1994: Year in Review : Quake Wasn’t the Only Jolt

EARTHQUAKE

It took just a few seconds for the bucking, heaving ground to create the biggest story of 1994: the devastating earthquake that tumbled homes, toppled buildings and traumatized thousands of Ventura County residents.

The quake hit just 404 hours and 31 minutes into the new year, but its potent jolt reverberated throughout 1994.

At first, residents focused on the structural damage, estimated at more than $610 million countywide. As dawn crept closer the morning of Jan. 17, Fillmore’s residents wandered numbly through the rubble of their downtown, where houses slumped off their foundations and massive brick buildings tilted crazily. Simi Valley residents also gaped at the destruction: split pavement, crumbled chimneys, the wreckage of a historic adobe dwelling.

The magnitude of the damage--and the tremors of aftershocks--kept many in a daze for days.

But soon, recovery started.

Relief agencies reached out to the homeless, the impoverished, the fearful. Neighbors pitched in to help those worse off than themselves. With help from federal funds and emergency grants, the county began to rebuild.

Even now, however, much remains to be done. A few shaken buildings, pockmarked with broken windows and boarded walls, still stand grimly vacant in Simi Valley. Thousand Oaks’ vaunted main library has not yet been fully patched. And merchants in Fillmore sold their Christmas wares from makeshift bubble domes.

Clearly, the quake is still news in Ventura County, nearly one year after it rattled residents awake with fearsome force.

Just last month, Simi Valley City Council members agreed to study soil conditions throughout the city, hoping to pinpoint pockets vulnerable to temblors. And in Fillmore, cost overruns have disrupted plans to build a new City Hall that would serve as temporary retail space for merchants displaced by the 6.7-magnitude quake.

Meanwhile, aftershocks continue to test foundations--and nerves--throughout the county.

DISASTERS

The quake was the most dramatic, but not the only disaster to strike last year. Natural forces socked the county again in late September when two Mediterranean fruit flies were discovered in a fig tree in St. John’s Seminary orchard in Camarillo.

Farmers immediately raised the alarm, fearing that a Medfly invasion would trigger a boycott of Ventura County produce. In a massive assault on the pests, which burrow into fruit and breed prolifically, a team of state and federal experts imposed an 86-square-mile quarantine zone around St. John’s campus. Then they ordered aerial spraying of the pesticide malathion, a move that drew only sporadic protest.

So far, 65 Medflies have been found on St. John’s land, and another one was discovered near the seminary campus. Because the flies have been clustered so closely, officials believe that the infestation is limited--and, presumably, controllable. Trusting that malathion spraying will wipe out the pest, importers of Ventura County produce have withdrawn the boycott threat. And farmers in the quarantine zone say they have been able to unload most of their fruits and vegetables at decent prices.

The malathion spraying will continue into 1995, with a trio of helicopters dumping the sticky mix of pesticide and corn syrup over Camarillo homes, fields and playgrounds about six times over the next four months. Each time, residents must remember to cover outdoor cars with plastic and hose down exposed patios to wash away any traces of the pesticide. But with such precautions becoming routine, the crisis appears to be winding down.

Last year’s other major Ventura County disasters faded from headlines even more quickly than the Medfly threat. But sadly, they claimed more victims.

A powerful explosion at Rocketdyne’s Santa Susana Field Laboratory killed two workers and injured a third in late July. Toxic fumes claimed three lives at a Rincon oil field in August. And an early-morning blaze Oct. 21 at Oxnard Airport took no human toll, but caused $3.5 million in damage, as the flames melted a dozen planes.

CRIME

Ventura County’s courts hosted several sensational trials this year.

There was the riveting saga of Father David Dean Piroli, the Simi Valley priest accused of stealing more than $50,000 from his former parishes--including dollar bills folded like paper airplanes and lofted into the collection plate.

The trial turned into a sort of spiritual soap opera, with rival clergymen accusing one another of personal and professional misconduct. In the end, a jury acquitted Piroli of embezzlement and deadlocked on a charge of grand theft. Piroli may pop back into the news in 1995, as he has sued the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles for malicious prosecution and defamation.

A second dramatic deadlock came in the trial of Westlake mother Charlotte Russo. Russo, accused of locking her teen-age daughter into a back-yard racquetball court and forcing her to eat unappetizing oatmeal goulash, remained defiant throughout the trial. After the jury deadlocked, however, Russo pleaded guilty to one count of felony child abuse in exchange for a light sentence of six months in jail.

Other convicted criminals did not get off as easily.

A 15-year-old graffiti vandal from Oxnard was sentenced to eight years and four months in the California Youth Authority--the harshest punishment ever meted out to a tagger in California. An 18-year-old from Thousand Oaks was given 10 1/2 years in the CYA for accidentally killing his friend, 16-year-old Jacqueline Reay, with a bullet to her eye. And Oxnard resident Christopher James Sattiewhite, 24, was sentenced to death in April for killing a young woman in January, 1992.

In the county’s other death-penalty case, 20-year-old Thousand Oaks resident Mark Scott Thornton was convicted of murdering Westlake nurse Kellie O’Sullivan. In six weeks of testimony, prosecution witnesses depicted Thornton as a coldblooded killer and inveterate liar. Defense attorneys admitted that Thornton killed O’Sullivan, but said the slaying was unintentional. The penalty phase of the trial, which will determine whether Thornton should be executed, is scheduled for mid-January.

The September, 1993, murder of O’Sullivan, a young mother who was running errands when she was abducted in midafternoon, seemed a shocking assault on the secure, small-town feeling that many Thousand Oaks residents cherish.

The cry “Is no one safe, is no place secure?” was also heard in Simi Valley in February when a 13-year-old boy fatally stabbed a classmate while waiting for a bus outside Valley View Junior High.

Although the O’Sullivan murder and the junior high stabbing drew publicity throughout the year, most of the county’s 28 homicides took place outside the spotlight: in a dim alley, a remote campground, a quiet sidewalk. Those slain included fathers and children. They included such hard-working people as Eric Velasquez, a Los Angeles Times subscription salesman, and Rodney McClain, an Oxnard postal employee.

Even so, the statistics said Ventura County remained extraordinarily safe.

The FBI last year ranked the county the safest urban area in the West for 1993, citing a nearly 10% drop in serious crime. In the first half of 1994, Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley earned the second- and third-place spots on the FBI’s list of safest cities with populations of more than 100,000.

POLITICS

Ventura County may have been safe last year, but it was certainly not boring. At least, not to political junkies, who had a full slate of campaigns to track last fall in the county’s busiest election season ever.

Even non-voters participated in the political hullabaloo, as thousands of students from across the county walked out of school to protest Proposition 187, the overwhelmingly popular initiative that bans illegal immigrants from receiving publicly funded health care, education and social services.

If the state initiative caused a major hubbub, local races sparked a fair share of fireworks as well.

Every city except Ventura held council elections in November, with public safety and development issues grabbing center stage in most.

The county’s most crowded and nastiest campaign took place in Thousand Oaks, where a few of the 16 candidates reported receiving death threats and vandal attacks. The bitter politicking is almost certain to resurface when the city holds a special June election for the seat vacated by Councilman Frank Schillo, who will move to the County Board of Supervisors.

It took Schillo more than $100,000 to win that seat in a campaign against newcomer Trudi Loh, in the most expensive supervisorial campaign in Ventura County history. In a more low-key east county race, Simi Valley Councilwoman Judy Mikels won a supervisorial seat by easily beating her rival, Moorpark Councilman Scott Montgomery.

With Schillo and Mikels on the dais, the Board of Supervisors gets a new look and possibly some changes in the agenda. The board might be more likely to pursue development of a commercial airport at Point Mugu. The supervisors may also revive the debate over building a landfill to serve the west county.

But their first task will be finding a replacement for veteran Chief Administrative Officer Richard Wittenberg, who will leave this month to become the top executive in Santa Clara County. If they need head-hunting advice, the supervisors can always turn to Ventura City Council members, who selected Donna Landeros as their new city manager in the fall, after longtime administrator John Baker abruptly resigned.

Along with replacing Wittenberg, the supervisors must gird for a royal budget battle. Last year’s board slashed $8.6 million from the county’s $860-million budget and eliminated 65 jobs. But despite their predecessors’ cost-cutting efforts, the new supervisors will face more belt-tightening. Wittenberg has estimated that revenues will fall about $45 million short for the next fiscal year unless the county trims spending even further.

THE ECONOMY

Filling the county’s budget gap will be daunting. But the regional economic picture could grow far grimmer if either the Point Mugu or Port Hueneme military base falls victim to federal defense cuts.

With a combined budget of $1.5 billion, the bases support about 20,000 jobs. Along with agriculture, the military is considered vital to the local economy.

Fighting to keep both bases open, a Ventura County task force stormed Washington last month, lobbying every military official in sight. The task force, funded by local governments and private donations, will continue to press for preservation of Port Hueneme and Point Mugu. Local officials plan future trips to Washington before March 1, when the defense secretary makes public his views on which bases should be mothballed.

Once the Pentagon’s recommendations emerge, the federal Base Closure and Realignment Commission will draw up its own hit list by July 1. The President then has 15 days to veto the list, and Congress can take up to 45 days to mount a challenge. But the list must be accepted or rejected as a whole--no one can scratch an individual base from the overall package.

In business circles around the county, the economic squeeze in recent years had prompted the slogan: “Stay Alive Until ’95.” And, indeed, as 1994 came to a close, the local economy did show signs of perking up.

Unemployment for November stood at 7.7%, still well below the rates that prevailed in 1993 and 1992. But to be real, a recovery must be sustainable--so economists will watch closely to see whether the jobless rate remains stable in the first few months of this year.

The county’s long-term economic outlook brightened a bit in the summer when biotechnology giant Amgen announced plans to expand its Thousand Oaks headquarters by adding up to 6,300 workers over the next few decades. In another bit of good news, the Ventura Freeway corridor sprouted several new shopping centers, including the Oxnard Factory Outlet, which have pumped sales tax dollars into their host cities’ treasuries.

One dim spot amid the cheer: The Bank of A. Levy, a 112-year-old institution, announced that it will be purchased by First Interstate Bancorp of Los Angeles. The takeover, approved by federal regulators in December, will force closure of at least three Bank of A. Levy branches and three First Interstate branches. About 100 jobs will be lost in the transition.

Consolidation and buyouts shook the health care industry as well as the financial community last year--at least in the east county.

The international conglomerate that already owns Thousand Oaks’ largest hospital, Los Robles, bought out a smaller rival, Westlake Medical Center. The news prompted some employees at Westlake Medical Center to fear for their jobs.

RECREATION

As if all the political and economic turmoil didn’t provide enough drama, Ventura County’s entertainment offerings exploded last year.

Most spectacularly, the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza opened with a glittering black-tie gala in October. Both the 1,800-seat auditorium and 400-seat theater are booked with theater, dance, music and comedy filling every weekend.

Hoping for similar success--albeit on a much smaller scale--Simi Valley City Council members last year authorized a $2.5-million project to convert the old Methodist church into a cultural arts center.

Those who prefer bleachers and hot dogs to balconies and champagne may also find ideal entertainment in Ventura County one day. City leaders from Ventura, Oxnard and Camarillo are kicking around plans for a minor league baseball stadium. The idea could still strike out if council members balk at the price tag. But for now, the dream’s alive.

And if the baseball stadium materializes, it could one day host members of Thousand Oaks’ 1994 All-Star Little League team, which won the Junior World Series for 13-year-olds with a stunning victory last summer over an Ohio team in Michigan.

THE ENVIRONMENT

The quirkiest story to come out of Ventura County this year had to be the discovery of an ancient Pygmy mammoth skeleton on Santa Rosa Island. The prehistoric bones were largely intact, thrilling paleontologists nationwide.

A far more alarming story unfolded in March, when state officials disclosed that 370,000 gallons of a toxic oil byproduct had leaked from a ruptured Texaco pipeline near School Canyon Road north of Ventura.

And in December, walloping nine-foot swells temporarily closed Ventura’s wooden pier when they knocked away 14 pilings. It reopened 10 days later, much to the relief of those who gather to fish on the pier.

In a more hopeful bit of news, environmentalists, resource agencies and landowners agreed to work together to manage the Ventura River. This year, they hope to draft a strategy to ensure that the meandering, 226-mile river can meet all water needs now and in the future.

Backed by $500,000 from the Coastal Conservancy, environmentalists are also working to clean up the Ventura River estuary. Now soiled and degraded, the river hosts many rare and endangered species, including steelhead trout, tidewater goby fish, snowy plover and California brown pelicans. The arduous cleanup effort should rev up in 1995.

Environmental issues also grabbed headlines during the prolonged summertime fight about the National Weather Service’s tracking tower installed on a scenic hillside near Ojai.

Dubbing the tower the “Black Orb,” residents launched a feisty campaign to oust the structure, enlisting the help of actor Larry Hagman and other local luminaries. But federal officials, insisting that the tower does not pose a health hazard, refused to budge the Black Orb. Meteorologists have praised the radar tower for improving their ability to forecast storms.

EDUCATION

Ventura County college students were stunned and saddened when they returned to campus after Thanksgiving break to learn that Community College Chancellor Thomas G. Lakin had died of a disease commonly referred to as “flesh-eating bacteria.”

The college district, still reeling from a scathing grand jury report that pointed toward sloppy bookkeeping and poor fiscal management, has embarked on a statewide search for a new chancellor.

Several local sports teams also had to hunt for new leadership last year.

Ventura High’s swim coach, Dale Hahn, resigned and turned in his teaching credentials in June after he was accused of having sex with former students.

An assistant football and junior varsity baseball coach at Ventura High, Bret Taylor, was suspended without pay for allegedly having sex with two students and dating others over a three-year period ending in 1993. And in Simi Valley, baseball coach Mike Scyphers hung onto his job after controversy erupted about his methods of disciplining players.

Throughout the county, school boards last year debated “zero-tolerance” policies for students discovered toting weapons to class. Security concerns were heightened by the fatal stabbing outside a Simi Valley junior high and by an off-campus brawl between Westlake High School students that ended in gunfire.

But local schools produced some cheering news as well. Statistics released in the spring showed that in nearly every school district, the dropout rate has plunged since 1986.

And test scores continued to rise. Most recently, the county’s college-bound students posted high marks on the rigorous Advanced Placement tests, boosting the county’s overall scores above the state average.

Those high-scoring high school students will not be able to take advantage of it, but future generations may get a shot at attending a local branch of California State University. After three decades of searching, state education officials in December agreed to purchase 260 acres of farmland near Camarillo to build Cal State Ventura.

The campus will take years to design, finance and build. But perhaps the class of 2024 will be able to matriculate, at long last, at a local public four-year college.