A Tale of Two Cities : Demographics: Once both farming communities, Moorpark is now the county’s richest town while Santa Paula struggles as the poorest.

More than a century ago, they were two of the county’s richest farming communities.

Santa Paula was the heart of Ventura County’s citrus industry, known for the lemon and orange groves that stretched to the surrounding hills.

There wasn’t much difference between it and Moorpark except for the crops the farmers grew. Moorpark’s specialty was apricots.

But as Santa Paula has struggled to preserve its rural identity, Moorpark’s apricot fields have given way to high-priced housing developments.

The two cities, which both have slightly more than 25,000 residents, now are worlds apart.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Moorpark has become the richest city in Ventura County and Santa Paula is the county’s poorest.

As smog- and traffic-weary Angelenos sought refuge in the east county city, Moorpark pushed its median household income to more than $60,300.

Meanwhile, as a poorer flood of new immigrants settled into the Santa Clara Valley, Santa Paula struggled to make ends meet with a median household income just above $31,600.

Moorpark Grows Up

Moorpark was consumed by growth during the 1980s--gaining about 17,000 residents, more than any other city in Ventura County.

When the dust settled, officials and residents found that the city had not only grown larger but also more affluent.

But for all its new-found wealth, some critics say, the city lost something along the way. While growing in affluence, it also became segmented by geography, class and race.

While the older downtown area populated mostly by middle- and low-income Latinos languished, development raced up the hillsides of Moorpark to the south, pushing the city’s median home value to $276,800.

Some residents say Moorpark’s friendly atmosphere is slowly diminishing as homeowners and officials bicker over the city’s direction.

“It already looks like everywhere else that has developed,” said Eugene C. Gallick, an artist who has lived in the working-class downtown area since 1978. “It’s just like Woodland Hills, only newer.”

Mayor Paul W. Lawrason Jr. said he was at a meeting last week when he ran into officials from Thousand Oaks--the city that traditionally has had the highest median household income. Mayor Frank Schillo stopped to congratulate Lawrason on Moorpark’s new standing as the county’s richest community.

“It really surprised me that our income was so high,” Lawrason said. “We bantered a little about it.”

But speaking of the rapid development that led to the increased wealth, he added:

“This is not something to joke about. This is a serious situation . . . the growth was out of control for a bit.”

Although the city was named after the Moorpark apricot, today all apricot groves have been consumed by development.

The center of town has shifted from High Street, a dusty avenue that looks like a set for a Western movie, to bustling Los Angeles Avenue, a thoroughfare lined with new strip malls and fast-food restaurants.

Last year, there was a mild protest about the changing nature of Moorpark that was directed at the city’s annual parade and festival, which was beefed up to include a carnival. The theme of the protest was: “Who took the country out of Moorpark Country Days?”

As a sea of new stucco homes with terra-cotta roofs replaced the farms in Moorpark, the infrastructure of the city couldn’t keep pace. While expensive residential houses line the hillsides, other parts of the city have a rundown look.

“We’re still paying for the rapid growth,” Lawrason said. “We lack the infrastructure.”

For example, the city has no large shopping mall, no theaters, no bowling alleys, few convenience stores and little industry.

Despite the protests of longtime residents, residential growth is expected to continue.

Two weeks ago, the City Council tentatively revised its long-term planning guidelines to allow the area to nearly double in population to almost 50,000 over the next two decades.

The city’s growth plan calls for four proposed projects to be built within the present city limits, while the fifth and largest--Messenger Investment Co.’s Hidden Creek Ranch--would require the city to annex another 4,000-acre site. That would boost the size of Moorpark from 12 square miles to about 18.

“Many things attract people to the community,” said former Councilwoman Eloise Brown. “We’re away from the urban sprawl. We had the image of a small urban community, even when we were growing.”

Lawrason and other officials maintained that the increase would not substantially impact the way the community is now. He said the growth will be carefully managed.

In addition to increasing residential units, city officials also want to revitalize the downtown area and bring together residents in the older parts of town and the new developments on the hill.

They hope to attract more jobs to the community, allowing people the option of working in the city. The average Moorpark citizen now spends 28 minutes commuting to work, and nearly 38% work in another county, according to the census data.

But some residents say the city has grown too much.

“Moorpark was a special sort of place,” said Bill La Perch, a horse-ranch owner who has lived in the city for 10 years. “We had no crime, our roads weren’t crowded, our schools were excellent. Now all of a sudden we are confronted with an increase in growth. The town is slipping away from us.”

Newcomer Karen Gardner disagreed.

Gardner, her husband, Jim, and their 11-year-son, Gregory, moved into one of the city’s new subdivisions in 1988 because they loved the small-town feel of the city.

“The house is in a cul-de-sac in a nice, quiet neighborhood,” said Gardner, who works as a secretary for Exxon Co. in Thousand Oaks. Her husband is a manager for Northrop Corp. in Hawthorne.

After living in Los Angeles, Gardner said they had considered buying a house in Thousand Oaks or Westlake Village. But, she said, the family decided they could get more for their money in Moorpark.

And with 33.5% of the city made up of residents under 18 years old, there were many children living in the neighborhood where the Gardners decided to settle.

“It’s nice out here,” Gardner said. “We got the house we wanted. And we have an enormous back yard. It’s the only place I would want to live.”

Santa Paula Languishes

Unlike Moorpark, Santa Paula’s population has been relatively stable. Over the past decade the population has increased by about 5,000 residents.

But reliant on its agricultural base, the community has found itself in a quagmire of poverty.

Much of the oil industry that helped make the city strong during the early 1900s disappeared long ago. And it has become harder to make ends meet in agriculture, which accounts for 15% of Santa Paula’s work force.

Local growers used to provide housing on their ranches for field workers. Now most laborers, almost all from Mexico, are forced to find their own accommodations in Santa Paula.

Many end up living in multifamily homes, just barely scraping by.

City officials said they were not surprised to find that their city is the poorest in the county.

According to census figures, median per capita income was $11,650, compared to a countywide average of $17,861. Nearly 44% of the families with female heads of household with children are below the poverty level, far surpassing any other community in the county.

Mayor Al Urias says that while the city’s problems seem immense, officials are doing all they can to try to ease the situation.

“We’re trying to put together some sort of program to combat the dropout rates and to instill self-esteem in our kids,” he said. “We are trying to use block grants and funds to enhance homes at a low interest rate, and we are trying to entice more businesses into the community.”

In addition to poverty, Santa Paula has been plagued by persistent gang problems. During a particularly violent period in 1989-90, Santa Paula gang members wounded a Ventura High School freshman on campus and stabbed a Santa Paula youth at a Fourth of July picnic.

A 15-year-old boy was also wounded in a drive-by assault, and a Santa Paula man shot and killed his next-door neighbor in an argument about their gang-member sons. Meanwhile, houses and cars have also been peppered with gunfire.

And with the increase of gang activity, the crime rate rose in Santa Paula by 27% in 1989 from the previous year. While the crime rate dropped by 3.5% in 1990, it remained above most other cities in low-crime Ventura County. Last year, the number of reported crimes increased by 13%.

But despite its problems, Santa Paula keeps a strong community spirit. The town remains a slice of small-town Americana.

Fresh produce brought in from the nearby fields is sold on corner stands. Tiny grocery stores--which sell everything from ground beef to little lime sodas with Spanish labels--continue to thrive.

People come from all over the county to shop in Santa Paula’s quaint downtown area. And the city’s beautiful Victorian style homes have been touted as Midwestern locales in scores of Hollywood movies and commercials.

The city is a place where people have lived for generations, with roots as deep as the old trees that line Santa Paula Street.

Bob Borrego, 65, a former aide to Sen. Gary Hart, has lived in Santa Paula all his life and has watched as poverty tightened its grip on the community.

But Borrego said the city has a spirit that hard times can’t break. Through donations, Santa Paula was able to build a community center, a hospital and a Little League park.

“There’s a lot of pride in the community,” said Borrego, a third-generation Santa Paulan. “I suppose you can be rich in character.”

Elias Valdes, 43, who runs his family grocery store called Chino’s Market, agreed.

Valdes, who was also raised in the city, said he has never thought about leaving.

“My dad had this store and I always figured I’d work here,” he said. “It’s a lot easier to stay than not to stay. My roots are here. There’s still a small-town flavor. People know each other’s names.”

Moorpark and Santa Paula at a Glance

POPULATION Moorpark White: 70% Non-white: 30% Santa Paula White: 39% Non-white: 61% Countywide White: 66% Non-white: 34% Number of residents Moorpark: 25,494 Santa Paula: 25,062 Countywide: 669,016 Median age Moorpark: 29.2 Santa Paula: 29.4 Countywide: 31.7 Married couples Moorpark: 74.1% Santa Paula: 60.5% Countywide: 61.8% 65 years and older Moorpark: 3.8% Santa Paula: 12.3% Countywide: 9.4%

HOUSING

Median home value Moorpark: $276,800 Santa Paula: $203,600 Countywide: $245,300 Median monthly rent Moorpark: $866 Santa Paula: $552 Countywide: $695 Overcrowded dwellings Moorpark: 8.5% Santa Paula: 20.9% Countywide: 10.5%

INCOME

Median household income Moorpark: $60,368 Santa Paula: $31,605 Countywide: $45,612 Per capita income Moorpark: $19,183 Santa Paula: $11,650 Countywide: $17,861 % Below poverty level Moorpark: 4.3% Santa Paula: 12.2% Countywide: 7.3%

EDUCATION & LANGUAGE

High school graduates Moorpark: 85% Santa Paula: 60% Countywide: 79% College graduates Moorpark: 28.4% Santa Paula: 9.9% Countywide: 23.0% Foreign language at home Moorpark: 24.7% Santa Paula: 48.8% Countywide: 25.3%

EMPLOYMENT

Agriculture workers Moorpark: 3% Santa Paula: 15% Countywide: 5% Managers & professionals Moorpark: 34.7% Santa Paula: 17.1% Countywide: 29.2% Employed outside county Moorpark: 37.8% Santa Paula: 6.2% Countywide: 25.9% Source: 1990 census