you said but all opinions are important (except “fake news” of course).
Sheldon

I don’t know why people expect art to make sense. They accept the fact that life doesn’t make sense.
~ David Lynch

Good Venturan returned wallet today

This morning my husband drove over to the east end to care for a friend’s dogs while they are away, and he unknowingly dropped his wallet while walking the neighborhood. A couple hours later he noticed it was missing, drove all around retracing steps but no luck. A few minutes ago a young man wearing a #VenturaStrong shirt rang the doorbell with the wallet and all credit cards, etc… intact, thus saving us the huge hassle of canceling them and getting new ID, insurance cards, etc… I tried to give this young man a reward but he politely declined. His name is Eddie. With all the bad news in the world lately, I want people to know that we have honest young people in our city, who will drive all the way across town to help a stranger. Ventura Strong, indeed!

Melissa Wantz, Old Town

To Sheldon

I think this is a great idea. I use the Valdez Ally/Eastwood Park steps just about every day and would love to see that open area. We just need to protect our history, as you suggest. And by the way, I’ve lived here about nine months and I don’t think I’ve ever seen that museum open.

Ed Terpening

This is what Ed is referring to from a previous issue. “Because it is very seldom used, it seems to me that the large outdoor area at the Albinger Archaeological Museum is a waste of space. It’s basically grass, dirt and river rock that were foundations for the old buildings that were located there. Really not much to see outside after you enjoy the exhibits inside the Museum.”

Until Sept. 3 the Museum is open from 11am-4pm on weekends.

By email

I just finished reading your article in last week’s Breeze (Paul Hunt Memorial) and was very disappointed to see that you did not include a picture of the actual cross along with the other photos you took that day it seems that somebody cut the cross off right at the bottom and didn’t show the whole picture of it it would have been nice to have included it since it’s a piece of history of Ventura

By snailmail

Why??? Lieberman, Goldstein, etc. left out the cross? The cross is of great historic significance.

JT

JT: To be blunt this was a memorial for Paul Hunt and not Jesus. Also there has always been debate if a 50-year old cross in indeed historical and don’t blame Lieberman, Goldstein they didn’t take the photos.

Dear Sheldon,

Isn’t it a waste and a shame that the Foster Library has to close for the day when the temperature gets hot?

Why can’t air conditioning be installed?  Wouldn’t it be worth the cost, particularly for the children?

Suzanna Ballmer
Ventura

If it can be destroyed by the truth, it deserves to be destroyed by the truth.
~ Carl Sagan

General Plan Update

The 2025 General Plan update must include robust public participation now that we know more about urban planning than we did in 2005. Pretty pictures sold us on plans that have had a major impact on some areas of the community, especially the Avenue. The Avenue also taught us a lesson on the importance of park space.

We also learned that the transect model can be manipulated in unexpected ways to allow urban density in rural areas. Soon we will see the impact of dense development along our rural edge on Wells Rd in Saticoy. We cannot ignore the impacts of these decisions.

We have existing parcels to develop without expansion, yet we still approved an annexation in Saticoy for a development for which we may not have sufficient water. This is not “infill.” This land should have provided needed park space in Saticoy.

I hope all community councils submit their ideas to Council and staff to outline the changes they would like to see in their area. Let’s substitute top down experimentation with bottom up experimentation. The College Area started this exercise by submitting ideas for Telegraph Road parcels based upon the needs in our district. I urge other councils to submit their vision for the open parcels in their area including traffic, schools & services issues.

Let’s review our 2005 General plan assumptions, definitions & land use designations to remove the erroneous ones and vet new ones for the 2025 update. The refinement took a stab at this issue, but now we have the opportunity to begin anew to correct past and recent errors. Let’s embrace this opportunity.

Let’s also immediately correct obvious discrepancies in our land use & zoning identified by the refinement effort.

I urge residents to get involved and take an active part in shaping your community.

Kathy Bremer Ventura

(Note: I am writing as an individual not representing the city or any organization).

The Breeze:

Realtor Dolly Bovee went above and beyond what is required of a Realtor and ensured that our business dealings went smoothly. She used much of her personal time and natural ease with people to cause timely response from all involved.

In our opinion Ms. Bovee is professional, honest, thorough and effective. We have learned, as seniors there appears to be a different attitude in how our business is both conceived and handled.

Sincerely,

Rafe and Yvonne Hernandez

Editor:

I have been intending to write, since I read the Letter to the editor, most recent edition, from Jared Verhoeven, critical of a small rate increase by E J Harrison and Sons and touting a huge trash company, not locally owned. EJ Harrison has a long record of excellent service over many many years to our community. They are constantly looking for better ways to operate and a leader in innovation.

Furthermore, they have been incredibly generous to so many not for profits ranging from Boys & Girls Club, Boy Scouts, Community Memorial Hospital to name just a few. I am a firm believer in local owners that live in our community and are fully invested in delivering great service at a very reasonable rate. It deeply hurts me to hear them being accused of gouging in their rates. You would not get this from a huge company like Waste Management. The Recycling market is commodity based and ever changing. We can each do our part to help keep rates down by following recycling guidelines.

Best regards,

Mike Merewether

Editor:

I want to acknowledge and thank both Ventura Police Department and California State Parks for their posting of Illegal Vagrant Camps on the Beach South of Surfers Knoll yesterday. This area was previously the site of two moderate-sized brush fires.

One of the illegal camps posted contained a non-ambulatory female who would not be able to flee on her own should another fire occur. This action taken by both agencies will lessen the chances of future fires and ensure Public Safety.

Respectfully,

John Higgins Harbormaster – Harbor Patrol Ventura Harbor

Art does not reproduce what we see. It makes us see.
~ Paul Klee