Most people start the New Year with goals, and the Fillmore City Council is doing exactly that. The first Council meeting of 2016 was a special meeting to address the goals that have been completed and those it wants accomplished.

Back in April 3, 2013 Bill Herrera conducted a Town Hall Meeting held at City Hall that was the beginning of a number of Goal Setting Workshop's with the objective of setting priorities and goals for Fillmore, both immediate and long-standing.

At that time there were a number of changes to the council itself, as new members arrived and old members changed their direction or resigned. The issues of the tax monies being withheld by the Board of Equalization was a big issue along with the need for a new City Manager and a new Finance Director; all of which have now been resolved.

The residual affect of the recession and staff hours cut to the bare-bones only added to the difficult issues City Hall was facing. Problems such as record retention and staff identifying what records they did have, the need for reports to be efficient and concise, and not enough staff to function full time were high hurdles. Many of those problems have been addressed and put in order.

Council Member Douglas CONTINUED »

A pedestrian was struck and killed on Highway 126 Sunday, December 27th. The accident happened at 5:20pm near the Sespe Creek Bridge, west of Fillmore. According to the CHP Maria Velasquez, 45, ran across the busy highway from the north side and was struck by a car traveling eastbound. Velasquez, a transient, was taken to VCMC where she was pronounced dead.

Francis Casillas

Traffic collisions, especially around the holidays, are traumatic events that can often be avoided. In the past four days, the California Highway Patrol has investigated two fatal traffic collisions just outside the city of Fillmore, and at about 12:25am, December 30th, the Fillmore Police Department responded to a single-vehicle collision in the area of Ventura St. and D St., Fillmore. They found that Francis Casillas, 21 of Oxnard, had been driving at a high rate of speed, westbound on Ventura St., when she lost control of her vehicle and collided with a power pole. They determined she had been driving under the influence of alcohol, arrested her for 23152(a) VC – DUI, and booked her into the Pre-Trial Detention Facility. Southern California Edison responded to replace the power pole, which was sheared off in the collision, and the immediate area suffered a power outage for several hours. The Fillmore Police Department encourages all motorists to avoid driving while under the influence of alcohol this holiday season. Prepared by: Sergeant Kevin Vaden.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

Fires are universally feared for their destructive and unpredictable nature and can destroy entire neighborhoods if not controlled. On Wednesday, September 30, 2015, just before midnight, deputies from the Thousand Oaks Police Department responded to an alarm call at the Planned Parenthood office. Deputies discovered a fire had been set inside the building. Members of the Ventura County Fire Department responded and quickly extinguished the fire. Much of the first floor of the business sustained significant water damage from the building’s overhead fire sprinkler system; which played a significant part in putting out the fire.

Investigators from Ventura County Sheriff’s Office’s Major Crimes Bureau, along with Arson Investigators from the Ventura County Fire Department began an investigation. Detectives from the Major Crimes Bureau obtained information which led them to Oxnard resident Alvaro Perez as a suspect in the arson. Through various investigative methods and techniques, detectives developed overwhelming evidence that Perez had carried out the arson at Planned Parenthood. On Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016, Major Crimes Detectives arrested Perez for the Planned Parenthood arson.

Perez is currently an inmate at the Pre-Trial Detention Facility / Main jail on other cases wherein he is suspected of committing the following criminal acts: battery, vandalism, violation of a domestic restraining order, domestic-spousal battery and possession of a firearm. His bail for the arson arrest is $50,000; however, Perez has several open cases, one of which he is currently awaiting sentencing on and there is no bail associated with it.

Under California Penal Code Section 451 P.C., maliciously setting a fire is a serious felony that can result in a lengthy prison sentence. Arson is the crime of intentionally, deliberately and maliciously setting fire to buildings, wild land areas, dumpsters, vehicles or other property with the intent to cause damage.

In California, a conviction for arson of property that is not your own is a felony punishable by up to three years in state prison. Aggravated arson, which carries the most severe punishment for arson, is punishable by 10 years to life in state prison.

Throughout the investigation, detectives from the Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau maintained constant communication and sustained collaborative efforts with the FBI, U.S. Marshalls Office, as well as Homeland Security.

Investigators are confident that the criminal acts perpetrated against Planned Parenthood by Perez stemmed from an on-going domestic feud and at no point fell into the category of extremism.

Nature of Incident: Arrest of Planned Parenthood Arson Suspect
Report Number: 15-2044743
Location: 122 W. Hillcrest Dr. Thousand Oaks, CA
Date & Time: 9/30/15 11:22 PM
Unit(s) Responsible: Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau; East County Patrol Services; East County Investigations; Ventura County Fire Department
(S)uspects, (V)ictims, (P)arty, (D)ecedent City of Residence Age
Alvaro Perez Oxnard 24
Prepared by: Sergeant Dean Worthy / Major Crimes Bureau
News Release Date: Jan. 5, 2016
Media Follow-Up Contact: Sergeant Dean Worthy, 805-384-4730, dean.worthy@ventura.org
Approved by: Captain Melissa Smith / Major Crimes Bureau

Ventura County Crime Stoppers will pay up to $1,000 reward for information, which leads to the arrest and criminal complaint against the person(s) responsible for this crime. The caller may remain anonymous. The call is not recorded. Call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).

[Gina Potthoff is a Staff Writer at Noozhawk]

The Los Padres National Forest is partnering with a national conservation group to award $11 million in grants to those with plans to restore watersheds impacted years ago by the Zaca and Piru Fires.

In a first-time partnership, Los Padres is coordinating with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to issue the funds over the next five years, with the first deadline for grantees coming up at 5 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2016.

U.S. Forest Service spokesman Andrew Madsen said partnering with NFWF takes some work off the national forestry’s plate to figure out how to spend the money gained from settlements with parties responsible for those forest fires.

The Zaca Fire that burned in the Santa Ynez Valley in 2007 and the Piru Fire that charred Ventura County acreage in 2003 significantly impacted Los Padres National Forest — burning a combined 280,000-plus acres of national forest land and devastating landscapes, watersheds and ecosystems of the region.

Madsen said an investigation found the Zaca Fire was sparked by a work crew using a grinding machine to repair a water line on private land near Zaca Lake, north of Los Olivos.

The Piru Fire was likewise sparked by construction crews from two Ventura-based contractors, who were using a cutting tool near Piru Lake, he said.

“In the case of Zaca and Piru, that legal process plays out over years and years,” Madsen said of finally receiving settlements in both cases. “The purpose of the money is to rehabilitate.”

NFWF, which has helped award restoration grants in other federal forests, hosted an open house for potential applicants this week at UC Santa Barbara’s Bren Hall.

Through this program, NFWF will invest in projects that provide sustainable and lasting ecological benefits, promote ecological resilience to future wildfires and improve the forest’s capacity to identify and address resource management issues.

Manzana Creek, a tributary to the Sisquoc River in the Zaca Fire boundary, has been identified as a primary focal area for the initial stages of the program, Madsen said.

Possible projects would improve forest health through invasive species eradication, re-vegetation or by targeting the restoration and protection of species like the steelhead trout, California condor and bigcone Douglas-fir tree.

“One of the things that NFWF does very well is leverage the funds we manage with matching funds in order to increase the impact and value of our conservation projects,” said Jim Bond, manager of NFWF’s Southern California Forest office.

“Potential grantees are required to contribute a certain amount of matching value to their proposed projects but it need not necessarily be via donated funds. In-kind services can also count toward match. In that way, groups may fulfill their requirements using the value of time, equipment or labor. This is particularly useful for smaller non-profit groups and other organizations that may have limited operating budgets.”

Bond said biologists, botanists, steelhead experts, trail crews, local nonprofits and more turned out for the open house.

All grant applicants must submit material online through the NFWF website by clicking here.

The first round of awards will be announced May 9, 2016, when approximately $1.5 million will be distributed. Grants will range in size from $25,000 to $500,000 per project, although more funding could be allocated for projects with large benefits or multi-year projects.

According to NFWF, single project grants will typically be awarded to projects that can be completed within 18 months.

[ Original story published by permission available at http://www.noozhawk.com/article/los_padres_national_forest_fire_watershe... ]

SACRAMENTO - The health advisory regarding Dungeness and rock crabs caught along the coast between the Santa Barbara/Ventura County Line and Latitude 35° 40' N (near Piedras Blancas Light Station, in San Luis Obispo County) is being lifted along the coasts of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Smith updated the advisory today because recent tests show that levels of domoic acid have declined to low or undetectable levels in crabs caught in these areas.

The advisory remains in effect for state waters around Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel Islands and areas north of Latitude 35° 40' N due to continued elevated levels of domoic acid in crabs caught in those areas. Consumers should not eat Dungeness or rock crabs from those areas. The advisory will be lifted in those areas once ongoing monitoring by CDPH determines crabs from those areas are safe to consume.

CDPH and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment concur that crabs caught along the coast south of Latitude 35° 40' N are safe to consume. However, as a precaution, consumers are advised not eat the viscera (internal organs, also known as “butter” or “guts”) of crabs. The viscera usually contain much higher levels of domoic acid than crab body meat. When whole crabs are cooked in liquid, domoic acid may leach from the viscera into the cooking liquid. Water or broth used to cook whole crabs should be discarded and not used to prepare dishes such as sauces, broths, soups or stews (for example, cioppino or gumbo), stocks, roux, dressings or dips.

The best ways to reduce risk are:

1) Remove the crab viscera and rinse out the body cavity prior to cooking, or
2) Boil or steam whole crabs, instead of frying or broiling, and discard cooking liquids.
Symptoms of domoic acid poisoning can occur within 30 minutes to 24 hours after eating toxic seafood. In mild cases, symptoms may include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, headache and dizziness. These symptoms disappear within several days. In severe cases, the victim may experience trouble breathing, confusion, disorientation, cardiovascular instability, seizures, excessive bronchial secretions, permanent loss of short-term memory (a condition known as Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning), coma or death. There have been no reported illnesses associated with this year’s domoic acid event.

Domoic acid accumulation in seafood is a natural occurrence that is related to a “bloom” of a particular single-celled plant. The conditions that support the growth of this plant are impossible to predict. While the bloom that occurred earlier this year has dissipated, it takes a period of time for the organisms feeding on the phytoplankton to eliminate the domoic acid from their bodies.

CDPH will continue to coordinate its efforts with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the fishing community to collect crab samples from the central and northern California coast until the domoic acid levels have dissipated.

To receive updated information about shellfish poisoning and quarantines, call CDPH’s toll-free Shellfish Information Line at (800) 553-4133. For additional information, visit CDPH’s Natural Marine Toxins: PSP and Domoic Acid Web page and CDPH’s Domoic Acid health information Web page.

Ventura County Supervisors are up-in-arms over a project impacting the County that has many officials complaining about discussions in a somewhat secretive deal-making process. The issue is a project that would have 43,000 one-way truckloads of sand, driven five days a week through numerous towns all across Ventura County, to a beach in Malibu.

In 2012 Broad Beach homeowners created an assessment district, the Broad Beach Geologic Hazard Abatement District (GHAD) to tax themselves $31 million. The money is needed to replenish and create an expansive public beach in front of their Malibu homes. But getting the proper sand needed became a huge problem. After years of searching, GHAD found it in Ventura County rock quarries.

A problem arose when it was discovered that the selected route to deliver the sand from Grimes Canyon rock quarry to Malibu was not made public before being agreed upon. The project would have thousands of truckloads of sand traveling north through Fillmore, instead of a more direct route through Moorpark.

Two months ago, CONTINUED »