Have you lived in or visited Ventura County, California? Tell us about it!
Ventura
June 2018 —I grew up in the early nineties in Ventura, California. Ventura is a small coastal town in Southern California with direct views of two of the Channel Islands, Anacapa and Santa Cruz. There is a definite surf vibe to this place, pretty much everyone in Ventura has tried at least once. I would spend every summer as a child going to the beach at least once a week, it is a great place to grow up. There are not that many people, about 100,000, which considering the area is really not bad. You never have to wait that long for a restaurant, there is no traffic and everyone is nice to one another. This has been a great place to grow up, I like it so much I stayed and bought a house here. People are relaxed and life is calm, a lot of the activities in Ventura are centered on doing something involving the water. I have always liked to go to the pier at sunset, especially during summer and walk my dog and watch the sun go down. There is something so beautiful and peaceful about such a simple event, it will never get old for me. I also love the food here, because we are right on the ocean, seafood is prevelant. My favorite is fish tacos, I could eat them every day and not tire of them at all, they are the best!
Port Hueneme
May 2018 — Port Hueneme is a small town, only four miles by four miles. It is known primarily for two things – the port, where goods such as vehicles, fruits, and vegetables are brought in, and the naval base that takes up half of the town. The residents of this town are usually members of the navy or blue collar workers and their families. It has a calm beach with a pier that is popular for fishing. The weather here is ideal, especially for California. The average temperature is 70-75 degrees. It is usually sunny, but as it is a beach town, it can get somewhat foggy in the colder months. People tend to come and go quite often from this town, but there are residents who have been here for a long time who try to establish a sense of community. They have a few events for the community, such as a monthly food truck event at the beach, a family Christmas event at city hall, and a summer festival at the port. Besides these events or going to the beach, there is not much in the way of entertainment in town, but it does have a few popular local restaurants that also attract people from outside of town. It is relatively crime free. There are a few homeless people that are somewhat known around town, but they are not considered a nuisance. Overall, Port Hueneme is not very lively or exciting, but it is a calm, quiet place to live.
Thousand Oaks
May 2018–Thousand Oaks, Ventura county, California, USA. Thousand Oaks is part of a larger area, Conejo Valley. I like being able to see the mountains. The population was almost 130,000 in 2010, as determined by the US census. Thousand Oaks has been growing, but I usually don’t feel overcrowded. Lately, a lot of road work is being done & therefore, slowing traffic, making it seem overcrowded though. One thing I like about Ventura County is that the sales tax, 7.25%, isn’t unreasonable. Our Los Angeles neighbors to the south pay a 9.5% sales tax. I like the variety of parks in Thousand Oaks, from dog parks to parks with hiking trails. I like the mild fall, winter & spring weather. Although we occasionally experience Santa Ana winds, thankfully, they usually aren’t the fierce, dry, hot winds that occur in the Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. I wish we got more rainfall & I don’t like the hot days of August & September. We are fairly close to the beach, which I love. When we first moved in, in 1990, we lived in a new tract home where we knew all our neighbors. We know only 3 of them now, as the others have moved out. I wish we knew more of our neighbors now.
Newbury Park, Thousand Oaks
May 2018 — I’ve been living in Thousand Oaks for a number of years now and I have to say that compared to the rest of the Southern area of California, it’s truly a quiet little gem of a city to live in at the moment. It’s for the most part a suburban city with a myriad of shopping centers sprinkled throughout the city and a major mall in the center. The city has a lot of good qualities such as being very quiet in terms of violent crimes, airplanes/helicopters and just general outdoor activities. The aspect that I don’t like about living here is that the people are a bit on the snobby side and there are a lot of far-right leaning people that openly display their political affiliations on their cars and shirts. This aspect of Thousand Oaks also extends to some of the stores as people tend to treat you differently if you’re not white. I feel like it’s gotten worse since Donald Trump became president though there’s also been a big influx of Hispanic and Indian immigrants into the area which has created an ethnic divide among the community. A small section of Newbury Park next to where I live has also become a major haven for criminality and gang violence, an issue which has become a major problem in the recent months. I really like that Thousand Oaks is so clean and taken care of in terms of landscaping across the city though I never feel completely comfortable when I’m out with my girlfriend as I sometimes feel like I’m being profiled when I go to the local market or outdoor mall.