The Ventura Breeze hereby apologizes to anyone who was offended by Bill Green’s cartoon in the last issue(Jewrassic Park) and thought that it was racist – it was certainly never intended to be.  By the way, both the Breeze publisher and Bill Green are Jewish. And you can always go to Danny’s Deli for a good corned beef sandwich.

Sheldon,
You have a great sense of humor!  You gave me a good laugh with your comment about buying 72 $400,000 3 bd rm houses instead of building 101 low income units.
You would be lucky to find 10 $400,000 houses for sale in Ventura , let alone 72 !
This issue must be dear to your heart because you’ve mentioned it twice now.
You do realize that by taking more houses off the limited amount of family units for sale, you would just create a shortage. Hummm, that might be what you were hoping for.
By housing seniors,  students and a variety of low income needs, you preserve a ventura of all kinds. Not only the wealthy.
Not only do you house people efficiency , but the maintenance on one building is always cheaper then maintenance on 72 houses.
I hope the city continues to build these units, insuring a diverse community.  A community that offers more than just dollars.
You being a senior should appreciate that.

Barbara Art

Barbara:
How about 72 mobile homes? You are right just trying to increase the value of my home.
I’m a senior? Only when I think about it.

Dear Sheldon:

Thank you for covering Parkinson’s awareness and Ventura’s Parkinson’s support group. You make a difference and your commitment to community news is great.

Best always
Aurora Soriano
Parkinson’s Action Network

To all the staff of the Ventura Breeze.

Just a quick note to express my appreciation for the great write up you gave us in the May 25 issue. All the ladies in the Pin Potters League were very impressed.
And a special thanks to Michael Gordon for the great photos.

Thanks again
Ornette Smith

Editor:

The more I read the newspaper the more confused I get.  This week we learn that the State of California will provide free medical care to one-quarter million children who are in the State illegally and have no right to be here. We also recently read that the care provided our veterans who fought for us and use the Oxnard VA Medical Facility face some of the longest wait times for treatment in the country. Looking at this sad example of our priorities, one might draw the conclusion that this will encourage an increase in illegal immigration into California and a decrease of those volunteering for the military.

One in three people in California are on Medi-Cal; people on fixed incomes like Social Security did not get a cost of living increase this year; yet, the Ventura City Council wants to increase the sales tax to make up for the shortfall in funding for the overly generous pensions for city and county workers.

California is going to spend 2 billion dollars for 10,000 apartments for the homeless over a number of years.  It is estimated there are 113,952 homeless in California at any given time. What happens to the majority that are not lucky enough to receive an apartment? Giving a person an apartment alone does not treat the cause of being homeless. The causes of homelessness should be treated with an equal priority to that of shelter.  Would it not be better to use the money to erect large tent cities in appropriate areas which could provide shelter, food, medical care, training, and job placement to more people?  Giving a person an apartment is not going to result in a job. Lacking programs to foster medical treatment and self-improvement, all it will create are zones of poverty.

John Ferritto-Ventura

Everything is permissible as long as it is fantastic.
~ Carlos Mollino

Breeze:

The Star was in such a rush to get the story (Irish Centenary) in the next day’s paper their coverage was superficial and they made serious errors. Their reporter didn’t notice last minute changes to the program and had two wrong captions.   The VC Reporter only gave this unique event a few tiny lines in their calendar because they were busy with Earth Day.

John McNally
Remax Gold Coast Realtors

Dear Editor,

This week the Ventura City Council gave the green light to work on placing an initiative for the November ballot increasing the sales tax one-half to 1%.

Although I support the school district, I believe that lowering the tax rate one half of a percentage point would actually increase sales in town, thus achieving the same result of adding sales tax dollars to Ventura.

For example, the purchase of a $35,000 automobile or kitchen remodel would cost $350 less in Ventura than Oxnard if our tax rate was 1% less than Oxnard. I think this would drive people to spend here considering the savings.

Excessive taxes and business regulations are a damper to our economy. The problem in Ventura is not how much taxes we collect but rather how poorly we spend our dollars. The facebook page Watchdog Ventura is a good platform for studying this issue. I encourage everyone to read it.

Sincerely,
Randall Richman – Ventura

To Shana Epstein-Ventura Water General Manager

We here in Pierpont have seen this before and complained about.  I know you are probably cleaning out the waterline on Waterbury LN since you are doing work on the line on our lane.  But why don’t you capture this water with a water truck and take it to one of the parks that could use the water?   Why are we residents expected to conserve 20% when you are pouring hundreds of gallons of water onto Pierpont BL?   You would think that the Water Department would be making an effort to set the example.

Murray Robertson

Thank you, Murray, for your understanding of why we are flushing the waterline.  We are actually in the process of purchasing a truck as you suggest and hope to have it by the end of this year.  We will be able to flush water into the truck, treat it and then put back into the distribution system.

I appreciate your conservation ethic.
Shana Epstein

Hey Sheldon,

You know that that the Breeze is my fav Ventura pub, and you are a most delightful curmudgeon, but really…

Yes, it was the preliminary hearing (proposed 55-unit hillside development) and those us who attended all understood the purpose of that hearing.

The point of the signs was, as it was then, and still is, to draw awareness to the public. The prescreen is over but the bigger point is to keep it fresh in the public eye.

No need to spend more of someone’s generous personal money to do this, in case you’d perhaps like to pick up the tab, to “right this terrible wrong” with the signs to have it changed. 😉

Second, the “exaggerated concepts” that the locals put together were based on only what the development had made public months before the meeting. My impression was that the presentation they made that night had been put together with a lot of burning of the midnight oil to counter what the citizen group put together. The lush green renderings made it look quite appealing, but when has the hillside ever looked as lush or green as that?

Now that we are in a serious drought, let’s all be realistic going in. So many other issues… vacation housing for the retired and wealthy? (the reality) We have plenty of hillside opportunities now.

best to you,

Kurt Triffet
Triffet Design Group

Kurt: We all look forward to see what their next round of drawings are. Assuming that they choose to continue with the project. We have contacted Regency to learn of the their plans.

After one look at this planet any visitor from outer space would say,
” I want to see the manager.”
~ William S. Burroughs

Editor:

Sales taxes increased by 5.9% over the last year but the City Council is still considering taxing Venturans more. The City Council is using the argument that it wants a locally kept and locally spent tax. They fail to understand that $340 out of a household budget is still $340.  They fail to see other taxes are also increasing.

Medicare tax from 1.45% to 2.35%, Income Tax rate from 35% to 39.6%, Payroll tax from 37.4% to 52.2%, Capital gain tax from 15% to 28%, Dividend tax from 15% to 39.6%, Estate taxes from 0% to 55% and Real Estate transaction tax of 3.5% was added. There will also be a transportation tax and a school bond tax on the ballot.

City government has $20 million more in real property taxes and sales taxes than 7 years ago. Add to that the 34% water rate increase; imposed without your affirmative vote, which raised millions. They have enough money.

How has the City Council invested your money? $2.0m WAV project; $1.0m to narrow Victoria; $1.0m for the 911 tax, never refunded; $9.0m for a Convention Center, never happened; $8.0M for the aquatics center, never completed; $12m in savings since 1992, has never grown; $50m to settle an environmental lawsuit, done in closed session, and $5.M to promote Ventura the Art City.

This is a question of trust and truthfulness. Past City Councils have broken promises and have redirected or had the spending changed by future City Councils.

The point is that you can’t rely on any City Council to spend another $20.0m of our money tax dollars.

With a budget surplus and taxes growing, this Ventura City Council must operate within its budget, just as citizens do with their 34% higher water rates. Tell the City Council no to higher taxes.

Robert J. Alviani

Ventura Breeze

Brooks Institute and the City of Ventura are both very happy with the deal that was done to relocate Brooks to downtown Ventura.  Looking beyond this move, it may have created an even greater opportunity for the County of Ventura, City of Ventura, and other West County Cities to help solve a serious problem.  It’s a problem that everyone talks about with minimal positive results – Homelessness.

Brooks Institute occupies multiple buildings on a 7.87 acre site on N. Ventura Avenue.  It’s out of town and not subject to “Not in my Backyard” protesters. The County of Ventura should take the lead role and, with the other cities and the many interested non-profit organizations,  pool their resources and acquire this multi-purpose property.  Similar to Casa Pacifica and its service to our county youth, the site would be dedicated to serve the many and diverse needs of our Homeless population.  The facility would set an example to the many other cities in southern California that are struggling to find a solution to their homeless problems.

It will take imagination, creativity, leadership, hard work, and financial resources to make this a reality.  If you are skeptical, look at what CSUCI did with a worn out mental hospital.

Chuck Engel
Ventura

Sheldon

Interestingly enough you have positioned The Breeze to be the number one news source for real community news. You have done an extraordinary job in covering all the nonprofit events and chronicling daily life in Ventura.

You never say no to anyone with a feel good story, and to me that resonates, we need more good  news stories.

You’re the best !
Suz Montgomery

Suz: You do the same thing on your CAPSTV show, so maybe you are the best.
Sheldon

Not being funny doesn’t make you a bad person. Not having a sense of humor does
~ David Rakoff

Breeze

Both April and I would like to thank you so much for the write up in your paper!!  It was exciting to see April featured and we just wanted to let you know how much we appreciated it!  Have a beautiful day!

Diana J. Davis  (aka: “Dinah”), MBA
Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice

Ventura Breeze,

I read Amber Hanson’s interesting article on Graffiti.  Of late, in some quarters, graffiti has risen to the level of art (Banksi, Basquiat, Haring), but there is no doubt about what covers the fences of Anacapa Middle school on Telegraph and S Mills Rds.  The amount of commercial detritus on these fences is offensive to many who pass; it makes the neighborhood look cheap and run down.

I imagine the school gets some advertising revenue from the bill posters, but the image of the school and the city is terrible.  I don’t have any idea of how to cure Barbara Boggio’s (Anacapa’s princial) budget  woes but commercial graffiti and signs affixed to their chain link fence is visual pollution that is worse than much of the spray-painted graffiti Amber Hanson addresses.

John Deegan

Dear editor of the Breeze.

I checked online to see the agenda and minutes of the April 11th City Council meeting and found no minutes.  Since the agenda makes clear that the City of Ventura is cutting the budget of the Ventura Avenue library more than half (as well as reducing Boys and Girls club funds) – and since the 30 day comment period starts when the meeting ends, I am surprised that the citizens are being denied access to this important information.  I called the City Clerk on April 18th and was informed that they (clerk’s staff) are behind and it would be 6 weeks or more before the April 11 minutes would be available.

Please encourage your readers to notify the City Council that it is not ok to cut any library budget (no later than 5/5/16 or to come to the City Council meeting on May 9th).  The City was wrong to close Wright library some years ago and now they want to force closure of the Avenue library by reducing that library budget by $80,000 while spending 1.8 million on east side parks.  The Avenue library is one of very few resources for the poorest community in our city. It houses a bilingual book and DVD collection, provides homework assistance to all who come, adult literacy classes, ESL classes, computer classes for seniors, early childhood education experiences and is a HUB of our Ventura Avenue community partnering with the boys and girls clubs, the West Ventura schools and local businesses to provide invaluable resources that are otherwise unavailable to these citizens.

Rather than wonder around waiting to be pulled into gangs, the children of Ventura avenue neighborhoods have a wonderful library to spend time at learning to be creative, imaginative and literate.

Liz Campos
Ventura Ave neighborhood resident

Hi Gail and Sheldon:

I want to thank you for the lovely article in the Breeze.  I believe our Therapeutic Visitation Center model will become statewide, perhaps country wide, model for preserving families. We have tracking our families that do indeed reunifying and the results have been nothing short of spectacular.   A couple of other counties have already made a visit.    Kids & Families Together works with the hardest of families and I’m especially proud of our staff.

Being a not-for-profit that primarily works with county contracts can be very challenging as they can only pay for reimbursable expenses – and there are so many expenses that are not reimbursable.    Anytime I can get the Kids & Families Together name out in the public is very much appreciated.

See you both around!

David Friedlander
President/CEO
Kids & Families Together

Dear Sheldon:

What a beautiful cover on the edition of the Ventura Breeze in honor of the City’s 150th Birthday! I will read it from cover to cover, and not just to look for the few “April Fools” articles (which I think I already found one in the “Mailboxes” – however, if you substitute “dog poo” for “Horse poo”, it just might not be that outdated!! ;-).

And thank you, thank you, more than mere words can convey, for the beautiful and extra special write-up for our Parkinson’s Support Group honoring PD Awareness month!

Yours Truly,
Patty Jenkins

Hey Sheldon:

Appreciated the article “City Center Brings Awareness To Domestic Violence.”

The article could have included a paragraph to acknowledge the churches in the area that sponsor rooms and  volunteers. Churches are often criticized for only providing benefits for their members. They get very little publicity for their Community Involvement. Some of them have sponsored rooms since Harbor Community Church initiated that  service to the homeless some years ago.

Thanks in advance for setting the record straight.
Roy Wilhelm

Be the person that your dog thinks you are.
~ Scamp (I stole it)

Sheldon:

After reading your article on the proposed Kellogg park, I decided to check out the west side parks and compare them to the east side parks. I did this with camera in hand.

First and foremost is the fact that the west side area ( vta Ave ) is comprised mostly of highly dense, older than 60 yr old neighborhoods. Very different from the east end. The population there has a large hispanic community.  (I believe ) traditionally communities like these have more children then those of the Eastside non hispanic households.

I found the parks you mentioned. The Westside park did indeed flank the bike path. The numerous homeless congregating in the park can attest to that fact. They seemed to hang out there right after getting a free meal at a location not too far away.

The park had 50 spaces for parking. Certainly not enough for all the uses you described.

The Harry Lyons park did not even have a sign on ventura ave letting anyone know there was even a park nearby.

The facilities were in terrible condition. Severely rusted basketball back boards, lamp posts and deteriorating asphalt was unexpected especially since I had just visited the beautiful pristine parks on the east side.

It is clear to me that the west side needs another park because of the demographics. Hopefully one day a park with a pool , like the families on the east end enjoy.

I find it curious that the westpark even has a field named after a city council member and you never mentioned it. Could it be because the field is a field of weeds ? Must be in transition.

Apparently you missed all of this. We are all getting older. I suggest better glasses sheldon.

P.S. I doubt this will get printed, but I’ll keep trying to tell the truth about matters concerning the huge differences and money alloted for the east side compared to the west side. Something you seem to think is a waste.

Mike Art

Art
Not sure why you doubted that this would be printed. Your opinion is as valid as mine. And not a knee jerk reaction but you took the time to go to the parks. You point out some good things but the money being spent on Kellogg Park would solve most of them. Feel free to write us whenever you have something to say.
Sheldon
PS: I don’t wear glasses, maybe that’s the problem.

Hello Sheldon,

Just a word about “the C Street Bridge” reconstruction.  It is truly interesting to watch the engineering design and decisions that are being made daily for the success of this project.  Cal Trans, Ventura City and County Building and private construction are working together well with “state of the art” building techniques.  The construction has caused few traffic disruptions because of the well-thought out traffic and pedestrian flows.  Its been so long to see renovation of an existing  bridge…maybe this is the beginning of more in the future?

Suzanna Ballmer, Ventura

Editor:

The Harbor Community Church continues to press for the right to locate a homeless service program within a long-standing residential neighborhood. By requesting a preliminary injunction against the city’s decision to deny this location, this church has elected to take an end run around compliance with the required regulations. The required compliance with a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) takes into account the families in this neighborhood who are at risk.

The Harbor Community Church has decided on four things:

• To whimper and assert to the 9th U. S. District Court of Appeals that Harbor Community Church’s religious entitlement is doing the Lord’s work for the homeless that supersedes the safety and security of the families in this neighborhood
• Not to work with and support the existing programs within the city (ie.: City Center, et.al.)
• Not to find another, less provocative location
• To compel the city to spend increasingly large amounts of taxpayer money for legal representation

The Harbor Community Church that promotes itself as, “… a place called to reach the entire community …” does not have an effective management plan to ensure a suitable measure of safety and security for the existing neighborhood around 3100 Preble Ave. The Ventura Police Dept. will have to station officers in this area on a permanent basis. This neighborhood will become a de facto war zone. Let us be clear, the families, and most notably the children, in this neighborhood are entitled to enjoy their own measure of safety and security.

The hubris of the Harbor Community Church to minimize and thus disregard families’ “… inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” is the antithesis of scripture.

It is apparent the homeless population finds Ventura a desirable place to be. What’s not to like: the weather, the ocean, the fresh fruits and vegetables? Increasingly, advocates for the homeless decry that municipalities are not doing more. People should keep in mind that at the end of the day, it is the tax paying citizens of Ventura operating their respective lives in a responsible way who will shoulder the financial load … not the advocates or the homeless themselves.

Roy Colbert
Ventura

Breeze:

Once again you guys have amazed me with your great talent and ability to take a few simple facts and turn them into  such beautiful statements. I have said it before and I’m saying it again…..You guys are AWESOME!!!  You always make us at Vagabond sound like we really are SOMEBODY! Thank you sooo much, all of you- You are the best!

Jolene McBee-owner Vagabond Restaurant

Suppose you were an idiot.
And suppose you were a member of Congress.
But then I repeat myself.

~ Mark Twain

Dear Editor:

Ventura’s Mayor believes that we will feel better if we pay another $340 to a Ventura City general fund versus it going into a State fund! Really? Aren’t I still out $340?  I feel better already.

Mayor Nasarenko is campaigning for this tax increase on the premise that Ventura voters will support a tax that is kept and spent locally. He fails to make it clear that $340 out of every household budget is still $340, regardless of where and how it is spent. To the average taxpayer, more taxes paid out of their household budget will reduce their ability to pay rent or their mortgage. It cuts into their food budget, their travel and vacation capability, as well as their medical care and their own future retirement.

Mayor Nasarenko also feels that citizens should be willing to tax themselves because there will be a Citizen’s Oversite Committee. When has any oversight committee, appointed by the city, ever challenged spending after it has been spent?

Finally, he fails to remind voters that there is no guarantee that the $340 will be spent on any, or all, of the city needs. No post-audit citizen’s oversight committee will be able to track City spending because all of the records are kept and controlled by the City.

An oversite committee has no power to reverse any spending after the fact. It is a smoke screen to give voters a false sense that a citizen’s oversight committee can put any concerns about “how funds are spent” to rest. The fact remains that once that tax is passed, no one will look at the tax again and no reversals will ever happen.

With a current surplus and better than expected revenues, there is no need to tax citizens more.

Robert Alviani
VREG Chair

Breeze (June, 1866):

I am sick and tired of walking around Ventura and finding  an excess of horse manure everywhere that I go. On the promenade, Plaza Park, in our river bottoms, downtown.

When I attempt to cross Main St. there is so much horse dung that I can hardly make it. Can’t the VPD make the carriages use a side street or are they too busy arresting people for exceeding the 5MPH speed limit and arresting horse thieve? I’m not going to approve a sales tax of .0000078% until the VPD protects me from horse dung.

And at the same time I see our police department making arrests because bar patrons are spitting at spittoons and missing.

Isn’t our tourist trade important? Let the bar patrons enjoy spitting and clean up our city from manure so that tourists enjoy coming  here.

Homer Victoria
Ventura

Editor:

End of Vince Street off Avenue. Is this a hillside coming down one heavy rain??

Laura Flores

Each man is good in the sight of the Great Spirit. It is not necessary for eagles to be crows. Now we are poor but we are free. No white man controls our footsteps. If we must die, we die defending our rights.

~ Sitting Bull – Lakota Sioux-1866

Dear Venturans and others:

An article today (Mar 8)  in the “Wealthy Doctor” by Sarah Huebscher finally exposes the criminal acts of local surgeon Aria Sabit and his pleading guilty to many charges of gross negligence in his surgery procedures and massive fraud. It is one sorry tale, except for the two MD whistle blowers, Drs. Carry Savitch and Gary Proffett. Thank you sirs.

Many local Venturans were damaged permanently by Sabit; then he went on to Michigan to repeat his crimes. Incredible.

This amazing article is a necessary read for all of us, to understand how a major hospital and profession can sink into criminal and cruel activities and keep it under raps for so long. We need local investigative reporters in our media to keep our public and private service providers honest and serving the public good. A small town like ours can have major scandals kept quite by the powers that be. We need the light of day shed on them to stay healthy and safe.

Read and be amazed:

http://wealthy-doctor.com/doctor-receives-439k-kickback/

Bob Chianese

Breeze:

I see that there are new large trash cans in Marina Park.  Do you know whether they are locking so that vagrants can’t get into them?  If so I would like to suggest that State Parks and the City use them in all the parks and along the promenade.  If they lock it will go a long way toward discouraging vagrants from dumpster diving.

Murray Robertson
A Very Concerned Ventura Resident

From Nancy O’Connor, CPRP , Parks Manager  City of Ventura

The cans have locking mechanisms on them. It is our goal to continue to purchase these cans and install them where we can. We have this project as one of our high priority Capital Improvements.

Thank you

Publisher Sheldon

Page 5 opinion ” In our last issue, I spoke about the large amount…….”

Use amount if you  weigh it, use number if you count it. Did you weigh the decisions or did you count them?

Doctor Luke

Maybe I did both, but probably just used the wrong word. Good thing that we have such smart readers.

Dear Sheldon

What a wonderful surprise to see our little press release (for Parkinson’s Disease )get such special attention! Thanks so very much – you just always go above and beyond, bless your hard working heart! And I got a call last night from a dear lady in Ojai who had seen the article in the Ventura Breeze; I had not yet seen it and she said “Oh, it is a really nice article with a great picture and everything!”

BTW – LUV that caption under the brain – “Just what is going on in there?” – we always wonder that, don’t we for Parkinson’s Disease purposes. What we know for certain is that the substantia nigra cells just die off and that’s why PWPD (People With Parkinson’s Disease) need dopamine so the message can get from the brain to the muscles for bodily movement to happen. Thankfully we have at least one drug (carbi-dopa/levo dopa) that can help keep PWPD moving for many years more than they would otherwise be able to do so. As much as having this disease is beyond a bummer, at least we do have some treatment available that helps, which cannot be said for many other debilitating diseases such as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

The Ventura Parkinson’s Support Group meets every second Wednesday of the month at the Lexington Assist Living in Ventura. All of your Breeze readers are welcome to come join us.

Patty Jenkins
Coordinator – Ventura PD Support Group

“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”
~ Will Rogers

Hello Sheldon,

Are you aware of the repair to the Ventura Promenade that is happening currently?  Three of the palm-trios have not survived the recent storms and ocean rise.  So, Ventura is dutifully now working on moving rip-rap and boulders to protect what is left of the walk/bicycle path.

Also, the cobblestones brought in to protect the Walk are now distributed along the shoreline and past the Pier.  There is not much beach left.

Who says there is no Global Warming?

Suzanna Ballmer

This is in response to Breeze publisher’s comments in last issue regarding the WAV.

Sheldon:

You may not be aware that the WAV theatre-gallery is always open on First Fridays and offers visitors brochures with maps of studio locations as well as a large board with pushpins showing which studios are open.

WAV as a group has taken part in other city wide venues including all the Art Walks (and we pay the necessary fee to be listed in their promotional materials).  We display our art works in the WAV gallery and other galleries and venues as well. As individuals, we have our own projects. Several of our musical groups perform regular gigs here and on the outside

Among events last year at the WAV, there was a several weeks’ long charitable event “Earth Spirit” with a juried art exhibit and numerous guest speakers for the environment. This was filmed and will soon be a documentary.

I have new works in my studio not yet in my web site. So perhaps you’ll pop over to see them next time you visit the WAV.

Yours sincerely,
Frances Spencer
WAV resident artist/playwright

Breeze

The real winner of Super Bowl 50 were those who saw and heard Lady Gaga sing our National Anthem.

As the members of our military forces stood at attention and our fighter planes flew overhead, we for a few brief moments were a young nation again.  We felt what it was like to be free, to be powerful, to overcome all odds, to endeavor to be great and to achieve greatness.

And for a few brief moments, the vision of George Washington, General of the Army of the Potomac stood at Valley Forge in the midst of his men, in the middle of a brutally cold winter.

With bloody feet and lack of food, they continued to fight on, when, as Rudyard Kipling wrote; “when there was nothing left within them except, the will, to hold on”.

And for a few brief moments, we were the men and women who crossed the great plains of this nation in covered wagons and held our children at night, not knowing whether they would be safe, and in the morning drove past the skeletons along the trail of those who did not make it.

And for a few brief moments, we saw our soldiers braving the hazards of the war in Europe and in Asia and the memory of those Marines who raised our flag on Iowa Jima came to mind.

And then, for a few brief moments, we pictured the rows of crosses in France, row upon row, where American blood was shed In order to defend the world against Nazi terrorism.

And for a few brief moments we realized what it was like to feel good, to know what it meant to be an American.

And for those few brief moments it made no difference who you were, whether you were rich or poor, or the color of your skin, for in those few brief moments, we were all one, we were Americans.

And thank you Lady Gaga, for those few brief moments, let us never let go of those feelings. You awakened in this nation what the politicians cannot do, the awareness of what made this country great.

And as you so beautifully sang: “Oh say does that Star – Spangled Banner yet wave, O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave”, you rekindled our belief, once again, in the promise of America.

David Pies

Citizens for SOAR renewal

If you are like me, sometimes you are in a hurry and duck out of your favorite store or meeting place to avoid signature gathers with petitions. I just want to alert everyone that for the next two weeks you might want to pause and take the time to sign the SOAR initiatives, which stand for Save Open-Space and Agricultural Resources. You need to sign two–the one for Ventura County and one for your City, signing your name the way you are registered to vote, in order to get SOAR on the November 2016 ballot.

By signing the petition you make it possible for people to vote on whether or not protected agricultural land or open space areas can be rezoned for development. This does not stop development, but gives citizens the choice to decide yes or no.

The current City and County SOAR initiatives are set to expire at different times. This new initiative will renew SOAR and get all the SOAR initiatives throughout the County on the same schedule, with the uniform sunset date of 2050.

Given the limited water and land resources in our cities and county, and increasing pressures for development, it is important to let voters weigh in on whether converting agricultural or open space land is in the best interest of the community at large.

This is an all-volunteer grassroots signature gathering effort. The people with petitions are your friends and neighbors who are all taking time out of their own busy lives to help renew the Ventura County SOAR initiatives.

So, as you are rushing to complete errands or chauffeuring kids to their next engagement, please take a few moments to help these SOAR signature-gathers give us a say in whether our communities should rezone land for more development. This is a democratic means to preserve our valuable open space and agricultural resources now and in the future.

Diane Underhill

Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.
  ~ George Bernard Shaw

Letter to Editor,

At a 4 ½ hour City Council meeting on Saturday, Jan. 30, a majority of the conversation was how to increase taxes on the citizens of Ventura. No real time was spent on how to improve the economic vitality of Ventura. If the local commercial vacancies were occupied by businesses and new local jobs came to town, there would be more property and sales taxes without increasing taxes for Venturans.

There are funds to repair the pier. Also, with water rates increased by 34% over the last 2 years, our water system will be maintained. The City of Ventura has a balanced budget.

Mayor Nasarenko’s 2013 campaign promised to pay for streets, public safety, water resources, attracting new business, parks, schools and city services “By growing the economy… the city must attract and retain businesses that will increase its sales tax base.”  When asked about the city role to attract a better economic vitality he said: “The city can bring economic vitality to Ventura by keeping it safe and clean, creating a business-friendly culture at city hall, making sensible, cost-effective loans to businesses, and by promoting trade and tourism both locally and globally”. He said nothing about increasing taxes upon the citizens.

On Jan. 1, 2016, Medicare tax increased from 1.45% to 2.35%. Income Tax rate increased from 35% to 39.6%. Payroll tax increased from 37.4% to 52.2% Capital gain tax increased from 15% to 28%. Dividend tax increased from 15% to 39.6%. Estate taxes increased from 0% to 55% and a Real Estate transaction tax of 3.5% was added.

Now the Council spent $118,000 to hire a consultant to tell the City Council how to educate the Ventura voters so Ventura will vote to tax ourselves another $340 a year per household. It is time to just say no.

Robert Alviani
Ventura-VREG Chair

Editor:

As a parent at Pierpont Elementary School, I’m also concerned that as the vacation rentals go up, there’s a decrease in the number of actual families that reside in the Pierpont area.  As a result, the attendance of actual residential families has decreased steadily over the years.  The school has one of the lowest enrollments I’ve seen in the 5 years I’ve been there.  We had a high of 312 kids a few years ago and now we are down to 250 children.  I would hate to see this community lose this school in future years due to lack of families in the area.

Kim Castro

Ventura Breeze

Regarding “Homeless Prevention Fund”

Homelessness is a symptom of America’s living standards equalizing with the world’s living standards created by “Free Trade Doctrines” (something none of the politicians seem to want to talk about)

Obviously there are other reasons: housing crisis, drugs & alcohol abuse and mental illness, but the loss of good paying blue collar jobs is the crux of the problem… The stratospheric rise in the cost of buying a home as well as renting a home… Never mind the high cost of owning and operating an automobile these days! College..? Forget about it for most high school graduates now due the cost.

The idea that we can “bring (good paying) jobs back” is so much political pablum that the country wants to hear, but the real systemic problem is all of us want “stuff” that is cheap.

Not even Bernie Sanders can end this nightmare.

Dave Gunall, Brookings, Oregon

We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.
~ Aesop

Hi Sheldon,

Read your note in the Breeze on homeless in Ventura, with some folks making comments they should somehow be removed, despite fact many homeless in our community are not breaking the law…

It appears some in the Community do not consider fact the City has limited amount of resources to better help unfortunate homeless people in our community.

One way to help generate more funds that could be allocated to helping the homeless among other services, without raising local sales tax, is to entice all the many  long-time local-yokel home owners in Ventura, who have lived in the same home for decades, (in some cases even willed to them through relatives) who contribute substantially less in property taxes per year than more recent home buyers due to Prop 13,  to either pony up some voluntary contributions to help the homeless and fund a fairer share for local schools, roads and other basic services, or sell their homes at substantial profit, reinvest equity proceeds to purchase another local home, and if none of that suits, bugger on out… In addition, the Community needs to be open to build more upscale homes, which can generate substantially higher property tax base needed to fund services.

Prop 13 has negative side effects on some local communities in the State of California. Communities, including in Ventura County, that have higher property purchase turnover rates, generally have a continual higher property tax base of funds to work with, due to Prop 13. Communities like City of Ventura, which has a more static long time local yokel homeowner population, (many of whom are anti-growth / development) suffer due to lower, more static property tax bases.  Even though only 16% of the property tax dollar may go to local coffers, 16% of $10k property tax per year pays a hell of a lot more local bills than a relatively paltry 16% of $1k or less…

What ends up happening in communities like local-yokel retro dominated Ventura, is the City Government is constantly on the prowl looking for ways to increase income, whether through parking fees, local sales tax increases or heaven only knows what, to support basic services that the existing local population does not contribute enough through percentage of property taxes to fund in the first place…

Sincerely,

Cris Sabo-Ventura

Dear Sheldon

Thank you for highlighting the good work of the Homeless Prevention Fund in your latest publication.  As stated in your article, it is much cheaper and more humane to help prevent a person from becoming homeless than to help them get out of homelessness.  This fund is supported primarily by private donations from community members. It is often low on funds with the risk of not being able to help someone, often a family, with an average donation of $500 to keep them in their home. City council members are  often asked, how can I help with the homeless problem in our city?  This is one of the ways, we can all help.  More information can be found on Venturahomelessprevention.org.

Thank you again for highlighting an important but little known resource in our community.

Former Mayor Cheryl Heitmann

Editor:

I am so glad that there is renewed interest in the city’s short term rental policy. I have watched the rapid growth of this phenomenon in the last few years and am convinced that it is leading to a potential radical change in our community. T

The situation where a number of the communities along the California coast are adopting regulations much stricter than Ventura  inevitably will lead to Ventura becoming the center for short term rentals with all the issues that are involved. It seems to me that we have a situation where we have an ordinance that is basically un-understandable and which many people believe allows a revolving door allowing rentals pretty much all the time including every weekend.

Enforcement , including noise complaints, seems to not only rely on neighbors complaining , but also finding someone to complain to. If the city has an administrator for this area, and it’s not clear that there is anyone since Janie Dunn retired, the person doesn’t work weekends as far as we know, when they are most needed. Also,  even though there are regulations  it’s impossible for the neighbors to really tell how many people are occupying a house.

Most cities have recognized these problems and have taken steps which include longer minimum rental periods to eliminate large one night parties and to attract more families. This community is a residential community and I can’t think of anything that will change its character  more than the transient nature of short term rentals. This may be our last  chance to save our community from major deterioration and we should not let it pass without making the strongest effort possible.

Stefanie Roth-Ventura

We received this correction (Even we make mistakes)

The photo and caption associated with your  article of Jan. 20, 2016 about the Ventura Homeless Prevention Fund were not, in fact, related to the article.

The Ventura Homeless Prevention Fund keeps people who are currently housed from becoming homeless, which is the least expensive and most effective way to end homelessness.  Every penny donated to the Fund goes directly to keeping people who are housed, in their homes.

Other agencies work with individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness.

I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
 ~ Will Rogers