Ventura County at a Glance

© McCormack's Guides

 

Located on the northwest border of Los Angeles County, Ventura is a suburban-rural county of 825,512 residents, the great majority of whom live in cities with views of mountains or the Pacific.

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Many residents work in L.A. County, particularly in the San Fernando Valley and in the entertainment firms of Hollywood-Burbank.

Although it is turning suburban, Ventura still farms many of its acres. In 2004, farm and nursery products brought in $1.4 billion. The county has thousands of lemon, orange and avocado trees - and an active movement to retain the country atmosphere. In the 1990s, residents voted to limit the construction of large developments outside the limits of existing cities. Several follow-up votes echoed this sentiment.

After World War II, millions of GIs, delighted by the California sun, returned to the West Coast. They filled up the San Fernando Valley and in the late 1950s started to move into Ventura. At that time, the U.S. was entering an era of unprecedented prosperity that translated into larger and better-appointed homes. Although generally middle class, Ventura has built thousands of upscale homes for professionals and the affluent.

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In size, Ventura covers about 1,851 square miles, about one-third as big as Rhode Island, the smallest state in the nation. Mt. Pinos is the highest peak, 8,831 feet.

The Pacific shore zigs and zags through 43 miles of coastline, much of it inaccessible because of the terrain. But where the land levels, Ventura shows some lovely beaches.

In their mountain ranges, Ventura and Los Angeles differ markedly from other ranges in California. Usually California ranges run north to south.

The Santa Monica, Santa Susana and Topata mountains, however, run east to west, and this benefits Ventura. Much of L.A. smog stays in L.A. and the San Fernando Valley, trapped by the Santa Monica and Santa Susana mountains. Ventura prides itself on its clean air (or cleaner-than-L.A. air).

Where the Santa Monica Mountains end, Ventura opens to the broad Oxnard plain. This allows ocean breezes to penetrate far inland.

There are two Venturas: the county and the City of San Buenaventura, population 106,710, which everyone calls "Ventura" and shows up on many maps as "Ventura." Ventura is a legal city and the seat of the county government.

The other legal cities are Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley and Santa Paula.  About 88 percent of county’s population live in these cities. The rest live in the countryside and in small towns, notably Meiners Oaks, Mira Monte and Oak View (all near Ojai) and Oak Park, near Thousand Oaks.

In 2007, Ventura County tallied 274,224 residences, of which 175,906 were single detached homes, 28,088 single attached homes, 57,896 apartments or condos and 12,334 mobile homes.

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Although it has its historic buildings dating from the late 1700s, Ventura is very much a modern county. The 2000 census disclosed that only 18 percent of the county's housing stock predates 1960. In the 1960s, when the boom started, Ventura built 58,000 units and in the 1970s, about 67,000 units. In the 1980s, construction continued to roar along, 49,000 units. By this time, residents were clamoring for slower growth. In the 1990s, they got it: 32,000 units. These days, it is much harder to win approval of big projects. Between 2000 and 2006, the county erected about 18,900 units.

In diversity, Ventura reflects the variety of California. The 2000 census counted 427,449 Caucasians, 251,734 Hispanics, 40,284 Asians, 14,664 African-Americans, 7,106 American Indians and 1,671 Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders.

In 2003, the county got a wake-up call on crime. Its homicides that year soared to 42, about double the 2002 tally of 21. The counts for previous years: 19, 24, 19. Most of the 2003 increase came from one city, Oxnard, which had 22 homicides. Oxnard responded by cracking down on gangs but the town is still seeing many homicides (19 in 2005, preliminary figures). In 2004, total homicides for the county dropped to 33 and in 2005 they came in at 32. See profile of Oxnard .

Weather

Dry and balmy. In the early mornings and late afternoons, Pacific fogs will often flow over portions of the coastal cities and nestle in the hills.

Cactus and manzanita grow in the hills. In the summer, the "rivers" dry to long ribbons of sand.

In the mountains, winter brings snow, one of the delights of Southern California. Within a short drive, you can bake or freeze or ski or sun bathe.

Education

Ventura has some of the highest-scoring schools in the state and some that score below average. Because Ventura has many farms, it also has many immigrant children who speak English poorly.

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In 2005, Ventura public school students on the average scored 552 on the verbal SAT and 535 on the math SAT. The national average is 499 verbal, 519 math, the California average is 505 verbal, 515 math.

History

First came the Indians, 9,000 to 12,000 years ago (but possibly as far back as 35,000 years). They fished, they hunted, they drew from the natural bounty of the land. The local tribe came to be known as the Chumash.

Peaceful, unknowing of what was to befall them, they welcomed the Spanish when the first expedition arrived in 1769.

The Spanish established the San Buenaventura Mission at Ventura and set about domesticating the land and the Indians. The Indians lacked immunity to European diseases. In the early 1800s, measles and smallpox killed most of them. All but a few of the remaining were lost when the missions were disbanded in the 1830s.

For most of its history, California ignored its Indians and glossed over their misfortunes. Now, historians pay more attention to them and acknowledge that, although intentions were good, what happened was tragic.

The Spanish carved the countryside into large ranches, raised cattle and traded with ships that turned up in their ports. But they and the succeeding Mexican governments never followed up on the initial efforts to colonize California. When the Americans took over in 1848, they did not so much conquer the Californios as overwhelm them with numbers. In a few years, the Californios lost their lands, their herds and their fortunes.

American settlers turned to farming and later, when oil was discovered, to pumping and servicing wells. Until 1873, Ventura was a part of Santa Barbara; then the state legislature gave it independent status. The railroad arrived in 1887 and expanded the market for farm products.

When movies came along, many directors used the wild and open spaces of Ventura County for Westerns and adventure films.

World War II boomed the local economy. Military bases were opened - and remain - at Point Mugu and Port Hueneme. By 1950, Ventura had 114,647 residents. Then the real revolution arrived.

Suburbia

Sent to California during World War II, many servicemen fell in love with the sunshine and returned. They filled the San Fernando Valley and when Highway 101 was extended north, they poured into Ventura County. Since 1950, the county has added about 688,000 residents.

Ventura cities divide, architecturally and socially, into those that had established downtowns and a few thousand residents before World War II, and those that didn’t.

Fillmore, Oxnard, and Ventura have defined "old towns," built around the train station, and older housing, often priced low (although these days even modest homes go for over $600,000).

Camarillo, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks are new suburbs oriented toward the freeways. Instead of town centers, they have large malls or shopping areas near the freeways and neighborhood shopping centers at the intersection of arterial streets. The older cities also have their new tracts and in some instances their second downtowns, near Highway 101.

As the cities matured, they set up their own cultural lives: plays, movies, art galleries, dance schools and programs. Many people from the entertainment industry live in the county and nourish the arts. The county has its own symphony and a ballet troupe.

In 2002, the branch campus of a state university was changed into a full-fledged California State University, at Camarillo. This can only help local efforts to boost education.

Up and down California, many counties are trying to make sense out of growth and development. Ventura, with the possible exception of Oxnard, has come down firmly for limited growth. Many towns have or are setting up greenbelts. At the same time, the communities want to bring in high-tech businesses and local jobs. Planning now is turning to in-filling and providing mixed housing.

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The Navy retains a big presence in the county, with bases at Port Hueneme and Pt. Magu, south of Oxnard.

Sporadic concerns about earthquakes - when one happens people worry and after a few years forget to worry.

• Ventura County went for George Bush, 109,007 votes, over John Kerry, 103,360 votes.

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• In 2004, Ronald Reagan was interred at the Reagan library and museum in Simi Valley.

• Top crops, in order of value, strawberries, nursery plants (including orchids and poinsettias), lemons, avocados, celery, tomatoes, cut flowers, raspberries, peppers and Valencia oranges. For the minor crops, cilantro, spinach, radishes and kale. All that sunshine really helps. (2004 figures, Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner)

• No home for foam. In 2004, county supervisors voted to get rid of styromfoam cups and containers at all restaurants and concessions located at county facilities. Environmentally, foam is bad for us.

• La Conchita is a community of about 200 homes built along the Ventura coast at the north end of the county. The homes sit below a steep hillside that has a long history of slides - a suggestion from Mother Nature that perhaps this is not the place to build homes. In January 2005, down came a big slide that killed 10. La Conchita still has its inhabitants.