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Theresa Robledo with Civic Pride Vision 20/20 had the pleasure to present Yard of the Month to Dave & Jeana Miller. “I have always been interested in gardening, probably from the days of watering the vegetable garden at my grandparents on La Campana Rd. (Hardison Ranch). It is in my genes, my other grandparents lived in Rancho Sespe and my grandfather ran the nursery. I love a nice lawn, but with water issues and the need of low maintenance and my back yard being 4 times this size, I planted mostly succulents and cactus. Plants include, Lavender Scallop, Silver Dollar, multiple varieties of Jade and Aloe, Sublanum, Euphorbia, Jacob Ladder, Russian Sage, Bougainvillea, Silver Pig Ears and some plants I don’t know the name of”. Please drive by 339 Second St and view this beautiful corner lot home.

We would like to thank Otto & Sons Nursery for the generous gift certificate and Diamond Realty for the gift of wine to the Millers!

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Vision 2020, Civic Pride Committee, held a workshop at the King Ranch to create succulent terrariums and bee condos for the solitary, native bees in the area to lay their eggs. There are an estimated 90 species of native bees in California. In fact, the main pollinator for avocado trees is a native bee!

These bees are also in decline, like the honey producing European “hive” bees, so the “condos” are a great addition to the garden.

These terrariums and native bee condos will be part of the plants and gardening elements available in the Fillmore Flower Show boutique for a donation.

The Flower Show provides an opportunity for different generations to interact and show off their creativity. “Birds, Bugs and Beautiful Blooms”, might well be seen.

The show is on April 8,9 and brochures are in City Hall, the Library, Patterson’s Hardware and the Treasure Station, with all the information needed to enter. The show will be open to the public each day from1-4pm and it is FREE.

Leslie Klinchuch

Written By Leslie Klinchuch, Chevron Project Manager

The PCPL site is now eligible for partial removal from the Superfund list for surface soils because all cleanup actions for soil are completed and validated by the EPA and the State of California, and there is no risk to human health and the environment. Partial removal from Superfund will align the site status with its cleanup progress and further the goal for eventual removal from the Superfund list, formally known as the National Priorities List, after groundwater cleanup is completed. Nearly 400 sites have been cleaned up and removed from the National Priorities List since the program’s inception in 1980. There is strong precedent for partial deletion of surface soils for Superfund sites that also have ongoing groundwater cleanup, because groundwater cleanup typically takes many years. EPA established the Partial Deletion Rule in 1995, to allow portions of Superfund sites that have met cleanup goals to be “delisted”, because they recognize that waiting until the entire site is eligible for delisting can be a barrier to productive uses that benefit communities because of the “stigma” associated with Superfund sites.

To put the PCPL site in proper perspective, it’s important to note that the soil conditions at the site never qualified for the National Priorities List. The initial listing of the site in 1989 was based on groundwater only. Also, the initial criteria for Superfund sites set forth by EPA at that time was not as science-based as it became a few years later. If the site had been evaluated under the current criteria, it would not have become a Superfund site because drinking water supplies were never threatened.

What would partial Superfund deletion of surface soils mean for the City of Fillmore? Let me start with what it would not mean:
1. This step would NOT change the ongoing groundwater cleanup effort nor Chevron’s monitoring obligations for the property. Groundwater beneath the site will remain on the Superfund list until the 1 part per billion cleanup goal for benzene is met. And EPA will continue to oversee and inspect the PCPL site in perpetuity to assure long-term protectiveness of the engineered caps.

2. Land use restrictions will NOT change, neither by partial deletion now nor with complete deletion from Superfund in the future. Deed restrictions will run with the land.

3. There is no financial gain for Chevron by partial deletion from Superfund. Chevron will pay the required resource cost for the partial deletion process, as well as its ongoing obligations for the PCPL site. Chevron withdrew its own commercial/industrial development plan for the site after the solar energy conditional use permit was approved. Chevron will not receive revenue from the planned solar facility, with the exception of a nominal rent payment from the solar firm that leases the land. And the solar facility will operate for a minimum of 30 years and likely longer.

What partial deletion might mean for Fillmore:
• It may reduce unwanted stigma for your community that may continue to cause undue concern for neighboring property owners.
• It may help to facilitate a future opportunity for hillside passive recreation, if the County or City would like to pursue that option.
• It may make it easier to gain community support should the city decide to pursue annexation of the property in the future.

In closing, the former refinery / PCPL site shares Fillmore’s 100-year history and the community’s rich heritage. The community should be especially proud of the Texaco refinery’s patriotic history during World War II and the contributions that Texaco employees and their families made to Fillmore over the years. But we know that being on the Superfund list is not a source of pride for you. The goal of cleanup is removal from Superfund and the partial deletion for surface soils is an appropriate step at this point in the process. I hope that the Council will agree to support this effort by writing a letter to EPA that we may include with the partial deletion petition.

Scholarship In memory of Diana Rojo, is now available. This scholarship is offered to Fillmore High School Seniors who aspire to make a difference in the world. Diana was a member of the Fillmore Women's Service Club for over 10 years, a resident of Fillmore for 24 years and all four of her children graduated from Fillmore High School. With this scholarship we hope to continue her legacy of providing higher education to every person deserving of the opportunity. This scholarship application is now available at Fillmore High School Career Center with the submission deadline of April 6th. For more information you can call 524-2020.

Ventura and LA County, CA - Southern steelhead are an ocean going form of rainbow trout that need freshwater for survival, and cold, clean water within their environment is vital to the species success. Water quality in the Santa Clara River, its estuary and tributaries, essential steelhead freshwater environments in Southern California, have deteriorated as a result of pollutants draining off surrounding urbanized and farmed land. Strategies for protecting the water quality in the estuary, as well as other stream and river habitats, will be presented in a public program ‘Attaining Clean Water for Fish, Farms and Families’ on March 27 at 6:30pm at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center (Hueneme Room), 800 Hobson Way, Oxnard.

“California’s rivers and landscapes have been highly altered and, as a result, water quality for fish habitat has suffered,” explains Candice Meneghin, CalTrout Southern California Conservation Manager, “however, there is a suite of solutions for achieving improvement, ranging from state regulations to funding and incentives.” The program will feature water quality experts and professionals including staff from the California State Regional Water Quality Control Board, Ventura County Farm Bureau, and stream monitoring task forces.

Program attendees can expect to come away with a better understanding of why freshwater habitat quality is impacted, what contaminants are present, and how to improve the current water quality conditions to allow steelhead populations to thrive jointly with agricultural and urban development.

Water Talks are an ongoing series of informational and educational presentations which include local and regional speakers sharing their knowledge on a range of water related topics. The programs is intended to increase informed participation in water policy through interaction between community members and experts. All Water Talks are free, open to the public and hosted by the Santa Clara River Steelhead Coalition whose mission is to protect and restore wild Southern steelhead and its habitat in the Santa Clara River watershed. The Coalition is chaired and coordinated by California Trout, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring resilient wild fish in healthy waters for a better California.

For more information contact Nina Danza, California Trout Project Coordinator at 805-605-6211 or ndanza@caltrout.org.

Angel Ortega

The Angel R. Ortega Family wants to thank everyone in Fillmore, Piru, and Bardsdale for your generous donations, thoughts, and prayers to our family after our house fire on January 5th.

We are currently living in Thousand Oaks and are planning to move back to Fillmore once our home is rebuilt, hopefully in less than a year.

Thank you all again from the bottom of our hearts.

Sincerely,
The Angel R. Ortega Family

Submitted By Jan Lee
The Fillmore Civic Pride Committee would like to extend to residents in the Fillmore Unified School District an invitation to participate in the 2017 Annual Fillmore Flower Show on April 8th and 9th, 2017. The theme this year is: “Birds, Bugs and Beautiful Blooms”. Bring entries to the Active Adult Center, 533 Santa Clara Street in Fillmore.

In addition to eight competitive divisions (Single Stem Cut Roses, Single Stem Cut Iris, Other Single Stem Cut Flowers, Bouquets, Arrangements, Miniature Arrangements and Bouquets, Potted Plants, Dish Gardens) there are two divisions especially for YOUTH.

Division IX—Youth Arrangements Flower displays limited to 20 inches by 20 inches, to be arranged at the show without adult help other than the youth show supervisor. Students are judged in three age categories and a team category.

Division X—Youth Composition Youth through grade 12 write and enter an original poem or short essay on a single page, with or without an illustration on the theme of the flower show, “Birds, Bugs and Beautiful Blooms”.

Fillmore is indeed a beautiful community! We hope many will participate in the Fillmore Flower Show again this year. Our young people sometimes need encouragement to create an entry. The theme this year seems especially exciting. We would appreciate anything you can do to help our youth step forward to demonstrate their talents.

Rules, time, location and many photographs of previous flower shows are on our website: fillmoreflowershow.com. For questions call: (805) 524-3021 or (805) 625-4354.

Applications are now available for the FILLMORE WOMEN’S SERVICE CLUB Trade and Art Scholarships. Any graduating High School Senior going to a Public or Private School, who RESIDES within the Fillmore Unified School District and is continuing on to a Trade School or a Community College to pursue a career in the Arts. GRADES are not a factor. Applications are available at Fillmore High School or by telephoning Susan Banks at 805-524-2020. DEADLINE is Thursday April 6th, 2017

Applications are now available for the FILLMORE WOMEN’S SERVICE CLUB Educational Scholarships. Any graduating High
School Senior going to a Public or Private School, who RESIDES within the Fillmore Unified School District and is continuing on to a College or University can apply. Applications are available at Fillmore High School or by telephoning Susan Banks at 805-524-2020. DEADLINE is Thursday April 6th, 2017

Written by Maria Christopher

Ventura County Third District Supervisor Kelly Long was one of the participants in the Heritage Valley Tourism Bureau's (HVTB ) Annual Member Meeting held February 1st at the Santa Paula Depot. HVTB members and others interested in local tourism met to review the group's accomplishments for the past year and discuss effective short term and long term strategies for increasing the economic benefits of tourism throughout the Heritage Valley.

The Heritage Valley Tourism Bureau was established in 1997 with the support of local governments as a member based organization of individual entities working together to promote the entire Santa Clara River Valley / Highway 126 corridor from the City of Ventura to the eastern county line.

Their focus is to market what tourism related opportunities the communities of Piru, Fillmore, Santa Paula, and surrounding areas, have to offer to visitors and locals. They do this primarily though print, electronic media, and personal contact. Membership is open to anyone interested in local tourism and ideas and suggestions are welcome from everyone. Contact info@heritagevalley.net or call 805-524.7500 for more information.

The 2017 HVTB officers were also elected at the Board of Directors Meeting following the Membership Meeting. They include: President Maria Christopher (Rancho Camulos Museum), Vice-President Ari Larson (Fillmore Chamber of Commerce), Secretary Cindy Jackson (CJ Financials), and Treasurer Ron Lewis (Santa Clara River Valley Railroad Historical Society).

Award winning mystery authors, D.J. Adamson, Nancy Cole Silverman, and Laurie Stevens will provide individual instruction and guidance for those who need inspiration to start that special book of fiction or non-fiction. If you have completed a book, the panel can show you how to promote yourself and find the best and most affordable publishing options. This free workshop will be held at the Fillmore Library 502 Second Street on Saturday, February 25th from 1pm-3pm. For more information contact the Fillmore Library at 524-3355 or www.vencolibrary.org

Come to the Taco Llama parking lot at 9:00 on the February 18 to help clean up the bike path AND find hidden treasures! This is the special bike path clean up.

COME ENJOY THE FUN and help keep your community looking nice! All are welcome!

Younger children must be supervised by an adult. It is a fun family outing! For more information, call Lynn Edmonds @ 907-6576.