At long last… the wait is over. The Ventura Botanical Gardens (VBG) recently announced its grand reopening date scheduled for Saturday, November 3. The Gardens have been closed nearly one year, since December 5, 2017, due to the widespread damage caused by the Thomas Fire. The fire swept through the entire 109 acres of the park; very few plants were spared.

Now nearly a year later, many of the original plants are showing signs of recovery, and many new specimens have been planted. During the closure, many changes have taken place. Fire-damaged walkways were repaired or rebuilt. A new hand hewn rock staircase is now in place near the entrance of the Chilean Gardens, and the long-awaited Merewether Welcome Center will open. Funded through the generosity of Mike and Loretta Merewether and designed by architect Martha Picciotti with work donated by Matt Roberts of Quality Containers, the Center will include a check-in kiosk, an information center, educational space, a stage, a community gathering area, storage and a much-needed restroom. The Gardens now have roughly 2,000 plants in the collection.

A morning event is planned including a ribbon cutting with Deputy Mayor, Matt LaVere, and a Welcome Center dedication. At noon, the Gardens will be open to the public, with garden walks by local tour guide Lorie McWhirter, and nature talks from garden experts.

“We are so excited about re-opening the Gardens,” states Barbara Brown, VBG President, who also lost her home in the Thomas Fire. “This will be a very bright moment for a community that has struggled through a very difficult year. It means so much to all of us, that this iconic community place will reopen.”

She continues, “We’ll also be opening the new Fynbos Gardens as well, highlighting the flora of the Cape of South Africa. It seems fitting that this Garden be inaugurated in the aftermath of the Thomas Fire because plants in the Cape of South Africa have a life cycle in which fire plays a critical role. For many, smoke is required for seeds to germinate.”

The Fynbos Garden has been planted with a multitude of the protea and ericas — two of the more exotic and showy South African flowering displays. The bridge and dry creek bed work that began before the fire, is also complete.

“With the regrowth and expanded plantings needed after the Thomas fire, it has become clear that ongoing financial sustainability is critical for the maintenance, operation and expansion of the Gardens,” said Joe Cahill, Executive Director. “We are implementing a membership fee, but we want visitors to enjoy the Gardens affordably, so we’ve kept the annual fee to $45 per year, less than a cup of coffee a day, or for those who aren’t members, $7 per day. And, children 18 and under, are always free.” For those who can’t afford the low annual membership, EBT cards will be accepted.

On Tuesdays, the Gardens are free for everyone. Monthly scheduled guided tours are also free. Additionally, the Gardens plan to be free on most major holidays with the exception of July 4. The new hours are from 9am to 5pm, with possible extended hours in the future. The upper gardens above Summit Drive remain free to the public. Dogs are welcome on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Located at Grant Park the Ventura Botanical Gardens’ goals include encouraging visitors to strengthen their connection to nature. To find out more, visit www.VenturaBotanicalGardens.com and Facebook.

The Ventura Botanical Gardens (VBG) is located at 567 S. Poli St. behind city hall. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to creating a botanical garden for the twenty-first century celebrating the Mediterranean climate regions. The setting is a world-class site with spectacular 180-degree views of the California coast and the Channel Islands. VBG will continue to create new outdoor opportunities including for training, research, and educational programs ranging from horticulture and botany to sustainability.

by Jennifer Tipton

While the official grand reopening date remains to be announced, as of October 16th, Vista Del Mar began admitting patients. 55 of the previous 87 beds are now available after much hard work from the dedicated staff, the fire department and Armstrong Construction who I’m told, worked so well with other community individuals along with OSHPD (Office of Statewide Planning and Development).

Its taken ten months since the Thomas Fire took much of the private psychiatric hospital from where it has stood at the top of Seneca Street since 2001. Delays were with the infrastructure, a new water pump and issues requiring lots of testing that often led to other problems and further repairs. Two modular buildings have been added for administration and three of the preexisting buildings have been updated because hospital vacancy offered an opportunity to do so. Two large barren lots stand as a reminder of the fire’s devastation. Plans are to eventually rebuild, “we want to restore the beds we lost”, said Jetta Zellner, Director of Clinical Services.

Vista Del Mar is a private psychiatric hospital that takes private insurance, although some do pay out of pocket.

The timing for bed availability couldn’t be better because at this time of year, suicide risk is more prevalent among adolescents due to school stressors, grades, peer pressure etc… Although beds are assigned to fit the population’s needs, adolescents are separated from the other patients.

In addition to the upgrades, a new program has been implemented called “Expressive Therapy” headed by Victoria Troshina a licensed art therapist. Victoria has worked for Vista Del Mar since 2016 and although there was a recreational therapy department in place before the Thomas Fire, she is “revamping the whole program”. She said that it’s more structural now, “we never did themes before, we just followed a curriculum and social services followed their curriculum, but now we’re on the same page”.

The themes will focus on the phases of care – the crisis phase and the treatment phase. Every day will be a different theme such as identifying triggers, managing thoughts and feelings or boundaries in relationships.

Victoria does an assessment on each patient within the first 24 hours of their admission to determine what recreational activities they enjoy that help them cope. She looks for anything expressive, do they like to walk, paint, read or is it music that would be effective while they’re there? According to Jetta, “not everybody learns in the same way, expressive therapy is a different approach to treatment, it can be visual, verbal or hands on, it definitely helps with patient recovery”.

“A lot of kids say they play the piano, so I’ll bring the electric keyboard”, Victoria smiled, “I try to identify with what they enjoy”. “And some ask for the guitar”, added Jetta, “we have a military program and a lot of our military love to play guitar”. Victoria reports they have a lot of musical instruments and in fact, she had just purchased a brand-new guitar.

Art is another very effective tool and an alternative to verbal communication. “One of the things I’ve noticed is we get a lot of nonverbal, gravely disabled individuals who are in a traumatic state and they’re afraid”, Victoria said, “I’ll sit next to them and do a soft scribble on a piece of paper with a crayon and pass it to them, it’s a way to engage in nonverbal communication, it’s a very scary place when you can’t express yourself”.

Victoria emphasized that there is such a high expectation of what artwork should look like, “we forget it’s the process, not the product, we call it mark making, not art making”. With patient’s consent, some artwork gets displayed but sadly, “old artwork was lost in the fire”.

The staff and their patients aren’t the only ones that have returned to the top of Seneca Street, a family of deer have returned as well. Jetta shares,” they’re back! They love the figs and berries off the trees”. The location and surroundings of Vista Del Mar must certainly enhance the treatment process…

Ventura’s Joseph P. Reardon Funeral Home & Cremation Service has secured a $10,000 grant from the Crescent Memorial Foundation to benefit the non-profit Ventura Music Festival.

Says Michael Boyko, president of the funeral home:  “We are honored to present this grant to the Ventura Music Festival, a great organization that not only benefits our community with a wonderful summer music festival, but also with concerts and wonderful programs year-round, many of them free and for music-audiences of all ages – from elementary school children to seniors and everyone in between.”

Michael Boyko and the Joseph P. Reardon Funeral Home & Cremation Service of Ventura are proud to participate in this grant program with the Crescent Memorial, a national funeral service supply company dedicated to supporting Funeral Directors in their service to families.

Since 1994, the mission of the Ventura Music Festival has been to bring world-class music to the community, build audience-Festival and audience-artist relationships, and enhance the joy of music through diverse education offerings for all ages. For more information, please visit www.venturamusicfestival.org.

by VREG Editors

Ask anyone what the pressing issues are facing Ventura; you’ll get a variety of answers. We interviewed the retiring Councilmembers and some former Council candidates to get their perspectives. Each pointed to several significant issues facing Ventura in the next few years.

Governing By Districts

As Citizens expect their elected officials to represent their district’s interests, concern for the city as a whole may take a backseat to district wide issues.

Governing by districts means inexperienced new Councilmembers will lead the city. They will face a steep learning curve to be effective. Their inexperience means two things. First, existing Councilmembers and city staff may marginalize them until they gain experience and knowledge. Second, the new City Manager and the city staff may take more control without voter accountability. Neither of these is good.

More distressing may be the loss of a citywide perspective on the Council. Wrangling for projects will probably intensify.

Re: Growth

Growth meant different things to each interviewee. All agreed Ventura needed to grow. They also concurred that growth and water availability are inseparable. Each acknowledged the need for affordable housing but recognized the opposition to more houses (the NIMBYs).

The Solution is Sensible Growth

Growth and water are inseparable. The next City Council must forge a reasonable growth plan. The new Council will also have to convince the “no-growth” citizens that the city needs to grow to be vital. The Council should also call for the city staff to streamline current fees and permits practices.

Re: Water

Everyone acknowledged water was a concern. The specifics on how to address the issue varied widely, however.

Solutions for Better Water Management

The new City Council can take three steps to address water. First, they must request a modification to the Heal the Bay Consent Decree to extend the deadline for extracting wastewater from the estuary.

Second, The Council must force Ventura Water to table Direct Potable Reuse (DPR). It is an expensive gamble. No State approved testing exists for DPR today and may not for 4-8 years. There’s no reason to proceed with an untested and unproven method that risks the public’s health.

Third, the Council must make Ventura Water more transparent. The goal is two-fold. Increase accountability within the department and increase communication to the public.

Re: Homelessness

Housing Ventura’s homeless was a high priority. Some thought affordable housing was the solution. Others mentioned the homeless shelter. Some interviewees distinguished between the mentally ill living on the streets and the vagrants. Each saw it as a countywide problem with Ventura as its nexus. The county jail and the psychiatric hospital are in Ventura, making the city a natural final destination for the homeless to stay.

Consideration Toward Addressing Homelessness

The new Council should distinguish between criminal vagrants and those willing to accept help. We should be willing to help those who help themselves.

Re: City Staff Accountability

All the interviewees wanted more accountability from the city employees.

Improving City Staff Accountability

The new Council needs to apply critical thinking and be willing to question all city staff reports and recommendations. To do so requires financial literacy. Each Councilmember must study the city budget and Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).

Second, the Council should stop accepting mediocre performance from the staff. Stop praising the employees even when they don’t perform. False praise is not an antidote for low morale. It may be detrimental to the top performers by cheapening the value of the kudos. The new City Manager Alex McIntyre should confront the staff morale issue.

Third, the new Council should scrutinize the expenditures on outside contractors. Last year, Ventura spent $30 million. They should be fiscally responsible and look for ways to cut these costs.

Editors’ Comments

Many complex issues face Ventura. We can’t rely on the candidates alone to be knowledgeable. It’s each person’s responsibility to be aware of the challenges before us. It’s equally important that each voter be confident that the candidates understand them.

Even though voting districts divide the city, our elected Councilmembers must represent the entire community. When deciding on issues, they must think about the city at large.

Keep these points in mind as you go to the polls in November.

The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Ventura will be hosting its 51st Great Futures Gala and Auction honoring J.D. and Amber Drury on Nov 10, at the Four Points Sheraton by the Harbor from 5 – 9 pm. Themed Havana Nights it will include everything Cubano! So skip the plane flight and tricky entry requirements and come celebrate the best of Cuba in your own backyard.

For an evening of good food, good people, and good conversation, all for a good cause! Supporting our community’s youth! With a cocktail reception of champagne, hors d’oeuvres or if you’re really game, try an authentic Cuban Mojito. Join in a spectacular Silent Auction, you’ll be in for a great time before heading into the ballroom where even more fun will be had! Fine dining, hearing from this year’s honorees, and bidding on the all-exciting Live Auction.
Reservations: $150 per person | Table of Ten: $1,450
Attire: Cuba Casual or Business Casual
RSVP by October 29th at [email protected] or call 805-641-5585.

For those who cannot attend, but would still like to support the Club can donate online by texting bgkids18 to 44321 or mailing their donation to 6020 Nicolle St Suite D, Ventura, CA 93003. If everyone donates just a $1 or more in Ventura, they will reach their goal of $200,000 which would provide 2 months of essential Club services.

To find out more about our impact visit bgclubventura.org and search our impact to learn more about ways we are making a difference together in our Ventura community.

Congregation Am HaYam will commemorate the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, during services on Friday, November 2nd.

On November 9-10, 1938, Nazi sympathizers torched hundreds of Jewish synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, destroyed Jewish businesses and killed over 100 Jews before sending another 30,000 to Dachau, Buchenwald and Sachsenhauser concentration camps.

The riots followed years of increasingly repressive actions by Hitler’s government, including a public burning of Jewish books in 1933, and the passage of the Nuremberg Laws in 1935 which denied German citizenship to non-Aryans.

All are invited to attend services. Congregation Am HaYam, the only Conservative Jewish congregation between Thousand Oaks and San Luis Obispo, is located at 4839 Market Street, Unit C, Ventura. Services begin at 8:00 pm on Friday, November 2nd. For more information, please call 805. 644.2899.

by David Creswell Superintendent of Ventura Unified School District

Whenever people learn I am a school superintendent, they want to tell me about their school experience. Some tell me about their favorite teacher, others tell me about a class or program that changed their lives in a meaningful way.

Ventura Unified School District recently completed a brand strategy effort that, we hope, will create for our students many positive memories of their school years that set them up for successful lives and careers.

“For the future of every student” is our ambitious promise at VUSD. It means that we will strive to create a path to future success for every student, no matter what their abilities, gifts or challenges might be.

Some asked why in the face of all the challenges that educators experience did we choose to spend time and money on a brand strategy. “Why do you need a new logo?” someone asked.

This effort was about so much more than a logo (although I love the new logo.) After I was hired by our board of trustees, one of their priorities was re-branding the district. They understood that the brand is what you stand for. It is, according to Michellene DeBonis of Zeste – the company that we hired – “what people say about you when you are not around.”

Zeste took on an in-depth study of our stakeholders over several months and learned that our district’s brand was unclear. That we had pockets of excellence and great potential. But we were inconsistent in our communication and direction.

So inconsistent were we that many of our “customers” did not know that we are a district of choice: that a student and their parents can consider what school in our district they wish to attend. You examine the strengths of each school and choose the one that’s the best fit for you. We had parents who did not know this. It was not clear on our website.

But we were competing with schools whose brand promised so much more.

Our trustees and administration understand the schools are competitive. We have private and parochial schools in Ventura. Charter schools. Many students are home-schooled. We know that we compete favorably with these alternatives and want our community to know it. We want to have adequate resources to do the job. We want these students and their parents to choose us because we have an exemplary school that is right for them.

It’s a cliché, but it’s accurate to say that “one size does not fit all” in education. So here is the focus of our brand promise for each student:

• rigorous and relevant academics that challenge each student;
• a safe, healthy, and positive learning environment in every school;
• engaging settings that stimulate curiosity and empower students to have a voice in their learning;
• real world experiences and connections in and out of the classroom to cultivate creativity, critical thinking, and an appreciation for the world in which we live, and,
• consistent, enthusiastic and unwavering encouragement of each and every child—so they can discover who they want to become and be academically, personally, and socially.

Just think about how much that differs from your own education. This is a profound shift in how we educate. If we do this correctly, we set students up for a career and a life in which they can think critically, explore and adapt to new ideas and not be stopped by the challenges they will face in life.

I am confident that with the help of our excellent teachers and professional staff, we will live up to this promise. Some future superintendent will hear a former VUSD student say, “Those were the schools that got me to where I am today.”