CONVERSION POLICY: Monterey did it, so why...

CONVERSION POLICY: Monterey did it, so why can’t we? Turn a sprawling government facility into a Cal State campus, that is (B1). In Monterey, it was an Army base. Here, it’s Camarillo State Hospital. . . . Cal State officials are noncommittal about the idea but aren’t rejecting it out of hand. “It’s a little early to be talking about students walking around at Camarillo State,” said spokeswoman Colleen Bentley-Adler, “but we’re willing to take a look at it.”

SIGN OF OLD TIMES: Despite the fact that it violates the city’s sign ordinance, Ventura residents rallied to the defense of an old Loop’s restaurant sign on Main Street (B1). Due to a change in restaurant ownership, the sign was slated for removal. But residents convinced city leaders otherwise. . . . “This is the first thing I see in the morning,” said Jean Ringo, who lives on nearby Dunning Street. “I polled everyone in the neighborhood, and they want to keep it.” . . . Residents are now asking that other ‘50s-era signs be preserved as well.

HEAVENLY HUBBUB: The conflict between County Supervisors Maggie Kildee, above, and John Flynn included a comment Flynn made last year. He said he tries to see the angel in everyone, but found no such presence in Kildee. . . . This week, Kildee cast the lone vote against Flynn becoming the board’s vice chairman. Repeated Flynn: “I felt it was a very unangelic” action. . . . Retorted Kildee: “I was not able to vote for someone who was still unable to see angels.”

MEMORIAL SERVICE: The search for the body of Aspen Helicopter pilot John Drust has been suspended, but his family will proceed with a memorial service at 10 a.m. next Saturday at Sacred Heart Church in Ventura. . . . Drust’s mother, Noela Erickson, now lives in Honolulu, but was known for years here as an artist specializing in oil paintings of sailing ships. Erickson was due to fly in Friday from Hawaii.