2 Cities Deal With Youth Population Spurt Differently

Fillmore and Moorpark are separated by more than a narrow, winding road through the sandstone walls of Grimes Canyon.

Moorpark, predominately white, is among the richest cities in Ventura County. Fillmore, mostly Latino, ranks near the bottom of the list in income. In the past 20 years, Moorpark has gone from a small packing town on the rail line to a fast-growing suburb of Los Angeles, while Fillmore has remained a pioneering agriculture town tucked in the Santa Clara Valley.

Despite those contrasts, the two communities share a common thread: an abundance of children.

According to the 2000 census, roughly 34% of Moorpark’s residents are under the age of 18--the highest percentage among the county’s 10 cities. Fillmore runs a close second, with 32%.

What’s more, said regional planning expert Bill Fulton, the ethnic makeup of the two cities provides both a reflection of the county’s past and a glimpse into its future.

Moorpark, a bedroom community where middle-class families can still afford to buy starter homes, resembles the Ventura County of 30 years ago. But in coming decades, more cities will begin to look like Fillmore, as the Latino birthrate continues to outpace that of whites, Fulton said.

Countywide, the youth population grew from 27.3% in 1990 to 28.4% in 2000, census data show, with the most significant gains in areas such as Oxnard and Santa Paula, which are more heavily Latino.

Large concentrations of children bring common challenges, such as providing quality education, plentiful after-school activities and rich cultural opportunities. The way government, schools and communities respond to those challenges is influenced by the disparity in wealth in Ventura County.

Moorpark and Fillmore are good examples. Moorpark’s median household income a decade ago was about $62,000, compared with $36,200 in Fillmore, according to the 1990 census. The income figures from the 2000 census will be released later this year.

Fillmore, a 2 1/2-square-mile farm town of 13,600, has few of the strip malls and shopping centers that generate sales tax--a primary source of city revenue. The city’s general fund budget is $3.4 million, compared with $7.9 million for Moorpark.

Fillmore has one park--an eight-acre field and playground--and an annual recreation budget of about $160,000. The city offers two recreation programs: youth basketball, which consisted of six games last season, and a year-round gymnastics class.

Moorpark, with 31,000 residents, has 14 parks and dozens of organized after-school programs spread over the city’s 12 square miles.

Fillmore leaders point to their city’s small size and lack of revenue as obstacles to providing more youth recreation programs.

“We’re a town in a stage of developing and getting things in here that should have been here a long time ago,” said Fillmore City Councilman Evaristo Barajas.

City leaders promise change and say the focus on securing more parkland for recreation has never been stronger. A skateboard park and a park in north Fillmore that will double as the playground for a new elementary school are planned. With the help of federal grants, a new Boys & Girls Club opened last fall, serving up to 125 kids each day after school. “There is probably more unity on that issue than there has been on anything in my 10 years on the council,” Fillmore Mayor Don Gunderson said.

By county standards, Moorpark is a small city, too. Less than 20 years old, it is still struggling to create a strong sales tax base by luring businesses to Los Angeles Avenue and reinvigorating its old downtown on High Street.

But the city’s relative affluence enables it to offer flourishing recreation programs, including dances and “band jams” for junior high students, baby-sitting courses for older teenagers, and an exhaustive list of classes, events and sports leagues for younger kids. Moorpark can offer such a variety, in part, because parents can afford to pay program fees, whereas many Fillmore parents struggle just to make ends meet.

Moorpark also devotes more of its budget to recreation programs--about 8% of its general fund, compared with 0.4% in Fillmore. One of the reasons families move to Moorpark is for the quality of recreation programs, said Mayor Pat Hunter. “We’re trying to develop programs that are of interest to the widest varieties of children,” he said.

The 60-acre Arroyo Vista Community Center swarms with kids on a daily basis.

Another important lure is the public school system. Students in Moorpark’s schools consistently outperform their peers in Fillmore and statewide on standardized tests.

Wealth and demographic makeup again play a role in those differences, said Ventura County Supt. of Schools Chuck Weis, a former administrator in the Fillmore Unified School District and the father of two children in Moorpark Unified schools.

More than half of Fillmore’s students are eligible for free or reduced-cost lunches, compared with 34% in Moorpark. Roughly 36% of Fillmore’s students study English as a second language, compared with 17% in Moorpark schools, according to 1999-2000 district statistics. The dropout rate in Fillmore is about 3.5%, compared with Moorpark’s 2.4%.

Moorpark High School is renowned for its Academic Decathlon team, which won in the national championship in 1999 and placed second in the state this year. Both the high school and Chaparral Middle School have earned state recognition for excellence.

“There are many well-educated families in this community with high expectations, and we need to provide the highest level of education possible,” said Moorpark High Principal Anna Merriman. “We’ve got a full complement of extracurricular activities, and offer a full range of Advanced Placement classes--right down to tutorial courses.”

Fillmore’s schools, with about half the number of students, have a difficult time offering the same breadth of programs, district officials say. Fewer extracurricular sports are offered. Many facilities, including the town’s only public swimming pool, are crumbling. And offering specialized courses is a constant challenge, said Fillmore High School Principal John Wilber.

But it’s a challenge education leaders have embraced, Wilber said. The high school is engaged in partnerships with Ventura College and UC Santa Barbara to encourage students of immigrant families to go to college. Fillmore will offer 10 Advanced Placement courses next year--five fewer than Moorpark. A $500,000 state grant will pay for installation of computers and other high-tech equipment.

Last year, 17% of graduating seniors were bound for four-year universities, while 63% were going to community college, said Jane Kampbell, assistant superintendent for Fillmore Unified. In Moorpark, roughly 30% of graduating seniors head to four-year schools and half to community colleges.

“We do have some challenges [in Fillmore], but we try not to look at them as obstacles as much as, ‘How are we going to get this done?’ ” Kampbell said. “It’s touching to see students who have come from poor backgrounds go through the system and make something of themselves.”

Growing student populations have caused a space crunch in both districts, with each trying and failing twice to pass a general obligation bond for expansion and modernization.

Moorpark High School’s gym is too small to host an assembly for all its students. Next year, teachers will have to share rooms for the first time, Principal Merriman said. In Fillmore, more than half of all classrooms are portables, said business manager Barbara Spieler. Both cities continue the struggle to provide cultural and entertainment opportunities for their young people.

“Since they took the movie theater out, there really is nothing to do,” said Moorpark High junior Josh Grossman, 16, with a chorus of agreement from three friends standing nearby. “There’s nowhere to go.”

Those who can drive do so--often, kids say. The Oaks mall in Thousand Oaks and movie theaters in Simi Valley are among the most popular destinations. Those without wheels usually hang out at each other’s houses.

Allison Yager lets her children’s friends congregate at her house. She is a teacher at Walnut Canyon Elementary School in Moorpark and the single mother of three girls--a third-, eighth- and 10th-grader. With no movie theater, no mall and few eateries open past 9 p.m., she believes it’s the wisest course.

“We have nothing in town for them to do,” she said. “Bored children are trouble.”

Moorpark officials are working on the problem, they say. Rachele Loosbrock, a teen coordinator hired this year, has tried to create events and programs that will attract more of the older teenagers to Arroyo Vista Center, including skateboarding tournaments and an upcoming Battle of the Bands contest. Officials are also considering a separate center for teens, to give them a safe place to have fun.

Fillmore youth have even fewer options. Not as many have access to cars, and the favored destinations--Ventura or Santa Clarita--are farther away. The Boys & Girls Club offers few teen-focused activities.

A few business owners on Central Avenue have tried to fill the gap.

Renea and Ruben Lopez, owners of the Hot Spot, said they opened the skateboard shop, which also houses a small arcade, last year specifically for the kids of the town.

They put on a few special events each year and on some Friday nights stay open until 10, playing music and offering free pizza.

Although she wouldn’t trade the small-town life for anything, Renea Lopez said the city’s size limits options for children.

Ruben Segovia, owner of Segovia Family Billiards across the street, tells a similar story. He said he sees a couple of hundred kids in his all-ages arcade and pool hall every weekday afternoon. They come and hang out and may not spend much, but he doesn’t mind.

“If I was in it for the money, I would have been out of here a long time ago,” said Segovia, who lives in Santa Paula.

“Lots of kids spend hours in here without spending money, but at least it keeps them off the street.”

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Age Profile

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Under Under 18 years 18 years in 1990 in 2000 Moorpark 33.5% 34.2% Fillmore 33.0% 32.3% Oxnard 30.7% 31.8% Santa Paula 29.9% 31.4% Simi Valley 28.2% 28.4% Port Hueneme 27.5% 27.6% Thousand Oaks 24.7% 26.0% Camarillo 24.1% 25.3% Ventura 23.5% 25.0% Ojai 24.0% 24.9% Countywide 27.3% 28.4% Statewide 26.0% 27.3%

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Source: U.S. Census Bureau