Sheriff-Elect Bill Ayub is pleased to announce that Monica McGrath has been selected to fill the position of Undersheriff and Chris Dunn will be appointed to fill the position of Assistant Sheriff. These high-level organizational vacancies are behind the upcoming retirements of Undersheriff Gary Pentis and Sheriff Geoff Dean and will be effective November 18, 2018.

Monica McGrath is a 29-year veteran of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and has a wide diversity of experience in every division of the organization. Monica rose through the ranks and achieved the position of sheriff’s commander. Along the way she worked many assignments including recruit training officer, property crimes and sexual assault detective, internal affairs investigator, and chief of police for the cities of Fillmore and Camarillo. Having retired in 2016, Monica’s return to service with the Sheriff’s Office at the executive level adds an essential depth of perspective and experience needed to help guide the agency into the future. As the Undersheriff, Monica will serve as the Acting Sheriff in the Sheriff’s absence and she will have executive oversight of the entire agency’s operations.

Chris Dunn is a 33-year veteran of law enforcement. Having begun his professional career as a Ventura County Sheriff’s Cadet, Chris became a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy sheriff in 1988. He transferred to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office in 1994 and has served the citizens of Ventura County for the past 24 years. Chris has climbed each of the ranks and worked challenging assignments in every division of the Sheriff’s Office, including major crimes Investigator and acting police chief for the cities of Ojai and Camarillo. He is also a recently retired lieutenant commander in the United States Navy Reserve. Chris currently serves as the commander of the Sheriff’s Support Services Division. As one of two Assistant Sheriffs, Chris will have executive-level oversight of the Patrol and Special Services Divisions.

The Sheriff’s Office is the largest law enforcement agency in Ventura County, having more than 1,200 employees and providing police services to the unincorporated areas of the county, as well as the cities of Moorpark, Thousand Oaks, Ojai, Fillmore, and Camarillo. In addition, the Sheriff’s Office staffs and operates the county jails, courthouse security, a crime laboratory, a regional training center, an aviation unit, search & rescue resources, the Office of Emergency Services, and much more. For more information about the Sheriff’s Office, please visit our website at www.vcsd.org and follow us on Facebook/VenturaCountySheriff, Twitter@VenturaSheriff, and Instagram/VCSheriff.

Prepared by: Sheriff-Elect Bill Ayub
Approved by: Sheriff-Elect Bill Ayub

At Tuesday's Special Joint Meeting of the City Council and Planning Commission the following new business occurred:
Resident Norma Amaro reminded Council of the special October 6 open house in the Central Avenue business district. Special pricing on many products will be available.

NEW BUSINESS
A review and design comment on three traffic circles within the Heritage Valley Parks Specific Plan area was undertaken. Unanimous approval was given to the placement of a tree in the landscaping area.

The applicant, Hearthstone Multi-Asset, Entity C, LLC, is constructing public improvements (Rio Vista Park, streets, traffic circles, bike paths, etc.) in Tract 5496, which is known as The Bridges subdivision. The traffic circles are one of the remaining public improvements to be constructed that do not yet have a final approved design.

A single tree in the center of the traffic circle was decided upon. The cost of a "specimen" tree would be $173,010. This was determined to be the least expensive among 14 alternatives. The Planning Commission reviewed the above alternative and, based upon City staff recommendation, the Planning Commission recommends the City Council accept the design of a Large Specimen Tree (California Live Oak, 8’x’8’ box).

PUBLIC HEARING - INITIATION OF REORGANIZATION (ANNEXATION 17-01) FOR A 2.03-ACRE PARCEL AS PART OF HERITAGE VALLEY PARKS SPECIFIC PLAN IMPLEMENTATION (APN 054-0-010-335).
The annexation is proposed for a City-owned parcel which will include the east entry and Heritage Valley Parkway. It is located immediately south of State Route (“SR”) -126 and north of the Santa Paula Branch Line railroad tracks. Use of the property would be for a public road (the extension of Heritage Valley Parkway from Phase 1 through the Phase 2 area, connecting with SR 126), entry design features, and a drainage/water quality facility.

Phase 1 of the Specific Plan is currently under construction and will soon be complete.

Phase 2 of the Specific Plan includes the construction of 459 dwelling units, a community park, and infrastructure to support the build-out of the Specific Plan area. This annexation is for an area necessary for infrastructure including the extension of Heritage Valley Parkway from the Phase 1 area, through the Phase 2 residential area, and connecting to SR 126 in the proposed annexation area.

The Planning Commission reviewed the Annexation request on August 15, 2018 and had no comments and supported the annexation.

The plan was unanimously approved by the Council.

DESIGN REVIEW OF THE CITY GATEWAY (EAST ENTRY) OF THE HERITAGE VALLEY PARKS (BRIDGES) SUBDIVSION
Two of the eight green bridge sections owned by the City shall be installed by the Applicant as part of the projects easterly entry. The project entry shall be completed including the theme boulevard intersection at Hwy 126 and appropriate Hwy 126 improvements prior to occupancy of the second 50% of Phase 2 or the first unit of the Villas which ever shall first occur. This action was approved unanimously by Council.

SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT AND MAINTENANCE SERVICES AGREEMENT
The City Council approved an agreement with Precision Concrete Cutting (“Precision”) for Sidewalk Assessment and Maintenance Services. The motion passed unanimously, following a discussion of safety issues.

AN AGREEMENT WITH THE FILLMORE ROPING CLUB TO USE THE FILLMORE EQUESTRIAN CENTER was approved unanimously. The Club has used the facility for more than 20-years.

Monday, Oct. 1, 7:00 - 7:50 PM at Fillmore City Council Chambers, 250 Central Avenue.

Candidates Forum for Fillmore City Council (3 candidates).

For more information or questions, please contact David Maron at 805-469-4900 or davidm@maronsoftware.com.

Jessica Largey, a 2004 graduate of Fillmore High School, is now the starred Chef at Simone- a new restaurant opening Thursday night, September 20, 2018. Simone, named after legendary singer Nina Simone, partnered with film director Joe Russo (Avengers: Infinity Wars) and Bruno Bagbeni (Fraiche and Bastide). Food and Wine describes Simone as “a stunner.” Located in the Arts District in Los Angeles, it is billed as one of the most anticipated Los Angeles restaurant openings in years. Jessica was trained at the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena and honed her skills in fine dining restaurants, such as Providence on Melrose in Los Angeles under the mentorship of Chef Michael Cimarusti; Bastide in West Hollywood; world famous The Fat Duck in England, and as chef de cuisine at 3 Michelin Star Manresa in Los Gatos, CA under head chef David Kinch. After Manressa, Jessica collaborated on a joint menu at the rotating chef restaurant Intro in Chicago.

In 2013, Zagat named Jessica as one of their "30 under 30" for San Francisco, as well as winning the title of Rising Star Chef from StarChefs.com and Eater.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Largey - cite_note-intro-2 In 2015, at the Lincoln Center in New York City, Jessica was presented with the James Beard Foundation Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year - dubbed the culinary “Oscar” because there is no higher culinary award.

On Wednesday CONTINUED »

A drive-by shooting took place on Saturday, September 22, 2018 at 4:37 p.m. in the area of Clay and Bard Street, Fillmore. Approximately a half hour later a victim with a gunshot wound was admitted to Santa Paula Hospital. It was not confirmed whether the victim and the Fillmore incident were related. The victim’s wound was non-life-threatening. Ventura County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau is investigating.

Bob Crum

It was so exciting I hardly know where to begin but begin I must. Last Sunday, aboard Island Packer's ship the Islander, I sailed to Fry's Harbor at Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands National Park. So many photo ops. So much frustration!

The trip from Ventura Harbor to Santa Cruz Island requires crossing the Santa Barbara channel. Though not a travel column, a little background info is pertinent.

The Santa Barbara Channel, extending from Point Conception to Cape Colnett, Baja, CA, is an incredibly diverse and biologically productive ecosystem. Flowing between two land masses creates a transition zone. This transition zone promotes large concentrations of both biomass and species diversity. The upwelling provides unusually high levels of nutrients, especially macrozooplankton, which are one of the primary driving forces behind the Channel’s biological productivity and diversity. Thus it's a vast cafeteria for many predators including dolphin which on average need to eat 20-50 pounds of fish/day. And the munchies are plentiful in the Channel.

On the way to the island, we first encountered a pod of relatively rare Risso dolphins. First time seeing these cetaceans. As described by the Monterey Bay Aquarium, “Risso dolphins, like a battered boxer, the bulky, blunt-headed Risso's dolphin bear lots of scars. Its Latin species name griseus refers to the skin's ghostly gray-white mottling—an effect enhanced with age by extensive scarring made by the teeth of its own kind or by beaks and tentacles of squid, its preferred prey.” It was not a large pod. Difficult to photograph because they were not leaping, only cruising. Dorsal fins themselves are not exciting.

Closer to the island, we encountered a huge pod of the more common bottle-nose dolphin. I confess I need more experience photographing these frolicking animals. So many dolphins over a large area it's nearly impossible to know where to point the camera. Point over there, and they leap over here. Point here, and many suddenly leap over there. An exasperating guessing game. Luck also comes to mind. It's much more challenging to accomplish than one might imagine.

On to Fry's Harbor. But first a side trip up to the Painted Cave. Oh my, what a treat! Captain Luke took the big ship a little way into the cave. Interesting! Then back to Fry's Harbor. The Islander anchors 100 yards from shore. A small motorized skiff transports us six at a time to the beach. On the way, I got a photo of an osprey up on a cliff.

On the island, a naturalist led a hike through a dense oak grove through which a small creek flowed fed by a natural spring. Two species of oaks, the imported species from the mainland with sprawling limbs being the most photogenic. In the shade, an 1860's campground used by islanders of yore.

After many island photos, time to return. A few miles later, another huge pod of bottle-nose dolphin. After another exhaustive attempt to get the 'wowza' dolphin photo, I put the camera aside and just gleefully watched the fascinating creatures. If only I had a boat!

Photographically, because of adverse glare, I used a circular polarizing filter on the lens. Also, because the boat is in constant motion, and the dolphin always moving fast, I used a fast shutter speed. Proper exposure accomplished by adjusting aperture with ISO on auto.

So many exciting photographs from which to choose, it was difficult selecting just one for the photo of the week. Ultimately I selected a photo of the bottle-nose dolphin. I need to go again!

Send your comments, questions or suggestions to: focusonphotography@earthlink.net