VENTURA : Greenbelt Initiative May Be Put on Ballot

With county election officials having certified a farmland preservation initiative, the Ventura City Council on Monday will either place the measure on the fall ballot or unilaterally move to enact the measure.

The so-called SOAR initiative--short for Save Our Agricultural Resources--virtually mirrors another measure that already has qualified for the November ballot.

Both initiatives ask voters to preserve open space by designating all farmland within the city and its sphere of influence as an agricultural greenbelt.

The first measure would preserve the greenbelt by making it more difficult to rezone farmland. The latest measure addresses the same issue through the city’s comprehensive plan, a more binding document.

Supporters said the second measure is more important than the original, however, because it is based on a model law that already has been upheld in Northern California. Organizers for the second measure turned in 8,800 signatures in support of the initiative several weeks ago. But county election officials rejected about 25% of the names because they were either duplicates, unregistered or the people did not live in Ventura. Backers needed 5,906 certified signatures and had about 6,600.

The council has the option of enacting the measure Monday--a move Francis said he supports. But the staff recommendation is to place the initiative on the November ballot and leave the issue to voters.