Seeking Stronger Representation, Ventu Park Panel Off to Good Start

The first meeting of the Ventu Park Advisory Committee “was standing room only,” Supervisor Frank Schillo said Thursday.

Schillo, who represents the Ventu Park area, organized the group to allow better representation of their interests to the county. He said Wednesday’s meeting exceeded expectations of organizers, with residents packing the meeting room at the Stage Coach Inn.

“I went there with some small amount of trepidation, since we made the announcement in the middle of the election,” Schillo said, “and I figured that most people would throw that [mailer] out along with the rest of the election stuff. But we had to go get more chairs so everyone would have a seat.”

The committee--similar to the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Committee, which Schillo also created--will serve as a conduit for resident concerns between the community and the Ventura County Board of Supervisors. It will also serve as a liaison to the government of Thousand Oaks, which does not directly represent citizens in that area.

In fact, the first meeting featured officials from Thousand Oaks, who came to discuss traffic concerns near Lynn Road, which sits at the border between the city and the unincorporated Ventu Park area.

As part of the new district, the Board of Supervisors has also approved assigning Sheriff’s Deputy Dirk Munsie to the district, overseeing crime prevention.

Schillo also appointed the committee’s first three steering members--Al Butler, Ron Block and Ann Vracin--with three more volunteers expected to be inducted at the committee’s next meeting in January.

Nearly 1,500 homes across two square miles would fall under the scope of the Ventu Park Advisory Committee, bounded by Lynn Road to the north, Lynn Oaks Avenue to the east, Lynnview Road to the west and the Ventu Park Fire Lane to the south.

Other concerns of the committee include the maintenance of private roads, emergency access to the more remote locations in the district, appeals on property value assessments, building code enforcement, street improvement plans and possible annexation to Thousand Oaks.