VENTURA : City Seeks Inclusion in Harbor District

The Ventura City Council, entering the political fray over the Oxnard Harbor district, has voted to seek a change in district boundaries which would include the city.

On Friday, the Local Agency Formation Commission will consider rival proposals to expand and shrink boundaries of the harbor district, which now includes Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Camarillo and parts of Thousand Oaks.

The Ventura resolution, passed Monday evening, supports Oxnard and Port Hueneme’s position of excluding the rest of the county from the district, but calls for Ventura’s inclusion on grounds that it is affected by port activities and its residents should “have a voice and a vote in the operations of the port.”

Last week, LAFCO received a report calling for the harbor district to be shrunk to include only Oxnard and Port Hueneme, arguing that the two cities bear most of the brunt of truck traffic to and from the seaport and that residents of the two cities would be better served by a smaller port district.

In contrast, the Oxnard Harbor District wants district boundaries to be expanded countywide. The increased prestige would help the harbor obtain trade advantages that would increase business and revenue, port officials contend.