Nova Storage Fillmore held a gala grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony on August 25th. Owner Larry Layne did the honors with a giant pair of scissors.

Mayor Diane McCall, members of the Fillmore Chamber of Commerce and City Council, along with many residents and tenants were in attendance.

The Fillmore High School Boys Varsity CIF Soccer Champions also came by to participate in the festivities. Upbeat music was provided by Octopus Dreamland, a group of young local musicians.

Located behind the Fillmore Fire Department and accessed off Sespe Place, Nova Storage has added 41 new storage units to accommodate the town's growing needs for self-storage. In addition, the upper level RV parking has been resurfaced and Nova is installing a new security access gate to the property and individual unit alarms for each tenant.

Future plans include the construction of a new three-story self-storage building with 40,000 square feet of storage and entrances from both the present driveway and off First Street.

Operational changes for tenant convenience include the acceptance of credit cards for rent payments as well as signing up for automatic billing or making online payments at www.NovaStorage.com. Every effort is being made to make doing business here as convenient and pleasant as possible.

The management team at Nova Storage Fillmore consists of property manager Bob Crum and assistant manager Cynthia Juarez. Nova prefers to use local service providers, so please drop by and introduce yourself to Bob and let us know how we can work together!

A hearty thank you to all who stopped in and participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony, and to Body Image Gym and the Hair Gallery for the door prizes and Vallarta for the tasty food.

With over 40 new units now available, Nova Storage Fillmore invites anyone with storage needs to come by and have a look. Regular business hours are 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m., daily – closed major holidays.

California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Smith urges recreational water users to avoid close contact with water bodies containing blue-green algae. Since June of this year, blue-green algae blooms have been identified in more than two dozen freshwater reservoirs, lakes and streams statewide.

A list of current algal blooms is available online. The state recommends that people and pets avoid contact with affected bodies of water.

“Boaters and swimmers across the state should be aware of posted signs that indicate the presence of blue-green algae,” said Dr. Smith. “These blooms can produce toxins that pose a health risk if the affected water is touched or swallowed. Signs of blue-green algae poisoning include eye irritation, skin rashes, mouth ulcers, vomiting, diarrhea and cold and flu-like symptoms.”

Blue-green algae poisoning is most common and symptoms, including death, can be more severe in pets and livestock because they tend to drink the water from affected lakes and reservoirs. Children and adults can experience serious injury to the liver, kidney and nervous system if affected water is swallowed. Medical treatment should be sought immediately if a person, pet or livestock is suspected to have blue-green algae poisoning.

Blue-green algae, also called cyanobacteria, are microscopic bacteria that have been found in freshwater lakes, rivers and streams across the state this summer. The algal blooms can appear as blue-green, white or brown foam, scum or mats that typically float on the water’s surface and collect along shorelines and boat ramp areas. Blooms are caused by slow-moving warm water and high levels of nutrients in the water. They can move, grow or shrink depending on conditions.

Common water purification techniques, including camping filters, tablets and boiling, do not remove toxins from affected water.

The state recommends guidance for people who recreate at affected water bodies:

• Take care that pets and livestock do not drink the water, swim through algae, scums or mats, or lick their fur after going in the water. Rinse pets in clean water to remove algae from fur.
• Avoid wading, swimming, or jet or water skiing in water containing algae blooms, scums or mats.
• Do not drink, cook or wash dishes with untreated surface water from these areas under any circumstances. Common water purification techniques, such as camping filters, tablets and boiling, do not remove toxins.
• People should not eat mussels or other bivalves collected from these areas. Limit or avoid eating fish from these areas. If fish are consumed, remove the guts and liver, and rinse filets in clean drinking water.
• Get medical treatment immediately if you think that you, your children, your pet or livestock might have been poisoned by blue-green algae toxins. Be sure to alert the medical professional to the possible contact with blue-green algae. Also, make sure to contact the local county public health department.

www.cdph.ca.gov

In July of 2015 the City of Fillmore evicted the nonprofit senior center organization from its building on Santa Clara Street. The city proceeded to greatly expand the facility's programs under the name Fillmore Active Adult and Community Center. The entire building was renovated and a new library and internet room was added.

The nonprofit moved to a new location on Central Avenue. It (Fillmore Senior Center) filed suit against the city for untimely termination of the lease. Others thought the suit was frivolous, but Senior Center doggedly pursued the action. The Senior Center lawyer warned the city council that it faced substantial loss of revenue if the suit went forward. The city chose to defend against the suit, and won.

The Senior Center's lease with the city provides that the loser must pay legal fees to the winner in any lawsuit between the parties. Patty Walker, President of the board of Fillmore Senior Center Inc. has stated "We don't have the money." Walker has told the press that she will consult her attorney for further advise. Fillmore's city attorney stated that the issue will be decided in closed session at Tuesday's council meeting.

(l-r) Councilmember Rick Neal and Councilmember Douglas Tucker will not seek reelection.

Council members Douglas Tucker and Rick Neal will not seek reelection in November.

Speculation continues about their reasons for leaving the Fillmore City Council. Many believe their decision not to run for a second term is based on their connection to a bullying atmosphere which contributed to the suicide of much loved former Fillmore Fire Chief, Rigo Landeros.

At a City Council open goals-setting meeting held two days before Landeros' death, Rick Neal implied some financial wrongdoing by Landeros concerning the fireman's foundation fund. His attack was halted by two council members because the issue was not on the agenda. Former councilman-mayor, Roger Campbell is quoted as saying "I quit talking with them [Tucker and Neal] after the incident with Rigo, and I suspect that's what happened throughout the town of Fillmore."

Both Tucker and Neal deny harassing or bullying Landeros. In February following Landeros' death, the Council passed a new code of conduct regarding council behavior.

Councilman Manuel Minjares is running for reelection and is joined by Tim Holmgren and Mark Austin.

A new $8 million firehouse will be constructed by the County of Ventura on a 2.7-acre plot near the intersection of Highway 126 and C Street. The existing station at 613 Old Telegraph Road is too small to allow needed expansion.

The new station will be more than three times the size of the current station at 15,000 square feet. The County has budgeted for 5 new stations: upper Ojai, Newbury Park, Thousand Oaks and lake Sherwood and Fillmore. The Fillmore station will start in October and be completed in 2018.

I have hiked up Sespe Creek many times during nearly 30 years in Fillmore. Apparently the property owner at the end of Grand Ave. has decided that he and his chosen few alone are now permitted access to this famous, 32-mile canyon watershed.

It's been a long time since I hiked the Sespe but I will give it another try this weekend if the weather cooperates. But my effort to enter the Sespe again will be met with much more difficulty than in previous years. This, because a heavy steel cable fence has been constructed from the property owner's house, along the roadway for perhaps two hundred yards. This fencing has cut off all the parking area leading to Sespe Creek access.

I've had confrontations with the property owner in the past, if the same man still owns that area. I have a bias here since I had to report the land owner's conduct to the Sheriff's department. On one occasion he threw rocks at me from his perch some 20 feet above the water. On another, he scrambled down the cliff to personally confront me, which was also reported. I have "served" him with papers showing the public right to pass through his property but he was unimpressed. Neither was I as I continued north.

For more than a hundred years citizens of Fillmore have enjoyed trips up the Sespe, often to places like Swallow's Nest and Devil's Gate. The Sespe leads into true pristine wilderness, the land of the condor sanctuary.

On too many occasions in the past various owners of the property, which encompasses the Sespe entryway, have sought to stop public access. Most of us respect private property, as a sacred constitutional right. But it's not an absolute right; it can come with reasonable restrictions, such as easements for important public use. The property enclosing the entry to Sespe Creek is such an area. The property owner may have fee title to the land, but he owns it only subject to a public use easement.

In this case the public's right is much more than a mere easement, it is a state constitutional trust guaranteeing public access and use. Between the high-water mark and the creek bed the public has a constitutionally guaranteed right to enter, and use the area for any lawful activity. Blocking such right of entry can be a criminal offense. The high-water mark in this place in the Sespe is the top of the western bank.

The public's right to enter and use Sespe Creek is based upon the fact that California has determined it to be a "navigable river" under several statutes, supported by case law. It makes no difference if the Sespe is dry as a bone in some years, it is deemed a "navigable river" in law and as such the public cannot be denied entry and use.

In a case involving Piru Creek the court said: "...It is equally well established that although abutting landowners own the land between the high-and low-water marks, their ownership is subject to a public trust for purposes such as navigation, fishing, and recreation." Bess v. County of Humboldt, (3 Cal App 4th at 1544, 5 Cal Rptr. 2d at 399).

Let it be clear, I am not a lawyer. This information was provided by the American Whitewater association which specializes in such cases.

So, the public may access Sespe Creek whenever it wishes, to fish, hunt, camp, or recreate in any lawful manner. According to my research, the fencing at the southern entry to Sespe Creek, which impedes public access, and the sign which threatens trespass proceedings against those who dare to enter the Sespe at the end of Grand Avenue, are unlawful.

At this time complaints are being prepared with various governmental agencies, seeking the removal of all barriers to public entry to Sespe Creek. This includes the Environmental Protection Agency.

Enjoy your hikes - and please report any personal confrontations with the property owner in question.

P.S. I will be making a photo hike up the Sespe this weekend or next. I'll let you know how it goes.