County Crews Reinvigorate Neglected Park
With a bit of cash and a lot of hard work, county officials have transformed a once-dusty, poorly paved asphalt lot in Oak County Park into a picnic area and campground with modern amenities.
Ventura County officials hope the improvements will attract more visitors to the 134-acre park, which lies on the old stretch of Los Angeles Avenue connecting Moorpark with Simi Valley.
“I think this park is underused,” said Simi Valley resident Keith Jajko, an assistant to Supervisor Judy Mikels. “It’s kind of a secret in town.”
The Ventura County Board of Supervisors earlier this year earmarked nearly $300,000 for the improvements. That work included repaving the old asphalt lot and installing 16 electrical hookups for recreational vehicles. Work crews also built restrooms, a playground and a covered eating area with a barbecue pit.
A new wooden sign with the park’s name was installed at the entrance on Quimisa Drive, and the road into the area was widened and repaved.
The revamped facility, nestled in a small, chaparral-lined canyon below the Simi Valley Freeway, was named the “Little Wing Group Use Area” on Thursday during a ceremony attended by county officials, park employees and children from the Boys & Girls Club chapters in Moorpark and Simi Valley.
Throughout its history, officials say Oak County Park has suffered from long periods of neglect.
“It was used and reused, but not well loved,” said Mikels, shortly after cutting the ribbon surrounding the park’s new picnic area and barbecue pits.
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