NEIGHBORS : Building Civic Spirit : A Ventura land planner has some creative suggestions for improving the city.

It’s been a little more than a year since the name Bernard Tamborello appeared in this column. At the time, the Ventura land planner had 10 suggestions on how to liven up his city. He recommended, among other things, a home and school for circus performers and bright red double-decker buses.

Well, it’s taken awhile, but he plans to present those ideas, plus 14 others, at a Ventura City Council meeting this month.

His list now includes outdoor cafes on Figueroa Street, a cultural arts center at the Ventura County Fairgrounds, an amphitheater near Grant Park, and three or four sculptures on the hillside that would be visible from the Ventura Freeway.

Tamborello would also like to turn a vacant 10-acre piece of land near the Ventura Harbor into a residential/commercial Italian-style fishing village, and he wouldn’t mind seeing the parking structure near the Ventura Pier converted into a 1920s dance hall. And then there are the floating restaurant, blimp, aquarium and hydrofoil he is also recommending for the pier.

But Tamborello is willing to start slowly. “If we can get something done, just a small thing, we’ll get people interested and it will snowball.”

Tamborello Two: Tamborello hasn’t been sitting back, waiting for his concepts to be considered. He’s been busy encouraging Carpinteria 10-year-olds to come up with ways to improve their stomping ground.

As part of the Built Environment Educational Program sponsored by the American Institute of Architects, Tamborello spent 1 1/2 months at Carpinteria’s Aliso Elementary School working with Jan Marholin’s class of fourth-grade students.

This was the second time Tamborello has participated in the program. “When I first went there they didn’t even know what a planner was,” he said. “Then I went back and introduced some things like zoning. I explained to them what density was.”

This year’s theme was “How to Make Carpinteria a Better Place.” And Tamborello’s students made some intriguing suggestions. They included a school aboard a houseboat, a movie theater with the screen on the ceiling, a wild animal park, a botanical garden, more flowers, a cultural center, a petting zoo and a training camp for the Los Angeles Raiders. Illustrations of those ideas are being displayed at Carpinteria City Hall.

“As they did the ideas, we reviewed them. Overall, there’s nothing to do in Carpinteria for young people. That was my feeling and that was their feeling,” said Tamborello. “I got the impression they were tired of going to other (cities) . . . but I don’t want this to come off as a jab against Carpinteria.”

Fans of Moorpark drummer Michael Portaro are probably having a difficult time finding him at his usual venues--you know, like the Simi Valley Mervyn’s parking lot.

For the past three years, the 29-year-old Portaro (a.k.a. “The Lone Drummer”) has been playing in parking lots throughout California. In recent months, however, he’s been seeking steadier income. He’s looking to book more parties and weddings into his schedule, and maybe find work in Las Vegas. And Portaro even intends to do some bonsai tree trimming on the side.

But his love for lots and other outdoor locations being what it is, Portaro may be back.

“Every place I’ve been has been a good spot,” he said. “The only thing that makes a bad spot is where you get a lot of people to drive by but nobody sees the basket there to donate.” Portaro is very fond of his ever-changing audience. “I’ve met so many nice people playing in parking lots,” he said. “It’s extraordinary.”

Portaro is a regular at the Thousand Oaks Farmers Market, he’s had successful performances at local beaches, and he spends a lot of time south of Ventura County. One of his favorite locations is a rest stop in Oceanside where he’s performed seven or eight times. “It’s a good place because I can stay as long as I like,” he said. “And you get a big turnover of people because they’re just stopping to use the restroom.”