Plan to Aid Homeless, Mentally Ill Advances

Taking the first step in its plans to create permanent housing for the homeless and mentally ill, county supervisors decided Tuesday to consider county-owned property near Camarillo as a possible housing site.

The property, a 17-acre parcel on Lewis Road, is also being considered as one of four sites for a proposed $65-million juvenile justice facility.

But with county staff members expected to favor another site for the juvenile complex, Supervisor Frank Schillo urged his colleagues to consider building a multipurpose social service facility in its place.

The board unanimously agreed to Schillo’s proposal to form a board committee to assess the needs of the homeless, the mentally ill and veterans in Ventura County.

The committee will be co-chaired by Schillo and Supervisor Kathy Long, who has worked to establish a permanent facility for the area’s homeless.

Representatives from social service organizations, such as RAIN--which operates the county’s only transitional shelter for homeless families--Many Mansions and Casa Pacifica, also would serve on the committee.

Schillo cautioned that because county staff members are now evaluating the Lewis Road property as a potential site for the juvenile justice facility, the committee would not immediately recommend alternative uses for the parcel.

But Schillo anticipates that staff members will eventually come out against such a facility on the site, which some consider too small. An environmental impact report on all four sites under review is expected by April 1.

“We shouldn’t wait to hear that though,” he said after the board meeting. “We should start doing the contingency planning right now.”

Schillo said he believes a larger, 40-acre site in Saticoy is a more appropriate site for the juvenile facility.

Supervisor John Flynn said he also preferred building on the flower field in Saticoy.

“Lewis Road has a slim chance of being a juvenile justice facility,” Flynn said.

The other two sites under consideration are a 52-acre field on the Oxnard Plain and a 45-acre parcel in El Rio.

Although she voted to form the committee, Supervisor Judy Mikels said she remains firm in her opposition to obligating money to any new projects until after the board conducts its midyear budget review Feb. 22. The county is searching for ways to eliminate a projected $5-million deficit before the end of the fiscal year.

Flynn said the committee will help the board focus on housing for the mentally ill and homeless, which lately has become one of its top priorities.

“We have had varying discussions on this issue. . . . We’ve been thinking about it for a long time,” he said.

The committee expects to have a plan developed by July 1.

The board’s action Tuesday follows a decision last month to explore using a portion of the county’s share of tobacco settlement money to expand housing and treatment for the mentally ill.

The funds, about $10 million annually, are from a settlement of a state lawsuit against the tobacco industry.