City, Ventura County
© McCormack's Guides
Zip Codes: 93001, 93002, 93003, 93004, 93005, 93006, 93007, 93009
Mission city, also called San Buenaventura. Located on the Pacific. The prettiest city in the county and the one that has done the best job of preserving its history. Lovely, interesting and somewhat funky downtown. www.mccormacks.com
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One homicide in 2005, three each in 2004 and 2003, two in 2002 and 2001, three in 2000. The counts for the previous years are three, five, four, six, one, five, nine, four.
School scores low-middling to high. Most of the schools are scoring above the 70th percentile; a few in the 90th percentile. Children attend schools in the Ventura Unified School District, enrollment about 17,600.
Ventura has low-, middle- and high-income neighborhoods. Scores tend to reflect neighborhood demographics.
In 1997, voters approved an $81 million bond to upgrade all schools and build several schools, including a technology high school (done). In 2004, Ventura High added science classrooms and a computer lab.
On March 31, 1782, Father Junipero Serra blessed the ground and raised a cross, the beginning of Mission San Buenaventura and later the town of Ventura. For the next 65 years, the governments of Spain and later Mexico attempted to build a flourishing town that would secure the region against foreigners, be they American, Russian or English. Measles and other diseases, however, killed great numbers of the Indians, who made up most of the workers. The sad experience was repeated throughout California. www.mccormacks.com
When the Yankees rebelled in 1847, the California Dons were more overwhelmed than beaten; their paltry numbers made it impossible to field an army.
Within a few decades, the Dons had passed into history and era of the American settler begun. Barley, beef and lima beans, lemons and oil formed the backbone of the new economy. Ventura incorporated itself as a legal city in 1866. In 1887, the Southern Pacific tracked a spur into Ventura, setting off a minor boom. The city welcomed 1900 with 2,470 residents.
Over the next two decades, Ventura inched up its population to about 4,200. In the 1920s, oil discoveries boomed the population to about 11,000, a decade of modest bungalow and Spanish Revival homes, but the Depression dampened the euphoria.
At the eve of World War II, Ventura fielded only 13,264 residents living in or near the downtown. In the 1940s, the city added about 3,000 residents. Then came rapid growth, the result of the great migration that followed the war and the freeways, which allowed people to escape the old cities.
By 1960, Ventura had jumped to 29,114 residents and within 10 more years, the city had reached 55,797 residents. Still the people came. Over the past 30 years, Ventura has almost doubled its population and by the latest count had 108,261 residents. www.mccormacks.com
Of Venturas current housing stock, about 3,400 units predate World War II and about 8,300 homes and apartments were built between 1940 and 1960. Then came two decades of rapid growth, 9,600 units in the 1960s and 9,400 units in the 1970s. In the 1980s, housing starts declined to 6,000 units and in the last decade, to 3,100 units. Between 2000 and 2006, the city built about 1,800 units.
Housing built over so long a period means prices across the spectrum. One of the pleasant ironies of Ventura is that many older, smaller homes were built close to the ocean and the newer, larger homes were built on the outskirts.
Overlooking the downtown and the handsome city hall is an older, affluent neighborhood, large and small homes, some flattops, all lovingly maintained, views of the Pacific.
In and near the downtown, a few Victorians and Queen Annes blend in with bungalows, Spanish Revival designs and cottages. Moving a little farther out, the 1940s and 1950s housing comes in, plain, many two-bedroom homes, well kept, some with small porches, utility lines run down the back alley. Trees soften some streets.
Moving farther, the homes grow into three-bedroom units and then four- and five-bedroom, the last in tracts north and south of Foothill Road. www.mccormacks.com
Just west of the downtown, Ventura Avenue, hidden behind a bluff, starts out with older two- and three- bedroom homes, plain, and as it moves past Stanley, jumps to modern suburban.
Near the ocean and the yacht harbor the housing tends to two story, three bedroom, nice but not fancy. Some old homes have been torn down to make way for larger, better-appointed homes.
At the harbor, quality takes another leap up: streets lined with palms, homes built on the water, decks and docks, sailboats at ease. Not giant homes; space is limited. But the paint is fresh, the touches (shellacked garage doors) pleasing. The homes are oriented to the water; front yards small.
The state in 2008 counted 42,407 housing units, of which 23,548 were single detached homes, 3,430 single attached, 12,806 apartments and 2,623 mobile homes.
Several resort hotels and rental-apartment complexes are located down on the water and Ventura does a good but not overwhelming trade in tourists. Hotel rooms number about 2,100. The main attractions are the mission, the ocean, the beaches, and shops and a promenade near the surf. www.mccormacks.com
The visitors probably grate the nerves of some residents but they help support coffee shops and some fine restaurants in the downtown and a mix of antique stores, art galleries, book stores and shops. Lovely old church turned into a bed and breakfast. Meditation center. Sushi bars. Ventura has a small older mall, recently renovated, about three miles east of the downtown: Macys, Sears and Pennys. A little farther out, a Mervyns, big bookstores (Borders and a Barnes and Noble.) Trader Joe's.
Just outside city limits: miles of lemon groves that will be there ... who knows how long? The city and county are wrestling with the rewards and problems of growth. Residents are sensitive about development, want to preserve small-town flavor.
In 2002, Ventura voters turned down a proposal to build 1,390 luxury homes in the hills north of town. A conservancy group is raising money to buy the land. Residents also rejected a Home Depot.
On the building side, the downtown is getting a new look with 228 assorted units lofts, row, courtyard, stacked, live/work that encourage walking and local shopping.
Long commute, 50 to 60 miles to San Fernando Valley and L.A. job centers but these days people knock off longer drives. Two freeways, Highway 101 and Highway 126 to 118. Some people commute north to Santa Barbara. Amtrak stop. www.mccormacks.com
Ventura is the county seat; lawyers, government workers. The hotels and the hospitals (two) employ hundreds. Local jobs mean short commutes.
Lots to do: boating, fishing, surfing, swimming,yacht races, usual sports. Thirty-three parks, the newer ones linear, which makes for evening strolls and jogging. Three golf courses. Skate park. Boys and Girls Club. The city putting a lot of money and energy into a 100-acre sports park that is being built in stages. So far, playing fields, walking and bike path, an aquatic center with slides and three pools.
County fair. Farmers market. Three libraries. Festivals throughout the year wine, art, food, music (Michael McDonald, Jackson Browne), mystery. Erle Stanley Gardner, the author and creator of Perry Mason mysteries, was a long-time resident of Ventura. In 2006, the locals threw a Gardner festival.
The Majestic Ventura Theater hosts touring musicians and bands. Among those playing in 2006 were Ted Nugent and Alice Cooper.
If you look close in the movie Little Miss Sunshine, you will see the Ventura fishing pier and a local restaurant and hotel. www.mccormacks.com
Large community college, 13,000 students many activities, sports, low fees. Historical buildings, museums, fountain and park near mission. Whale watching. Tours of Channel Islands. University of California Extension opened a branch campus in Ventura.
Ventura Raceway, car racing. Classes for the kids.
City and school district are going partners on a new swimming pool for west side of town.
Chamber of commerce (805) 676-7500.
Robert Colla, a computer teacher at Ventura Adult Ed School, kept a large military bullet, possibly 40 millimeter, on his desk and occasionally banged the bullet to make a point or get the students attention. He had the piece of ammo for decades. In 2006, he banged again and the bullet, thought harmless, banged back. Colla's right hand was badly injured.
Lynn and Joe Bova started their family with a son, then quintuplets three daughters and two sons. In 2006, the quints hit five years old, time for school. The problem, over which the parents agonized: all in one class or split. The decision girls in one class together, boys in another class together. Makes sense, said one teacher. It's probably the first step toward becoming independent from one another. www.mccormacks.com
Top Hat Burger Palace, downtown Ventura. In 1988, a man, age 63, was stabbed to death in the place. Woman arrested. At her trial, DNA evidence was introduced. It worked guilty, 26 years to life. For the record, this appears to be the first successful prosecution using DNA in California history.
In 2006, Kaiser opened clinics in Oxnard and Ventura.
King of the cans. In 2006, city bought a garbage can dubbed Big Belly. Not your ordinary can. Powered by solar, the can has a compactor that crushes the garbage four barrels into one bag and signals when it's ready for pickup.
Strapped for money, the city in 2006 won voter approval of a quarter-cent sales tax. Revenue to go for police, firefighters and paramedics.
City web site: www.ci.ventura.ca.us
