Leave groundwater management to local water experts
Assemblymember Steve Bennett’s proposed Assembly Bill 2201, which would create a new permanent permitting process for groundwater wells, negatively affects local water districts, municipalities and California’s agricultural community. Despite recent amendments to…
Fillmore Gazette: Ventura Needs Reliable Water Supply
VIEW FULL ARTICLE HERE Submission: Ventura Needs Reliable Water Supply Location: Fillmore Gazette Thursday, March 7th, 2024 By Louise Lampara Executive Director Ventura County Coalition of Labor Agriculture and Business…
Help Shape the Vision of the 2020 General Plan Update
As the County puts together it’s 2020 General Plan Update, it is asking for public input on the Vision and Guiding Principles. These set the stage for the role the…
General Plan Agriculture Element Violates SOAR and the Agriculture Guiding Principle
The new “Agriculture Element” of the General Plan violates the principles of the 2016 SOAR ballot measure passed by a majority vote of the people. Through glossy mailers with photos…
Agriculture, SOAR and the General Plan Update
When the County SOAR ordinance was passed in 2016, the voters were assured through glossy mailers that the purpose was to “save agriculture” and many were convinced it would be…
Ojai Valley MAC Subject to New Dark Sky Regulations
In a process beginning at the Ojai Valley Municipal Advisory Committee (MAC), the County Planning Division proposed new regulations to restrict outdoor nighttime lighting within the MAC boundary in order…
Wishtoyo overstates claims in lawsuit against United
Environmental groups quickly declared victory in a recent U.S. District Court ruling over United Water Conservation District’s operations at the Vern Freeman Diversion. However, in spite of their claims, the ruling…
Outdoor event ordinance improved through CoLAB engagement
The County of Ventura has imposed a series of new restrictions on large outdoor gatherings on private property in the unincorporated areas of the county. The new rules place limits…
PLF and CoLAB team up to Challenge ESA Listing of the CA gnatcatcher
For those members of VC CoLAB who have been impacted by the possible sighting of a coastal California gnatcatcher, or even the bird’s possible habitat on their property, there may…
CoLAB-organized meeting with water users, NOAA sees results
VC CoLAB organized a highly anticipated meeting on August 8 between local water users, businesses, organized labor and managers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The meeting produced…
Post Planning Commission – Outdoor Event Ordinance Needs Changes
VC CoLAB expressed our concerns over a new surprise Outdoor Event Ordinance found on the agenda of the June 21st Ventura County Planning Commission. The item was revealed with little notice on…
Marijuana legalization presents new opportunities and pitfalls
In the wake of the 2016 vote to legalize recreational marijuana use in California, cities across Ventura County are grappling with the question of how to implement it. While most…
LCA Contract Compliance Heading Toward Penalties
There is no doubt that the Ventura County Assessor’s office is losing patience with agricultural landowners as the delinquency rate of returning annual Agricultural Preserve Questionnaires remains over 20%. These…
County launches changes to coastal habitat regulations
The County of Ventura is moving forward with a plan to significantly alter the regulations which limit development in the Coastal Zone in order to protect plants and wildlife. The…
County faces two different paths on the housing crisis
Ventura County is suffering from a housing crisis and economic malaise, problems that have roots stretching back decades and based in decisions supported by county voters. Two recent decisions on…
New Dark Sky Ordinance targets Lighting as Pollution
The County Planning Division is preparing a draft ordinance that targets outdoor lighting as “pollution” in the unincorporated areas around the City of Ojai. New rules for light fixtures, automatic…
Star, Conservation Groups Take Aim at County Planning
The Ventura County Star published a story on February 27 that called out the Ventura County Planning Division for not ordering a shutdown of the Ferndale oil operation in Santa…
Board Doubles Down on Failed Housing Policies
Cities and civic organizations across the county are holding sometimes contentious conversations about density, growth and the future of housing in Ventura County. However, some members of the Board of…
County Must Clear the Way for New Farmworker Housing Projects
While the severe lack of suitable housing for farmworkers has been a subject of discussion in county meetings for decades, little progress has been made for the majority of workers.…
CoLAB-Supported Changes to General Plan Approved
Ventura County CoLAB scored a series of victories in recognizing the importance of agriculture, water, housing, and land management in the latest round of the General Plan Update revisions. The…
Thomas Fire Exposes East County Wildfire Risk
Nearly a decade ago, prior to the Thomas Fire, Ventura County fire agencies prepared Wildfire Protection Plans identifying risks, funding priorities, and programs to reduce the impact of wildfires countywide.…
Wastewater injection ruling creates new questions about groundwater management
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently released a potentially wide-ranging decision that declared that wastewater injection wells can violate the Clean Water Act (CWA) as long as the wastewater…
Cattle Ranchers Battle the Flames
On December 4, the text message from Bud Sloan’s friend said that there was a fire in Santa Paula. Ironically, Bud had been preparing for a controlled burn a few…
Facing down a freight train of fire
Canada Larga canyon was a windstorm. The trees bent and nearly buckled as the westerly wind howled down the canyon. Smoke smell permeated everything and the moon was a bright…
“Can you hear me now?” – Bentley Ranch keeps lines of communication open
Clif Simonson had been a busy man. When the Thomas Fire swept through his area, the manager of the 1,000 acre Bentley Ranch south of Ojai had immediately swung into…
The Oasis that Held Back the Flames
It only took the helicopter 3 minutes. From the shore of his irrigation reservoir, Jurgen Gramckow watched it swoop toward the water, creating a ring of white spray beneath it…
Retired Fire Chief Bob Roper tells why
In 2009, the Ventura County Fire Protection District produced a Fire Management Plan that identified the “Ventura Fuel Bed” (see map) as part of its countywide wildland fire prevention program. This fuel…
Thomas Fire Highlights Risk of Wildlife Corridor Restrictions
“I have a place in my heart for the town,” Cliff Simonson said, speaking about Ojai in the aftermath of the Thomas Fire. The manager of the 1,000 acre Bentley…
County Provides Relief to Homeowners in Wake of Thomas Fire
In the wake of the destructive impact of the Thomas Fire, the County of Ventura has made initial steps toward helping affected residents and property owners. The County has collaborated…
Bentley Ranch Holds the Line
Clif Simonson was supposed to go to a budget meeting Tuesday. Then the Thomas Fire swept through Ventura County. The manager of the 1,000 acre Bentley Ranch adjacent to the…
Conservation Trust Saves More than Hillsides
Ventura County, “home of the two trees”, has a whole new meaning in light of the Thomas fire. When the smoke cleared above the Ventura hillside revealing housing tracts that…
Volunteers Rally to Help Ventura Horses After Thomas Fire
Aera Energy employee Louise Lampara was one of thousands forced to evacuate their Ventura homes on the night of Monday, Dec. 4 as the Thomas Fire raced toward the city…
County Launches Pre-Approved Building Plans for Farmworker and Accessory Dwellings
The County of Ventura unveiled three standard building plans for single-family homes at a Board of Supervisors meeting in October. These “pre-approved” plans will shorten the process for homes built…
County creates a new economic plan at just the right time
In the midst of a dramatic contraction of Ventura County’s economy, the County of Ventura assembled its first ever Economic Vitality Strategic Plan. This was a much needed addition to…
Local natural gas production reduces out-of-state imports
Did you know that, “Besides having the most expensive electricity west of the Mississippi River in the continental U.S., California already has the least reliable electricity? California easily leads the…
ADU, Housing, Ventura County CoLAB
Ventura County faces fundamental threats to the future of local agriculture if limitations to water diversions from the Santa Clara River are continued, according to a presentation given by United…
County expands housing opportunities through new granny flat ordinance
Ventura County’s ongoing housing shortage continues to be a significant drag on the local economy. Multiple local economists such as Mark Schniepp from the California Economic Forecast in Santa Barbara…
Despite Progress, Wildlife Corridors Could Threaten Farmers, Ranchers and Public
The County of Ventura offered further clues to what landowners, farmers and ranchers can expect from the proposed Wildlife Corridor regulations during a second stakeholder meeting held on August 8.…
County CEO talks dollars and cents at Taxpayers Association Luncheon
The County of Ventura continues to experience a positive budget outlook, although the County still faces challenges from unfunded state mandates and pension obligations, according to a State of the…
Energy Future Depends on Local Oil Reserves
A recent Letter to the Editor by Kimberly Rivers (executive director of CFROG) in the VC Star claimed that drilling new wells in existing local oil fields equates to Ventura County being…
Wildlife Corridors Are Already Wild
The County Board of Supervisors is considering the adoption of a Habitat Connectivity Overlay Zone, which would impose new regulations on agricultural and open space landowners immediately after the renewal…
VC CoLAB Supports the CA Water Fix
On July 5th, Randy Record, Chairman of the Board of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, sent a letter to County CEO, Mike Powers, alerting the County that the…
Water for Oxnard, Camarillo and Moorpark Farms Subject to Allocations
New pumping allocations are being considered for groundwater basins underlying Oxnard, Camarillo, Moorpark and surrounding agricultural areas that could restrict water for farms and forever change the local landscape. Pumping…
Puente Power Project brings benefits, protests to Oxnard
The Puente Power Project to replace the aging Mandalay and Ormond Beach power plants in Oxnard promises to deliver significant benefits to the region, according to a presentation given to…
Ventura LAFCO Persists with “Analysis Paralysis”
The Ventura Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) was true to form with a 4-3 split vote on February 15th, continuing the delay for the City of Ventura’s Northbank project. Developer…
Economic Vitality Strategies Considered by County CEOs Office
Ventura County CoLAB was invited to participate in the County of Ventura’s Economic Vitality Summit, allowing input into an Economic Strategic Plan to be prepared by the CEO’s Office in…
Despite Drought Relief, Water Infrastructure Challenges Remain
The recent heavy rains have relieved drought conditions across the State, but they have also highlighted how much work needs to be done to update California’s aging water infrastructure, according…
CoLAB Push to Improve Surveyor’s Office Gets Results
The Ventura County Surveyor’s Office has made improvements in speeding up approval of important survey map documents, leading to a faster experience for businesses, surveyors and landowners. The improvement efforts came…
When is Enough, Enough?: Wildlife Corridor Proposal Would Add More Regulations on Agriculture
At a packed Board meeting on January 24th filled with CoLAB members and other representatives from the agricultural and business community, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors gave preliminary backing…
County Land Conservation Act Questionnaires Due on April 1st
The Ventura County Assessor mailed out their Annual Agricultural Preserve Questionnaires to current Land Conservation Act (LCA) contract holders in December, with a filing deadline of April 1, 2017. To…
County Supervisor Targets OBGMA
Seeking to extend County authority over water, Supervisor Steve Bennett is targeting the Ojai Basin Groundwater Management Agency (OBGMA), with authority that could be extended to other groundwater basins in…
Parting Thoughts From Matt Guthrie
Prior to joining VC CoLAB, my exposure to the organization was limited mostly to occasional policy committee meetings at various advocacy organizations. I would attend in my role as legislative…