Oxnard Planned Parenthood Office Closed

Oxnard’s Planned Parenthood Clinic, the scene of frequent picketing by opponents of abortion since it opened three years ago, closed its doors to patients Wednesday as officials prepared to move to a larger location in Ventura.

Planned Parenthood is consolidating its Oxnard and Ventura facilities and moving into a building with 1 1/2 times the combined square footage so that it can offer more services to its 2,200 Ventura County patients, said JoAnne Moore, the organization’s director in the county.

Sale of the Oxnard clinic at 431 South C St. has nothing to do with the picketers who have protested the abortions performed there, Moore said.

But protesters who gathered in front of the clinic for a memorial service to unborn babies Wednesday afternoon said they viewed the move as a victory brought about by their prayers and picketing.

“We know damn well we closed this place,” said Bill Hayes, who organized much of the picketing with his wife, Trudy.

About 60 people, some clutching crosses and others carrying children, joined in prayers led by Msgr. Peter Nugent of Santa Clara Church in Oxnard. The group, which parked a cloth-draped vehicle and a hearse in front of the clinic, completed the half-hour service by singing a hymn and laying flowers on the steps of the building.

Clara Davis of Camarillo said she was elated about the closure and vowed to picket the new clinic as well. “Wherever they go, we will be there,” she said.

The nonprofit organization has outgrown its 1,500-square-foot facility in Oxnard and the 1,500-square-foot building that it has leased for seven years at 1056 Meta St. in Ventura, Moore said.

The decision to consolidate came after Planned Parenthood received an unsolicited offer to buy the Oxnard building it owned more than a year ago, Moore said. That deal fell through but prompted officials to reconsider how they could better accommodate patients, Moore said.

Moving to the new 4,400-square-foot building with 30 parking spaces in east Ventura will mean the chance to provide new services, such as routine exams for men, she said. She would not disclose its location.

Planned Parenthood will move from the Oxnard location at the end of this week at the wishes of the buyer, Moore said. Patients of the Oxnard clinic will be referred to the Ventura location until the new clinic opens in January, Moore said.

Since the Ventura facility is not licensed to perform surgical procedures, women who want abortions will be referred to a private doctor or hospital or to the Planned Parenthood Clinic in Santa Barbara, she said. Family Planning Medical Associates Clinic in Ventura also performs abortions.

Protesters have not concentrated on Planned Parenthood’s Ventura location because abortions are not performed there.

Although the move was not prompted by protesters, Moore said, a major consideration in choosing the new building was that it offers protection for clients. It is set back from the street and is bordered on two sides by parking lots for the clinic, she said.

At the Oxnard clinic, there is no yard between the sidewalk and the front door, which has allowed protesters to stand near the entrance. In addition, Planned Parenthood shares the parking lot with a business next door so it was difficult to keep protesters out of the rear area, she said.

“We are in a location that we think is more protective so that demonstrators will have limited access to our patients,” Moore said.